Physics Toolbox Tone Generator vs phyphox
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Physics Toolbox Tone Generator
Generate continuous tones with adjustable frequency and amplitude. Modify wave shapes like sine, square, triangle, and sawtooth. Useful for science education experiments and demonstrating sound wave principles.
- Continuous tone generation
- Adjustable frequency (0-20,000 Hz)
- Adjustable amplitude (volume)
- Multiple wave shapes (sine, square, triangle, sawtooth)
- Educational applications for sound science
- Demonstrate inverse-square law
Read full descriptionHide full description
This tone generator app produces a continuous tone. The user can modify both the frequency (~pitch) (0 - 20,000 Hz) and the amplitude (~volume) of the sound wave. The wave shape can also be modified as sin, square, triangle, and saw-tooth. This app can be used in science education in conjunction with a sound meter to determine the inverse-square law for sound intensity, or with another tone generator to produce audible beats (by combining two tones of slight different frequencies). If you have any questions, comments, or would like to see modifications/updates, please email me at support@vieyrasoftware.net
phyphox
Unlock your phone's sensors for scientific exploration. Conduct pre-built experiments or create your own using accelerometers, magnetometers, and more. Analyze and export data in various formats for further study.
- Pre-defined experiments
- Data export (CSV, TSV, Excel)
- Web-based remote control
- Custom experiment editor
- Access to phone sensors
- Advanced analysis functions
Read full descriptionHide full description
Did you know that you are carrying a 3D magnetometer? That you can use your phone as a pendulum to measure earth's local gravitational acceleration? That you can turn your phone into a sonar? phyphox gives you access to the sensors of your phone either directly or through ready-to-play experiments which analyze your data and let you export raw data along with the results for further analysis. You can even define your own experiments on phyphox.org and share them with colleagues, students and friends. Selected Features: • A selection of pre-defined experiments. Just press play to start. • Export your data to a range of widely used formats • Remote-control your experiment through a web interface from any PC on the same network as your phone. No need to install anything on those PCs - all you need is a modern web browser. • Define your own experiments by selecting sensor inputs, defining analysis steps and creating views as an interface using our web-editor (http://phyphox.org/editor). The analysis consists of just adding two values or using advanced methods like Fourier transforms and crosscorrelation. We offer a whole toolbox of analysis functions. Sensors supported: • Accelerometer • Magnetometer • Gyroscope • Pressure • Microphone • Proximity • GPS • Camera • LiDAR/ToF *some sensors are not present on every phone. Export formats • CSV (Comma separated values) • TSV (Tab-separated values) • Excel (if you need other formats, please let us know) This app has been developed at the 2nd Institute of Physics A at the RWTH Aachen University.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: phyphox at 4.6 against Physics Toolbox Tone Generator's 3.7. phyphox also leads on review sentiment (79% vs 40%) and ratings volume (272 vs 3). Physics Toolbox Tone Generator's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 12.0). On price, update cadence, 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.
phyphox holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: phyphox has 272 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of Physics Toolbox Tone Generator's written reviews are positive against 79% of phyphox's.
Physics Toolbox Tone Generator ships an update every 5 months, phyphox every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 7, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Physics Toolbox Tone Generator | phyphox |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (3 ratings) | 4.6 (272 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews | 78.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 272 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Every 3 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Chrystian Vieyra | RWTH Aachen University |
Customer experience
Physics Toolbox Tone Generator
phyphox
Bugs and requests
Physics Toolbox Tone Generator
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
phyphox
Reported bugs
21 issues- App crashes on older devices
- Barometer not working on iOS 17.4
- Network error: Generic error
- Sound measurement curve disappears
- App crashes frequently
Show 16 moreShow fewer
- Cannot be opened on iPhone 6
- Light sensor not implemented
- Recording stops when phone is locked or app is minimized
- Green lines on screen and faded to black after using barometer sensor
- WLAN not working after using the app
- Pressure no longer displayed on iOS 17.5
- Barometer not working on iOS 17.4
- Latest version cannot be opened on iPhone 6
- Sound chronometer reset button not working
- iPad destroyed after update
- App displays Russian language by default
- Experiments not working on iPhone 7
- Magnetometer not working after update on iPhone 5s
- GPS shows 0 satellites with 6m accuracy
- App claims iPhone 11 is comparable to a low-cost tablet
- App crashes every time
Requested features
33 requests- Add infrasound detector
- More units of measurement (G-force, PSI, feet)
- NFC/RFID support
- In-app bug report feature
- Allow other sensors via USB-C
Show 28 moreShow fewer
- Ability to plug in external sensors
- Slo-mo recording with timestamps
- Add attitude sensor (roll, pitch, yaw)
- Integration with Apple Shortcuts
- Ability to record audio/dB simultaneously with other sensors
- Adjustable sampling frequency for all sensors
- Dark mode option
- Experiment editor integrated into the app
- More documentation for the editor
- Ability to form averages
- Support for older iPhones (iPhone 6)
- Add GPS satellite count display
- Add speedometer functionality
- Add Lux measurement using light sensor/camera
- Ability to play recorded audio
- Limit input for sound analyzers (dB/Hz range)
- Wi-Fi and RF module access for EMF analysis
- iWatch integration
- Improve audio generator capability
- Allow background/screen locked recording
- Add light sensor functionality
- Change units of measurement
- Add more precise measurements for static cases
- Add FFT and spectral generation for accelerometer
- Support for older devices
- Improve UI/UX for new users
- Add support for more languages
- Add a donate option
In-app purchases
Physics Toolbox Tone Generator
No in-app purchases
phyphox
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Physics Toolbox Tone Generator free?
Is phyphox free?
Which has better reviews, Physics Toolbox Tone Generator or phyphox?
Do Physics Toolbox Tone Generator or phyphox have ads?
Which is updated more often, Physics Toolbox Tone Generator or phyphox?
Other comparisons
