Tinycards is a learning tool for iOS which lets users memorize things through animated decks of flashcards. Users can memorize material by either creating their own decks or by using decks already available in the app.
Check out our in-depth review to see how the app fares in real-world usage.
Getting started
- The app does not require any registration to get started. When you launch the app, you are required to select three streams to get started. Based on your selection, relevant content is displayed on the home screen.
Design
- The interface is simple and has nice animations. The flashcard thumbnails have a cartoonish design which makes the app feel user-friendly.
- The home screen has a clean layout and is divided into three sections. The title bar has ‘Your stream’ and ‘Trending’ features, the middle section displays the content of the selection and the bottom bar has buttons for search, favorites, and account.
- Users can mark useful decks as favorites, and revisit them in the Favorites section.
- If you want to create your own decks, you need to create an account using your email address. You are not required to form an account to search and learn from various decks in the app.
Learn, Search and Share
- Users can search from a variety of new material decks. Tap on any deck, and it will open in a separate section. From here, users can start their lesson and also participate in a quiz to test their memory.
- When you return to a deck, it shows your progress on each card and you can continue from where you left.
- If you find a learning deck useful, you can share it with friends via different messaging apps like Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger, and more.
Verdict
Tinycards is a useful and easy to use learning tool. The tap and swipe gestures make it easy for users to navigate through material.
There are no in-app purchases, but the advanced level material is locked. You will have to ace the beginners’ quizzes to unlock higher levels decks. You can learn the material at your won pace, by repeatedly taking tests to internalize the content.
The current features of Tinycards are very similar to Duolingo app, who are also its developers. Duolingo is a language learning app, where you can learn different languages by memorizing lexical items through flashcards. You can also import your learning decks from Duolingo to Tinycards.
The design of the Tinycards is very animated and somewhat, childish. The decks and thumbnails use cartoonish images rather than photorealistic pictures which makes it seem apt for children. The restriction to choose three genres forces users to select content which does not interest them since it lacks a wider variety of content like music, beauty and more.
Duolingo should also introduce a desktop version of the Tinycards because it will be easier and faster to form decks on a computer than on a phone or tablet. It will also increase its usability and application in classrooms and other places of learning.
Minor complaints aside, Tinycards is a great app. It provides the opportunity to spend quality time with your children or siblings and have fun learning.
Tinycards is available on the App Store for free and requires iOS 8.2 or later. It is compatible with iPhone, iPod and iPod touch.
