iKana - Hiragana and Katakana App Reviews

Likes: 1) Clean interface 2) You can choose the cards you want to study and place them in a practice set. 3) Great program for those just learning Hiragana and Katakana. Wishlist to make the program work more like true flashcards: 1) Japanese character and the Romaji are on the same side of the card. I wish there was an option to put the Romaji on the backside of the card. 2) I wish there was a "Shuffle" button so you could study the cards in your Practice Set out of order.

Ive been meaning to learn hiragana and katakana for some time but never got serious until this app. Its so useful especially its ability to make practice sets. I would recommend it for any beginner or anyone looking to refresh their skills.

This is so useful I couldntve learned to memorize kana without it

This is a nicely polished app for helping to learn your hiragana and katakana. Right off the bat, there is a clean (if a bit monotone) interface and a very helpful set of kana cards. The cards themselves are crisp, large, informative, and nice-looking. So why only three stars? Well, the biggest problem I have with this app are its tests. You can choose a writing test or timed identification test. With the writing "test", you trace the pre-drawn lines in order...and thats it. With the identification test, you select one of four possible syllable choices underneath a given character, with a time limit. Both of these are fine in their own ways, but there is no way to just kick back and practice your kana casually. What Id like to see are two more modes that each would correspond more to using actual flashcards. To practice writing, give the user a sound and provide a box underneath it in which they can write the character. When theyre done, they can tap a button to fade the flashcard character into the background of the box, possibly in a different color. To practice identification, display a character and provide a keyboard to type the sound into, no time limit. Compare with database to see if correct. Simple, effective, relaxing. Not everyone learns best under the clock. To conclude, this is a nice, polished, and advanced app. However, dont neglect the simple stuff. Id expect that for being more pricey than most of the other kana apps.

Totally worth it for any person who truly wants to learn to read and write Japanese. Stroke order is important, that is a wonderful feature of this application. Great software design!

But the major yet simple thing there missing is a test where they give you the English and you pick the character instead of them giving you the character and then guessing the sound. They need both but Im sure this will improve with updates!

Im in a Japanese 101 class and this has been the most helpful tool ever! Especially the speed tests!

This application is a nice study aid for learning the two Japanese syllabaries, Hiragana and Katakana. The application performs as expected with one very minor issue. The Hiragana glyph for ri is displayed as being made with a single continuous stroke [ り ] instead of two different and separate strokes. The feature that illustrates the creation of the Hiragana glyph for ri does so with two strokes. The display of the Hiragana ri glyph is not an application error but the product of the default Japanese font.

Fantastic study aid. Perfect except for two things: 1. Please make the app full-screen on iPad and 2. please have a timed writing test with an accuracy score. Please fix those two things and it will be a five-star app easily.

I already have iKanji Touch and I was looking for something that would help me practice blazing through kana as I noticed Ive grown lax In my reading. This app is exactly what I needed with speed tests and writing test, bot tk mention the "recently missed" test. Its worth your money to brush up on or learn kana. By the way, dont listen to any previous 1.4 reviews, there are NO missing buttons.

Downloaded this, and went immediately to the hiragana sets, but soon realized I could not return the main menu. The button that would direct you back to the main menu (the button seen in the screenshot pictures on the upper left) was completely missing. I was of course unable to access the rest of the app because of this. When this bug is fixed, I will download it again.

The speed test feature has helped me remember more hirigana in two days than a couple of weeks of copying them on paper ever did. Update: the 2/12 changes to the app are awesome. It is very pretty now and the "all kana" set is great. Would add a star to my rating but it was already at five.

I used to love this app but as of the update it crashes more and the some of the kana show up bigger than the interface on the writing test, making it impossible to test them. Also, the new speed test where the romanization is given and you have to pick the corressponding kana is MUCH less effective then the previous speed tests where the kana was given and the romanization was picked. Please fix this app and I will rate it 5 stars again

As I noted in an earlier review, I had a problem with the sound. It turns out that the problem was with the settings on MY iPad and not the app. To their credit, they researched this and worked with me in multiple emails until the problem was solved. This company really stands behind their products and their customers.

Well every time I try to practice ..like a lot of lines appear ..can you please fix that?

Great App, but it would be better if we can get more settings or options in regard to the speed and writing test. Like setting the time limit, choosing only showing the romanji or kana instead of randomly both on the speed test. Hope for an update soon!

I like the idea of the app in general but every time I try to practice multiple lines appear. Please fix this and Id give this app 5 stars ^.^

Hi, This app helped me a lot while learning the Hiragana.set... Now Im trying to learn the Katagana set and I hit a stupid limitation.... The number of character in the practice set is limited!!!! This makes no sense!!! :( So basically while practicing a subset of the Katagana character, I cannot leave the Hiragana character in it... Theres not enough room for it!!!! Please fix this!!! Thanks

I used this for about a month, and now I am able to read and write kana with ease. Aside from some obvious update suggestions listed in other reviews, I have found there is a small bug: In the "All Kana" test, I got all 236 right, yet I got 99% (There is no kana in the recent incorrect list, so I know I didnt miss one). Otherwise, I recommend this to anyone starting out Japanese!

An Absolutely brilliant app that is perfect for learning kana, whether at home or on the move! Just absolutely perfect for learning everything to do with writing kana, great for the beginner looking to learn the hiragana and katakana character sets! Makes everything so much easier-definitely worth the price if youre serious about learning!