CMB Maps vs Univerzoom 3D
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CMB Maps
Explore the cosmic microwave background with detailed maps from various missions. Interact with the sky, zoom in on specific areas, and learn about the universe's oldest light through informative notes and charts. Works offline and is designed for privacy.
- Interactive sky maps
- Multiple mission data (COBE, WMAP, Planck)
- Detailed zoom and pan functionality
- Informative notes and timelines
- Customizable color scales
- Offline functionality
- Accessibility features
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CMB Maps shows the cosmic microwave background, the oldest light we can see, across the whole sky. Every map is drawn live on your device from the missions' own data: COBE, WMAP, Planck's 2018 map and Planck's nine frequency maps. THE SKY • The whole sky in one oval. Drag it, let it glide, and pinch to zoom in as far as the map's own detail goes. • Tap anywhere to read the map there. Tap the Cold Spot's label and Planck's map reads the point at its centre: "Colder than average, about −270 µK · 10 in 100,000", with the position on the sky. • Switch between COBE, WMAP and Planck, Planck's nine frequencies from 30 to 857 GHz, and Planck's map smoothed to less detail. Choose the colours and the scale. • Add a grid, the celestial equator and the ecliptic, constellation lines, size rulers and 20 landmarks you can fly to. • Step inside the sphere with Around you, and on iPhone or iPad turn on Look around to turn the view by moving your device. THE CARD • The whole sky and, under or beside it, a live close-up of one patch of the same map, outlined on the sky like the inset in a science paper, with the full Moon drawn to scale. Choose the patch from a short list, and where the screen allows, pinch it for a second, closer step. • Tilt your iPhone to fade from one map to the next, as on a lenticular card, and feel each map click into place. The Tilt button turns tilt on and off; the slider, taps and keys do everything tilting does, and Auto plays the deck for you. • Seven decks: Missions (COBE, WMAP and Planck on one colour scale), Sharpness, Frequency, Contrast, Any two, Scales, and Classic 2014, the look of the original app. LEARN • "What am I looking at?", short notes on every map, and a timeline of twelve moments, from the 1948 prediction of the glow to a mission planned for the 2030s. • Two charts: the spectrum (brightness by frequency) and the power spectrum (ripple strength by angular scale). A glossary, and every number in the app with its source. HONEST BY DESIGN • Every view names its map and shows its colour scale. About this map, one tap away, says what the map is, where it comes from, who made it and what was changed. • The colours are false colour: you choose them, and the colour bar always says what they mean. Filled-in areas are hatched, and each map's caveats are spelled out. OFFLINE, PRIVATE AND ACCESSIBLE • Works fully offline. No account, no ads, no in-app purchases, no tracking. • VoiceOver with Describe this view, Switch Control, Dynamic Type, Reduce Motion, keyboard shortcuts on iPad and Mac, two colour-blind-safe palettes and a contour mode. • Upright or sideways on iPhone and iPad, and in a window on a Mac with Apple silicon. CMB Maps is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA or ESA. Sky data: ESA, Planck Collaboration; NASA / WMAP Science Team; NASA / COBE Science Team.
Univerzoom 3D
Explore the vastness of the universe and the intricacies of the microcosmos with intuitive touch controls. Compare celestial bodies, everyday objects, and subatomic particles to grasp their true scale. Discover fascinating facts and learn about the cosmos and beyond.
- Intuitive gesture-based scaling
- Explore universe to atomic levels
- Compare sizes of diverse objects
- Learn facts about celestial bodies
- Text-to-Speech for facts
- External resource links
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This app gives you the superpower to scale the entire universe with a swipe of your fingers! Zoom out faster than light and see the cosmos from a whole new perspective. Compare the biggest objects to the tiniest and get a true sense of size. ZOOM • Control the scale with simple gestures • Zoom out billions of light years to the edge of the visible universe • Zoom in to microscopic dimensions, down to atoms and beyond • Easy for anyone to use — from kids to grandparents DISCOVER • Explore the scale of the universe and the microcosmos • Compare stars, planets, rockets, telescopes, animals, and everyday objects • Understand how our Sun measures up to other stars LEARN • Find stunning facts about selected objects, or let them be read aloud via Text-to-Speech • Access trusted external sources for deeper exploration • Perfect for curious minds, students, and science fans Download now and experience the universe like never before!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Univerzoom 3D at 97% against CMB Maps's 50%. Univerzoom 3D also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.9) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 75 months). CMB Maps's advantage is price (Free vs $2.99). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
CMB Maps is free to download; Univerzoom 3D costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Univerzoom 3D holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Univerzoom 3D has 289 ratings behind it against 21, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of CMB Maps's written reviews are positive against 97% of Univerzoom 3D's.
CMB Maps ships an update every 75 months, Univerzoom 3D every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CMB Maps | Univerzoom 3D |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $2.99 |
| Rating | 3.9 (21 ratings) | 4.8 (289 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | 97.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 21 | 289 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 75 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 136 MB | 255 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Qingqing Mao | Linda Schnetzinger |
Customer experience
CMB Maps
Univerzoom 3D
In-app purchases
CMB Maps
No in-app purchases
Univerzoom 3D
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is CMB Maps free?
Is Univerzoom 3D free?
Which has better reviews, CMB Maps or Univerzoom 3D?
Do CMB Maps or Univerzoom 3D have ads?
Which is updated more often, CMB Maps or Univerzoom 3D?
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