Brushes Redux vs LEGO® Boost
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Brushes Redux
This app offers a powerful and responsive painting experience on iOS devices. Create large, detailed artwork with a versatile brush engine, layer management, and import/export options. Relive your creative process with step-by-step playback.
- OpenGL-based painting engine
- Record and replay paintings
- Up to 10 layers
- Import/export JPEG, PNG, PSD
- Simulated pressure
- Unlimited undo/redo
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Brushes Redux is a painting app designed exclusively for iOS. Rewritten from the ground up, Brushes Redux is universal — the same version runs on both your iPhone and your iPad. Move paintings between your devices and keep working wherever you go. An accelerated OpenGL-based painting engine makes painting smooth and responsive — even with huge brush sizes. Brushes also records every step in your painting. Show off your creative process by replaying your paintings directly on your device. General Features: – Create paintings with dimensions up to 4096x4096 – Full support for all Retina devices – Background autosave – Unlimited undo and redo – Simple and approachable interface Painting: – Full screen painting – Record and replay paintings – Ultrafast OpenGL-based painting engine – Huge brush sizes up to 512x512 pixels – Simulated pressure – 64-bit painting on the latest hardware – 14 parameterized brush shapes – Adjustable brush settings (spacing, jitter, scatter, etc.) – Adjustable color opacity – Invert color and desaturate – Flip and arbitrarily transform layers – Adjustable color balance (iPad only) – Adjustable hue, saturation and brightness (iPad only) Layers: – Create up to 10 layers – Lock and hide layers – Lock layer transparency – Adjust layer opacity – Duplicate, rearrange, and merge layers – Change blending modes: normal, multiply, screen, exclude Import and Export: – Integrated with Dropbox – Import native Brushes 3 files, JPEG, and PNG files – Export as native Brushes 3 files, JPEG, PNG, and Photoshop files (with layers) – Place images from your photo album into paintings – Copy paintings to the pasteboard Gestures: – Zoom with two finger pinch – Zoom in with two finger double tap – Zoom to fit with two finger double tap – Toggle interface visibility with a single tap (this can be changed to a two finger tap in the app settings) – Tap and hold to access eyedropper tool Screenshot credit: "Portrait of Ally" by John Bavaro (http://johnbavaro.com)
LEGO® Boost
Bring your LEGO creations to life with this app. Combine it with the LEGO BOOST Creative Toolbox set to build, code, and play with interactive robots and models. Enjoy over 60 activities and digital building instructions.
- Digital LEGO Building Instructions
- Drag-and-drop programming interface
- Over 60 fun activities
- Build and code custom creations
- Control LEGO models with mobile device
- Combine with other LEGO sets
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The LEGO® Boost app is available for download until January 1st 2027. Combine this app with the LEGO® BOOST Creative Toolbox (17101) set to bring your creations to life! Enjoy more than 60 fun activities with simple drag-n'-drop coding, watch videos and access digital LEGO Building Instructions. Have fun with LEGO models that can move, talk and respond to real-world events. Take your experience to another level with advanced coding. Build and BOOST your own robot toy creations and control them from your mobile device. All it takes is three simple steps: BUILD, CODE and PLAY! Is your device compatible? Please go to LEGO.com/devicecheck to check if your device is compatible. Ask your parents’ permission before going online. LEGO® BOOST App Feature List - Access digital LEGO® Building Instructions for all 5 LEGO BOOST models included with the 17101 LEGO BOOST Creative Toolbox. - BUILD, CODE and PLAY with CODABLE LEGO® models. - Bring your LEGO® BOOST creations to life with the simple drag-n'-drop PROGRAMMING interface. - Enjoy more than 60 fun ACTIVITIES. - Imagine, build and code your own creations. Kick-start your creativity—3 inspirational models included with the app. - Combine 17101 LEGO BOOST with the LEGO® City 60194 Arctic Scout Truck to control and drive the vehicle! Use the app to operate the forklift, examine samples with the color sensor, help the whale back into the water and much more. - Combine 17101 LEGO BOOST with LEGO® NINJAGO® 70652 Stormbringer and set the Lightning Dragon free! Use the app to control the fearsome beast, fire the shooters, create a color-sensing ejector seat and much more! - Go to LEGO.com/devicecheck to check if your device is compatible. Ask your parents’ permission before going online. LEGO BOOST set (17101) Feature List - Includes 844 LEGO® pieces, plus a LEGO Move Hub, Interactive Motor and a Color & Distance Sensor. - Move Hub features Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connectivity, 2 encoded motors, activation button, internal tilt sensor and a light. - Interactive Motor is an encoded motor. - Color & Distance Sensor detects distance, motion and color, and can also function as a light. - Create and code Vernie the Robot, Frankie the Cat, the M.T.R.4 (Multi-Tooled Rover 4), the Guitar 4000 and the AutoBuilder. - Rotate Vernie’s head to activate its shoulder-mounted spring-loaded shooter. - Build the M.T.R.4 (Multi-Tooled Rover 4) and try out the different tool and customization attachments for an array of exciting activities. - Learn songs and rock out with the Guitar4000! - Look after your own pet with Frankie the Cat. Be sure to feed it the right food—or it might get upset! - Construct, code and operate the AutoBuilder to produce real miniature LEGO® models. - Build and code robots and models, and complete exciting activities with the playmat and intuitive LEGO® BOOST app. The LEGO® BOOST Creative Toolbox set (17101) is sold separately. For app support contact LEGO Consumer Service. For contact details refer to http://service.lego.com/contactus Our privacy policy and terms of use for apps are accepted if you download this app. Read more on http://aboutus.lego.com/legal-notice/Privacy-Policy and http://aboutus.lego.com/legal-notice/terms-of-use-for-apps There’s no third-party advertising. LEGO marketing content and information is served, for instance LEGO news about LEGO sets and other LEGO games, in hope of inspiring children’s creative play. LEGO and the LEGO logo are trademarks of the LEGO Group. ©2017 The LEGO Group.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: LEGO® Boost at 4.6 against Brushes Redux's 3.6. LEGO® Boost also leads on monetization model (free vs paid) and update cadence (every 3 months vs every 9 months). Brushes Redux's advantage is iOS requirement (8.0 vs 13.0). On price, review sentiment, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
LEGO® Boost holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: LEGO® Boost has 4.3K ratings behind it against 303, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 63% of Brushes Redux's written reviews are positive against 66% of LEGO® Boost's.
Brushes Redux ships an update every 9 months, LEGO® Boost every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Brushes Redux | LEGO® Boost |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.6 (303 ratings) | 4.6 (4.3K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 62.8% of reviews | 65.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 303 | 4.3K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | Every 3 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 15 MB | 717 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Christoffer Hoel | LEGO |
Customer experience
Brushes Redux
LEGO® Boost
User reviews
Brushes Redux
From 303 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🎨 Great for drawing and painting
- 💯 No ads or in-app purchases
- ⭐ Excellent for beginners
- 🎨 Customizable brushes
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- 🔍 Limited selection of tools (no blending, fill, etc.)
- 🔍 Pixelated output when zoomed in
- 🔍 Inconsistent color output
- 🔍 Difficulty using with Apple Pencil
LEGO® Boost
From 4.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fun and engaging
- 👍 Great for learning coding
- 🎨 Excellent for creativity
- 💡 Impressive programming options
- 🤖 Enjoyable building experience
Room to improve
- 🐛 Connectivity issues
- 🔋 Battery life problems
- 📚 Unclear instructions
- 🤔 Confusing programming interface
- 🔍 Difficulty finding parts
Bugs and requests
Brushes Redux
Reported bugs
4 issues- Drawings disappearing or unable to open
- Color picker issues causing unintended color changes
- Dropbox integration problems
- Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
Requested features
6 requests- Add blending tool
- Increase layer limit
- Implement video export
- Add text tool
- Improve Apple Pencil support
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- Add color stabilizer
LEGO® Boost
Reported bugs
5 issues- App crashes and freezes
- Firmware update failures
- Bluetooth connection problems
- Lost progress and build instructions
- Sensor and motor issues
Requested features
5 requests- More advanced programming blocks
- Ability to save and load projects
- Improved instructions and documentation
- Compatibility with more devices
- Easier part organization
In-app purchases
Brushes Redux
No in-app purchases
LEGO® Boost
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Brushes Redux free?
Is LEGO® Boost free?
Which has better reviews, Brushes Redux or LEGO® Boost?
Do Brushes Redux or LEGO® Boost have ads?
Which is updated more often, Brushes Redux or LEGO® Boost?
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