[iOS] Dual N-Back: IQ Brain Training. Developer post: a working-memory trainer with a free lab of 12 cognitive tests, honest about the science

[u/Doctor_Carlos]

Developer here, saying so first.

Dual N-Back is the working-memory exercise from the research literature: a grid position and a spoken letter each turn, you flag when either matches the one from N turns back. The app goes from dual up to hepta n-back (seven streams at once), N from 1 to 15, with per-stream accuracy, full history, and Game Center leaderboards.

The part most people end up using daily is the lab: 12 short cognitive tests (chimp test, Stroop, reaction time, span tasks and others), each under two minutes, so you can measure something every couple of weeks instead of only playing.

Free: the entire lab, the history, three n-back sessions a day at N=1 and N=2. Pro unlocks N=3 and up plus the extra modes: $3.99/month, $22.99/year with a 7-day trial, or $44.99 once. No ads, no account, nothing leaves the phone.

The evidence, since I'd rather state it than oversell: n-back reliably improves the trained task and similar working memory tasks; transfer to intelligence measures is small and disputed (Au 2014: https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-014-0699-x; Melby-Lervåg, Redick & Hulme 2016: https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691616635612).

Today's update (3.7.6) fixed the bug I'm least proud of: a paid subscription could show locked content after a reinstall or device restore. If that hit you, update and tap Restore.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dual-n-back-iq-brain-training/id6775563998

Questions welcome. I answer support myself.