Comparison

Pixelboop vs FlipDeck

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

Head to head
About

Pixelboop

Create music visually by drawing on a colorful grid. This app transforms your device into a visual sequencer where notes become pixels, making music production accessible without prior theory knowledge. Explore melodies, basslines, chords, and rhythms with intuitive gestures and automatic key correction.

Highlights
  • Visual music creation by drawing on a grid
  • Four independent tracks for melody, bass, chords, and rhythm
  • Automatic key correction with interval modes
  • Intuitive gesture controls for note placement and editing
  • MIDI I/O for connecting external hardware
  • Designed for accessibility with a visual-first approach
Features
Read full description

Make music as visual as it is audible. Pixelboop turns your iPhone or iPad into a visual sequencer where every note becomes a colored pixel on screen. No music theory required: tap, draw, and see the sounds. DRAW YOUR MUSIC Create beats by painting on a colorful grid. Each row is a note, each column is a moment in time. Tap to place notes, drag to draw melodies or chords, and watch your music come alive as patterns scroll across the screen. Music production that feels like a game. 4 TRACKS, INFINITE POSSIBILITIES Layer across four independent tracks: • Melody, expressive lead lines and hooks • Chords, rich harmonic backing • Bass, deep and driving low end • Rhythm, punchy drums and percussion Each track has its own color palette, so you can read a whole arrangement at a glance. 48 INSTRUMENT SOUNDS Sixteen sounds each for melody, chords and bass, from electric piano and glass pads to growling bass and bell leads. Hold a track's control column to audition and switch sounds while the loop keeps playing. EFFECTS YOU PLAY ON THE GRID Every track has its own effects column. Tap to switch between reverb and delay, compression and distortion, or a filter sweep, then slide to set the amount. No menus to dig through, and the column animates with what you hear. ALWAYS SOUNDS GOOD Pixelboop keeps you in key automatically. Choose major or minor and every note you place sounds musical. Note colors follow the circle of fifths, so harmonious notes look alike and clashing ones stand out. Interval modes let you explore different note relationships: • Pentatonic, classic 5-note scales that always work • Thirds, fourths and fifths, stack notes in musical intervals GESTURES THAT FEEL NATURAL • Tap an empty cell to place a note, tap the note again to erase it • Double-tap a note for an accent • Drag right to draw long, sustained notes • Move up and down as you drag across to build arpeggios • Hold a chord to cycle through the diatonic options ON IPAD The grid has no labels by design. On iPad, tap ? and it names itself: every control, every lane, and the note each row plays. Change key or scale and the names follow. It fades while you play and returns when you stop. EXPORT YOUR MUSIC (PIXELBOOP PRO) Bounce a finished jam to audio, export per-track stems to mix elsewhere, or send MIDI straight to your DAW. One purchase, no subscription, yours forever. SAVE, REPLAY AND SHARE JAMS Every session is saved as you play. Browse and reload any jam, set one as your starting template, or send it to a friend. Open a shared jam link and it loads straight into the grid. TEMPO AND TIMING Adjust BPM from ambient textures to driving dance beats. A visual playhead shows exactly where you are in the loop. Variable grid lengths plus 8 banks of 8 sections cover everything from a 4-bar loop to an extended arrangement. Loop one bank while you build it, or run the whole song. AUv3 PLUGIN Load Pixelboop inside AUM, Logic Pro or any Audio Unit host as a MIDI plugin. The same scale-locked grid becomes the brain of your studio, following your host's transport and tempo. MIDI AND HARDWARE Connect hardware synths and drum machines over USB or Bluetooth MIDI, with per-track send channels. Pixelboop also plays from an Erae Touch controller, with the grid mapped across its surface. DESIGNED FOR ACCESSIBILITY Pixelboop was created by a deaf musician who believes music should be visual first. The interface relies on color, position and visual feedback rather than requiring you to hear every nuance. Whether you are deaf, hard of hearing, or simply prefer a visual approach, Pixelboop meets you where you are. PERFECT FOR • Beginners who want to make music without learning theory • Producers looking for a fresh creative tool • Anyone who thinks visually and wants music to match • Educators teaching music through visual patterns • Deaf and hard of hearing musicians seeking accessible tools Music creation reimagined for the visual mind. Paint your first beat in seconds.

About

FlipDeck

Features
Read full description

Record your cat, a sneeze, a sound from a TikTok. FlipDeck trims it, chops it and puts it on pads you can play like an instrument. Then it turns your performance into a video you can post. MAKE A BEAT OUT OF ANYTHING • Hold an empty pad to record from the mic. Eight effects (bass boost, fuzz, robot, octave up and down, and more) are recorded straight into the sample. • Sample any video in your Photos, or import audio files. • Chop a loop into slices automatically, or tap along to set the cuts. • Split a song into drums, vocals, bass and other with on-device AI. PLAY IT • 64 pads in four banks, with volume, pitch, pan, envelopes, a 3-band EQ and choke groups on every pad. • Keys mode plays any sound across a scale. Twelve scales, any root. • A built-in synth with five waveforms, a resonant filter and envelopes. Every note is generated live. • Note repeat and an arpeggiator, locked to the tempo. • 16 touch FX strips for live performance: stutter, tape echo, filter sweeps, reverse and more. SEQUENCE IT • 32 patterns you can switch between on the beat or the bar. • Record live, draw in a step grid, or write melodies in a full piano roll with velocity. • Swing, probability, note length, tap tempo. MIX IT • Send pads to four buses, each with three effect slots: reverb, tempo-synced delay, filters, bitcrush, drive, compression and chorus. • Load your AUv3 effect plugins right into FlipDeck. SHARE IT • One tap records your performance and renders a vertical video with the pads lighting up in time. • Remix links: send a whole beat as a link. It opens on your friend's phone sounding exactly the same. • Flip of the Day: everyone gets the same kit each day. Post yours with #FlipOfTheDay. WORKS WITH YOUR SETUP • USB, Bluetooth and network MIDI controllers. • Use FlipDeck as an instrument plugin inside GarageBand, AUM, Cubasis and other hosts. • Export WAVs, per-pad stems, MIDI files, or a complete Ableton Live bundle. PRIVATE BY DESIGN No account, no ads, no tracking. Your recordings never leave your phone unless you share them. FLIPDECK PRO (one-time purchase) Mixer effects, AUv3 plugin hosting, Ableton and MIDI export, AI stem separation and videos without the watermark. Everything you need to make beats is free. Privacy Policy: https://flipdeck.app/privacy Terms of Use: https://flipdeck.app/terms

Screenshots

Pixelboop4 screens
FlipDeck4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: FlipDeck at Free against Pixelboop's $7.99. FlipDeck also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs fortnightly). Pixelboop's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On ads and device support 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

FlipDeck is free to download; Pixelboop costs $7.99 up front. FlipDeck sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Pixelboop asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pixelboop ships an update fortnightly, FlipDeck every 3 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Pixelboop versus FlipDeck: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPixelboopFlipDeck
Price$7.99Free — better
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaid—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size12 MB80 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerde Bastion, IncPerry Hampton

In-app purchases

None

Pixelboop

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

FlipDeck

One-time1
  • FlipDeck Pro$9.99

Questions

Is Pixelboop free?
Pixelboop costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is FlipDeck free?
FlipDeck is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Pixelboop or FlipDeck have ads?
Neither Pixelboop nor FlipDeck shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Pixelboop or FlipDeck?
Pixelboop ships an update fortnightly, and FlipDeck every 3 days. Most recently, Pixelboop was updated on October 31, 2026 and FlipDeck on October 31, 2026.

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