Comparison

eCollection vs Clicker Writer

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

eCollection

This app provides a digital platform for guided reading, offering a library of leveled eBooks and interactive features for teachers and students. It supports various reading profiles, word interaction, recording, drawing, and text editing to enhance comprehension and engagement.

Highlights
  • Guided Reading Profile
  • Custom Reading Profile
  • Independent Reading Profile
  • Tap to Hear Words
  • Tap to Save Words
  • Record Mode
  • Draw Mode
Read full description

The eCollection eReader app is part of a brand new platform that re-imagines guided reading for iPads. Guided reading is a widely used teaching strategy where the teacher and all students in a group have a copy of the same book. The teacher assists the students to practise various reading strategies in order to comprehend the text. The eCollection eReader app allows teachers and students to use eCollection eBooks for guided reading. It utilises native iOS gestures to provide a seamless experience for young readers. ~~~~~~~~~~ FEATURES ~~~~~~~~~~ 300 pedagogically sound, carefully levelled eCollection eBooks combined with the following features: + Guided Reading Profile + Custom Reading Profile + Independent Reading Profile + Tap to Hear Words + Tap to Save Words + Record Mode + Draw Mode + Edit Text Mode + Reading Sessions + Student Profiles + Reading History + Reading Groups ~~~~~~~~~~~ REVIEWS ~~~~~~~~~~~ "A great way to access a very thorough levelled reading resource. It is compact and accessible." "I am working with older students and adults. It is a fantastic way for them to access material that they can read without making it obvious that they are reading at a low level." "I love having access to the eCollection readers digitally. I have used them throughout my 30+ years teaching" "Easy for kids, parents, teachers to use, convenient, wide range of books/levels, great graphics and wonderful app. Great resource for setting readers for home or school." "eCollection has made a difference in the learning for our target children." "A highly engaging digital reading resource directly linked to school reading." "Books are expensive and this is a cheaper option. No lost or damaged books." ~~~~~~~~~~ SUPPORT ~~~~~~~~~~ Send us an email at anz.techsupport@cengage.com with any questions, feedback or requests. Privacy Policy: https://cengage.com.au/privacy Terms and Conditions: https://cengage.com.au/terms Contact: https://cengage.com.au/contact-us

About

Clicker Writer

This writing tool supports students of all abilities, from ages 5-11, to build confidence and improve their writing skills. It offers features like speech feedback, word prediction, and customizable grids with pictures to aid sentence construction and vocabulary development.

Highlights
  • Speech feedback for reviewing writing
  • Clicker Grids for sentence building
  • Picture-enhanced word banks
  • Intelligent word prediction
  • Voice notes for prompts
  • SuperKeys for accessibility
Features
Read full description

THE WRITING TOOL FOR SCHOOLS Develop students’ writing skills and build struggling writers’ confidence with Clicker Writer - the writing tool that provides differentiated support for students of all abilities. Continuously developed by Crick Software for over 30 years, the Clicker product range is used in thousands of schools around the world. REVIEW WRITING WITH CLEAR SPEECH Students use the child-friendly keyboard to type into the simple word processor, and a range of speech options encourages them to review what they have written. This helps students find and correct errors for themselves, enabling them to become more independent writers. BUILD WRITING CONFIDENCE WITH CLICKER GRIDS Clicker Grids provide students with point and click access to whole words and phrases. Beginner writers build sentences word-by-word, while developing writers use topic-based word banks to complement their keyboard writing. Browse LearningGrids directly from the app to access hundreds of free sets of Clicker Grids on a wide range of topics - or use the built-in editor (which now includes Cai, our amazing AI assistant) to create your own in seconds! USE SYMBOLS AND PICTURES FOR EXTRA SUPPORT Clicker Writer’s Picturize tool makes it easy to add symbols or pictures to support understanding and writing across Clicker Grids, the spell checker, the word predictor, and your document. It includes 10,000 Widgit symbols and 4,500 curriculum pictures, and you can also add your own images. DEVELOP VOCABULARY AND SPELLING WITH WORD PREDICTION The intelligent word predictor suggests words that fit the context of students’ writing, helping them to use good vocabulary and create flowing text with accurate spelling. CHECK WORDS BEFORE THEY ARE USED Learners can listen to words before they write them, helping them to find the word they want and achieve writing success. Any word in a Clicker Grid or the predictor can be heard before it is used by using our unique Sound Shift tool. ADD VOICE NOTES Voice Notes are a simple yet highly effective way for students to add their own prompts, so they don’t forget their train of thought – add them to the document at any time. WRITING TO BE PROUD OF The child-friendly Sassoon font included in the app makes Clicker documents look great. Save and print your documents directly on your device, or share them with Clicker Writer on your PC, Mac or Chromebook via Google Drive or OneDrive. Whatever your students’ current level, you’ll watch their confidence grow and their motivation soar as they experience writing success! ACCESSIBLE FOR ALL To make access easier for those with physical challenges, the unique SuperKeys option groups the letter keys into clusters, creating just six large areas to target. Just select the cluster containing the letter you want, then choose the letter in the enlarged cluster. Colors and font sizes can be customized for enhanced visibility. ORGANIZE IDEAS WITH CLICKER BOARD Organizing ideas is an important first step in the writing process, and one that many learners struggle with. Clicker Board is a child-friendly mind mapping area that makes it easy to capture and organize thoughts using words, Voice Notes, and pictures.

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Clicker Writer at 4.5 against eCollection's 4.0. Clicker Writer also leads on review sentiment (43% vs 18%) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 6 months). eCollection's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and iOS requirement (12.2 vs 17). On price, ratings volume, ads and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Clicker Writer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. eCollection asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Clicker Writer holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 2 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 18% of eCollection's written reviews are positive against 43% of Clicker Writer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

eCollection ships an update every 6 months, Clicker Writer every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
eCollection versus Clicker Writer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParametereCollectionClicker Writer
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (3 ratings)4.5 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews18.2% of reviews42.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPadiPad
Requires iOS12.2 — better17
Further details — not scored
Size99 MB174 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCengage Learning AustraliaCrick Software

Customer experience

eCollection

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews55 reviews
Positive18.2%
Neutral10.9%
Negative70.9%

Clicker Writer

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive42.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative57.1%

Bugs and requests

eCollection

Reported bugs

22 issues
  • App not working
  • Crash delete download repeat
  • Can’t quit from drawing mode
  • Stuck, hard to return to main page
  • No home page, cannot back to home page
Show 17 more
  • Buggy interface, buttons not displaying properly
  • Loses recording when turning pages
  • Blank screen when turning pages too fast
  • Login freezing/not being able to login
  • Crashes every time trying to log in
  • Cannot exit from a book
  • Stuck in book unable to exit
  • Terrible glitches
  • Login issues, cannot login
  • App opens but cannot click anything to login
  • Buttons do not work on current iPad update
  • Login button doesn’t work
  • App won't start
  • Stuck at login screen
  • Severe crashing problems
  • App keeps shutting down
  • Slow at connecting

Requested features

7 requests
  • Save login details
  • Clear navigation to return to main page/shelf
  • Option to buy individual subscriptions
  • Add bigger books (e.g., comics)
  • Clarify privacy for voice recording
Show 2 more
  • Improve UI and interaction design
  • Add marking read feature

Clicker Writer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

eCollection

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Clicker Writer

One-time1
  • Clicker Writer In-App Purchase$350.00

Questions

Is eCollection free?
eCollection is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Clicker Writer free?
Clicker Writer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, eCollection or Clicker Writer?
Clicker Writer is rated higher. eCollection averages 4.0 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while Clicker Writer averages 4.5 from 2 ratings.
Do eCollection or Clicker Writer have ads?
Neither eCollection nor Clicker Writer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, eCollection or Clicker Writer?
eCollection ships an update every 6 months, and Clicker Writer every 2 months. Most recently, eCollection was updated on November 1, 2026 and Clicker Writer on October 24, 2026.

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