Comparison

Phoneme vs NOTICAU

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

Head to head
About

Phoneme

Features
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Phoneme is a fast, legible IPA reference and pronunciation trainer built for EFL and ESL teachers β€” and anyone who wants to understand English sounds. REFERENCE β€” ALWAYS FREE β€’ Complete chart of 38 English phonemes (24 consonants, 14 vowels and diphthongs) β€’ Tap any IPA symbol to hear it spoken and read the articulation cue β€’ Keyword examples for every sound (e.g. Ι™ β†’ "schwa", Κƒ β†’ "shoe") β€’ Designed around the International Phonetic Alphabet standard β€’ Works offline β€” no account, no internet required The free Reference tab is always accessible. No paywall, no timer, no nudge. TRAIN β€” ONE-TIME UNLOCK ($4.99) Unlock permanent access to all drill modes: β€’ Minimal-pair drills β€” contrast similar sounds side by side (ship vs. sheep, bit vs. beat). The classic exercise for ear training. β€’ Hear-and-choose β€” listen to a phoneme and tap the correct IPA symbol. Builds auditory discrimination. β€’ Identify-the-symbol β€” see the IPA glyph and match it to the spoken keyword. Reinforces symbol literacy. β€’ Printable IPA charts and minimal-pair contrast handouts for classroom use β€” export as PDF for your students. β€’ Session progress tracking β€” streaks and accuracy history so you can see which sounds need more work. One payment. No subscription. Yours permanently. BUILT FOR EFL CLASSROOMS Phoneme was designed with CELTA and DELTA teachers in mind. Every screen is optimised for quick reference during a lesson β€” pull up the chart, tap a sound, hand the phone to a student. The IPA chart layout follows standard teaching conventions. The drill modes cover the exercises that appear most frequently in phonemic awareness curricula: minimal pairs for contrastive analysis, listening discrimination, and symbol recognition. If you teach pronunciation, these are the exercises your students need. DESIGN Phoneme uses a retro Mac OS 8 window aesthetic β€” beveled chrome, sandy beige background, crisp IPA glyphs in Accent Orange on a white content area. It looks different because it is different: a reference tool that takes its visual identity seriously. PRIVACY No account required. The IPA Reference works entirely offline. Optional sign-in (magic link or Google) is available to sync your Train Unlock across devices. We use anonymous product analytics to improve the app β€” we do not sell your data, we do not track you across other apps, and we do not show ads. See our privacy policy at phoneme.app/privacy.

About

NOTICAU

Features
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μ€‘μ•™λŒ€μ˜ λͺ¨λ“  곡지λ₯Ό ν•œκ³³μ—μ„œ ν™•μΈν•˜μ„Έμš”! κ°œμΈν™”λœ μΆ”μ²œκ³Ό μ•Œλ¦ΌκΉŒμ§€ ν•œκ³³μ— λͺ¨μ•„보기 학사·μž₯ν•™Β·μƒν™œκ΄€λΆ€ν„° 우리 ν•™κ³Ό κ³΅μ§€κΉŒμ§€, μžλ™μœΌλ‘œ λͺ¨μ•„μ„œ ν•œ 화면에 λ³΄μ—¬λ“œλ €μš”. κΈΈλ©΄ μš”μ•½ν•΄μ„œ κΈ΄ 곡지도 ν•΅μ‹¬λ§Œ 쏙 λ½‘μ•„λ“œλ €μš”. λ§ˆκ°μΌμ΄λž‘ μ‹ μ²­ 방법이 λ°”λ‘œ λˆˆμ— λ“€μ–΄μ™€μš”. ν‚€μ›Œλ“œλ‘œ λ”± 맞게 'μž₯ν•™', 'μˆ˜κ°•μ‹ μ²­'처럼 관심 μžˆλŠ” ν‚€μ›Œλ“œλ§Œ 등둝해두면, κ΄€λ ¨ 곡지가 올라올 λ•Œ λ°”λ‘œ μ•Œλ €λ“œλ¦΄κ²Œμš”. λ§ˆκ°μ€ λ†“μΉ˜μ§€ μ•Šκ²Œ 였늘 마감인 κ³΅μ§€λ§Œ λ”°λ‘œ λͺ¨μ•„μ£Όκ³ , μΊ˜λ¦°λ”μ—λ„ ν•œ λ²ˆμ— 담을 수 μžˆμ–΄μš”. λ‹€μ‹œ λ³Ό 건 챙겨두고 μ€‘μš”ν•œ κ³΅μ§€λŠ” λΆλ§ˆν¬ν•˜κ³  ν΄λ”λ‘œ μ •λ¦¬ν•΄μ„œ, μ–Έμ œλ“  λ‹€μ‹œ κΊΌλ‚΄λ΄μš”.

Screenshots

Phoneme4 screens
NOTICAU4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: NOTICAU at none against Phoneme's 1. NOTICAU also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs weekly). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Phoneme sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. NOTICAU asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Phoneme ships an update weekly, NOTICAU every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Β· 4 level
Phoneme versus NOTICAU: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhonemeNOTICAU
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 3 days β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo β€” better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.0 β€” better15.1
Further details β€” not scored
Size22 MB39 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperTTG Languages LLCTAEHYUN JOO

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Phoneme

One-time1
  • Train Unlock$4.99
None

NOTICAU

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Phoneme free?
Phoneme is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is NOTICAU free?
NOTICAU is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Phoneme or NOTICAU have ads?
Neither Phoneme nor NOTICAU shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Phoneme or NOTICAU?
Phoneme ships an update weekly, and NOTICAU every 3 days. Most recently, Phoneme was updated on October 24, 2026 and NOTICAU on October 20, 2026.

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