Beatbook vs SimpleSampler
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Beatbook
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A drum machine with nothing in it until you beatbox into it. Beatbook is a pocket loop station with one twist: every pad starts completely empty. There's no stock drum kit hiding underneath. Hold a pad, make a sound with your mouth (or your desk, or your dog), and that's your kick. Hold another โ that's your snare. In under two minutes you've built a kit out of nothing but your own voice. Record your own sounds. Sixteen pads, all empty on first launch. Press and hold to record, release to stop โ no menus, no settings, just hold and make noise. Re-record any pad any time. One row can even hold a longer take, for anyone who wants to hum a hook instead of tapping a beat. Loop it, layer it. Hit record for a one-bar count-in, then tap out a 4-bar beat that loops right back on itself โ tight and quantized by default, or turn snap off and keep your own exact timing. Keep hitting record to stack layer on layer: kick pass, then hats, then a vocal stab on top. Perform it live. Four row-mute checkboxes sit right next to the grid โ one touch kills a whole row mid-loop, instantly, with zero glitch. Cut the bass, build the tension, slam it back in on the downbeat. It's built for that tension-and-release move live loopers love, not just for programming a beat and walking away. Keep it or share it. Every beat autosaves โ there's no save button, because you can't lose your work. Park a few different beats in the tape deck's save slots, come back to any of them, or export a loop straight to Messages or Mail so a friend can hear it. Made a beat you love? It's one tap away from someone else's ears. Sketched, not skinned. Every line on screen looks hand-drawn in pencil on ruled notebook paper โ because beatboxing into your phone in a quiet corner of a study hall is exactly the vibe this app is for. No ads. No stock sounds. No account. Just you, a mic, and an empty grid waiting to be filled.
SimpleSampler
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SimpleSampler turns any sound into an instrument. Record a piano note, a clap, your voice or a glass you tap with a spoon. The app detects the pitch and puts the sound on a keyboard, so you can play it across several octaves right away. RECORDING Press record and the app shows you what it hears before the take starts. The recording begins with your first sound, not with the button press, so there is no silence or click at the start. If you don't like the take, cancel it and nothing is saved. KEYBOARD AND DRUM PADS The keyboard shows two octaves at a time and scrolls. It is fully multitouch, so chords and glissandos work. Eight drum pads hold eight different samples for beats. Pitch and length are independent: higher notes last as long as lower ones. If you prefer the classic tape sound, where higher also means faster, switch it on with one tap. LOOP STATION Tap a loop slot, play something and tap again to close the loop. Every new layer stays in time with the first one. You can also record a loop straight from the microphone. Your loops are still there the next time you open the app. RECORD YOUR SONG One button records everything you play: keyboard, pads and loops. It records what the app outputs, not what the microphone picks up, so the result is clean. Share it via AirDrop, Messages or any other app. PORTRAIT AND LANDSCAPE On iPhone, hold it upright to record and edit samples and turn it sideways to play. On iPad you get pads and keyboard on one screen. No account, no subscription, no tracking. Your recordings stay on your device unless you share them.
Screenshots
Verdict
Beatbook and SimpleSampler are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters โ price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them โ neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
| Parameter | Beatbook | SimpleSampler |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad โ better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.4 โ better |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 3 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Samuel Logan | Max Nowack |
In-app purchases
Beatbook
No in-app purchases
SimpleSampler
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Beatbook free?
Is SimpleSampler free?
Do Beatbook or SimpleSampler have ads?
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