Universal Zoom vs Interactive Solar System
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Universal Zoom
Explore the universe's vastness and intricacy through interactive visual comparisons. Seamlessly zoom from subatomic particles to the observable universe, gaining intuition about scale and size with stunning imagery and clear explanations.
- Seamless zooming across scales
- Visual comparisons of objects
- Jargon-free scientific explanations
- Audio narration
- Over 270 objects presented to scale
- Multi-language support
Read full descriptionHide full description
The universe is endlessly vast. A single atom is impossibly small. And somewhere between those two extremes lies everything that has ever existed. We believe that feeling — the electric, spine-tingling sense of scale — belongs to everyone. Not just scientists. Not just students. Everyone. That's why we built Universal Zoom. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Zoom seamlessly from the Planck length to the edge of the observable universe — about 300 objects presented to perfect scale. • Compare any two objects side by side: how many Earths fit inside Jupiter? How does a virus measure up against a skyscraper? Instant, visual, intuitive. (No other scale app lets you do this.) • Go deeper with audio narration and short, accessible explanations — the facts that matter, in plain language. WHAT YOU'LL EXPLORE • Elementary particles — quarks, leptons, and bosons. Atomic nuclei, atoms, and DNA. Living cells. Animals and landmarks. Planets, stars, and galaxies. A deep dive into physics, biology, and astronomy — with short, plain-language articles that make even particle physics easy to grasp — in 40 languages, with metric, imperial, or powers-of-ten units. • Real high-resolution photos and electron microscope images, where possible. Original artwork for things that can't be photographed — like elementary particles and DNA structures. • No ads. No in-app purchases. Pure discovery. BUILT WITH YOU We're a team of two (Andrey and Oksana) from Canada who have poured a decade into this app because we genuinely love science. Most objects come from community suggestions — carefully fact-checked and updated with every new discovery. Over 200 more are already in the queue. FOR EDUCATORS Used by teachers worldwide to visualize scale, build measurement intuition, and turn abstract numbers into "aha" moments. Available at 50% off for schools via Apple School Manager (20+ copies). FOLLOW THE JOURNEY Sneak peeks and upcoming additions: @gamifyitapps on X, YouTube, and TikTok. Feedback and ideas: gamifyitapps.com/contact
Interactive Solar System
Read full descriptionHide full description
Take a thrilling tour of the Solar System with the Interactive Solar System Explorer. Select the planet that you wish to explore and then hit the power button to zoom off to your destination. When you arrive a myriad of interesting facts await you. Tap a button access interesting data about each of the planets, the asteroids and the Earth's moon. Facts include distance from the sun, diameter, mass, and orbital and rotational periods -- all presented in an interactive format. Tap the info button to read interesting facts about each important object in the solar system. Teachers will really like this app. After students have read about the planets, they can tap the quiz button to measure their reading comprehension. In addition to the quiz there is also a word game that helps students review the information presented. Charts and graphs are used to present comparison information about the planets. Interactive Solar System Explorer is available for iOS and tvOS devices. It is just beautiful on a big screen TV and would be a wonderfully exciting tool in any science classroom.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Interactive Solar System at fortnightly against Universal Zoom's every 4 months. Interactive Solar System also leads on price ($1.99 vs $5.99) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.5). Universal Zoom's advantage is device support (4 vs 2). On ads and in-app purchases 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
Universal Zoom costs $5.99 and Interactive Solar System $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Universal Zoom ships an update every 4 months, Interactive Solar System fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Universal Zoom | Interactive Solar System |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $5.99 | $1.99 — better |
| Rating | 4.8 (356 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 96.6% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 356 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better | iPad, Apple TV |
| Requires iOS | 15.5 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 175 MB | 52 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | GamifyIt | Ventura Educational Systems |
Bugs and requests
Universal Zoom
Reported bugs
3 issues- Incorrect information for some objects
- Compatibility issues on older devices
- Typos and minor errors in text
Requested features
5 requests- Add more objects and comparisons
- Customizable object feature
- Support for more languages
- Ability to toggle between metric and imperial units
- Search and filtering options
Interactive Solar System
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Universal Zoom
No in-app purchases
Interactive Solar System
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Universal Zoom free?
Is Interactive Solar System free?
Do Universal Zoom or Interactive Solar System have ads?
Which is updated more often, Universal Zoom or Interactive Solar System?
Other comparisons















