Comparison

RPN vs Nixie Calculator

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

Head to head
About

RPN

This app emulates the first pocket scientific calculator, offering a photo-realistic vintage experience. It simulates original operating speeds and unique arithmetic bugs, with optional modern enhancements like non-volatile registers.

Highlights
  • Photo-realistic look-and-feel
  • Multiple vintage skins
  • Vintage and Enhanced modes
  • Optional key-click and key-glow
  • Swipe to correct input
  • Display stack and memory registers
Features
Read full description

On January 4, 1972, Hewlett-Packard announced the HP-35, world's first scientific calculator small enough to fit in a pocket - more precisely, Bill Hewlett's shirt-pocket. The HP-35 was an immediate hit with students, engineers, and scientists. Despite its steep price of $395 (about $3000 today), it sold ten times better than anticipated in the first year. Experience this unique calculator that won HP the prestigious "IEEE Milestone in Electrical Engineering and Computing" in 2009. Features: • Photo-realistic look-and-feel • Three skins: version 1, versions 2 & 3 (1973) and final version 4 (1974) • Vintage mode and Enhanced mode • Key-click and key-glow, both optional • Swipe left across display to correct number input errors • Cut/copy/paste display value • Display stack registers and memory registers • All decimal points but one light when iPhone battery charge drops below 5% Vintage mode In this mode, peculiarities of a real HP-35 are simulated: - original speed of operation - stack register Z copied to T on trig functions - leading zeros may be entered; zero can be made negative - a negative number may be entered by pressing CHS before or after the number - a keyboard entry or RCL immediately following STO does not raise the stack - for version 1 only: simulation of a number of known arithmetic bugs Enhanced mode - non-volatile stack and registers - use registers 1 through 9 with HP-45-like register arithmetic - register 0 works as LastX register

About

Nixie Calculator

This calculator app features a digital paper tape to display entries, which can be copied or shared. It offers various customization options like color schemes, rounding, and display modes, blending retro aesthetics with modern device technology.

Highlights
  • Paper tape for entry display
  • Copy and paste functionality
  • Customizable color schemes
  • Adjustable rounding and exponential modes
  • Classic Nixie font option
  • Thousand separator styles
Read full description

Features of Nixie Calculator: • Paper tape to display what you have entered. Can be copied or shared • Copy and paste entries Settings available: • Color schemes • Color layouts (in-app purchase) • Rounding options • Exponential modes • Use classic Nixie font for the display • Separators embedded with the digits • Classic pyramid and illuminated thousand separators • Classic red filter The calculator is a rounding or truncating type to fit numbers into the fixed display. Please enjoy this calculator that combines one of the first display technologies with state of the art in phone and tablet technology.

Screenshots

RPN4 screens
Nixie Calculator4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Nixie Calculator at Free against RPN's $1.99. Nixie Calculator also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.4) and update cadence (monthly vs every 6 months). RPN's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On review sentiment, ratings volume, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Nixie Calculator is free to download; RPN costs $1.99 up front. Nixie Calculator sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. RPN asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Nixie Calculator holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 14 and 15 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 71% of RPN's written reviews are positive against 67% of Nixie Calculator's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

RPN ships an update every 6 months, Nixie Calculator monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
RPN versus Nixie Calculator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRPNNixie Calculator
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating4.4 (14 ratings)4.9 (15 ratings) — better
Positive reviews71.4% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings1415 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size14 MB36 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCuVee SoftwareUNB SYSTEMS PTY LTD

Customer experience

RPN

All ratings14 ratings
Positive71.4%
Neutral21.4%
Negative7.1%
Written reviews14 reviews
Positive71.4%
Neutral21.4%
Negative7.1%

Nixie Calculator

All ratings13 ratings
Positive92.3%
Neutral7.7%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral33.3%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

RPN

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Nixie Calculator

One-time1
  • Color Layouts$2.99

Questions

Is RPN free?
RPN costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Nixie Calculator free?
Nixie Calculator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, RPN or Nixie Calculator?
Nixie Calculator is rated higher. RPN averages 4.4 out of 5 from 14 ratings, while Nixie Calculator averages 4.9 from 15 ratings.
Do RPN or Nixie Calculator have ads?
Neither RPN nor Nixie Calculator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, RPN or Nixie Calculator?
RPN ships an update every 6 months, and Nixie Calculator monthly. Most recently, RPN was updated on November 4, 2026 and Nixie Calculator on November 3, 2026.

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