Changelog

Oct. 6, 2024

v 2.4

Learn Japanese more conveniently with Benkyō v2.4

New features for quizzes (for devices running iOS 17 or later):
- Modernized and enhanced user interface (UI)
- Sort and filter questions
- New speed answering chart
- Option to view the flashcards related to the questions for deeper insights
- Manage the SRS status of individual flashcards on the fly
- Option to redo the quiz (with the same scope & settings, questions may differ)
- Interrupting a quiz before the end while saving its progress will now show the quiz results screen

Updated Flashcard screen (for devices running iOS 17 or later):
- Modernized and enhanced UI
- Option to display Furigana
- Added statistics
- Quiz history with a speed matrix chart showing answer times by date

Additional improvements:
- The default app icon now adapts to Light, Dark, and Tinted system preferences (iOS 18 or later)
- Benkyō now adjusts to your system's text size preference on more screens, whether you prefer small and compact or large and accessible text
- General UI and performance enhancements

If Benkyō helps you learn Japanese Kanji, Vocabulary, and Kana more easily, don’t forget to leave a review! 
Enjoy!

March 1, 2024

v 2.3.6

Improvements and optimizations.

Jan. 2, 2024

v 2.3.5

Happy New Year 2024! Best of luck with your Japanese learning journey this year! This update introduces several enhancements.

Dec. 6, 2023

v 2.3.4

Improvements and optimizations.

Oct. 27, 2023

v 2.3.3

Fixes and improvements

Oct. 25, 2023

v 2.3.2

- Smoother audio for kanji pronunciations and improved furigana display.
- Other fixes and improvements.

Sept. 16, 2023

v 2.3

New interactive widget! (iOS 17 or later)
- Introducing the new "Kanji of the Day" widget, in response to popular demand.
- Decorate your Home Screen, Lock Screen, or Mac desktop with a beautiful kanji card.
- Tap the flag icon directly from the widget to add it to your watchlist if you like the kanji. Or tap the widget to access all the kanji's details.
- Access your Watchlist from the Lists screen, where you can add flagged kanji to any of your lists, view their details, or review the entire watchlist in focus mode.
But also:
- New app icon! Previous icons are available for free as alternate app icons.
- Re-imagined entry lists, featuring increased speed, sorting options, and quality-of-life improvements (for devices with iOS 16+).
- Kanji will now always display all readings in quizzes and within the library.
- Improved sound handling during quizzes.
- Various quality-of-life enhancements.
- Smoother onboarding experience.
- Other improvements.

Jan. 10, 2023

v 2.2.7

Happy new year!
Have you made any good resolutions for 2023? Are you progressing in Japanese?
With this update, the application is more optimized. Benkyō will also take up less space on your device. Launch the app after updating to free storage.

Dec. 27, 2022

v 2.2.6

This version brings fixes and optimizations.
Happy holidays!

Nov. 17, 2022

v 2.2.5

Fixes and optimizations.

Oct. 21, 2022

v 2.2.4

Autumn is here! It's time to drill kanji with a special event. Complete challenges to unlock special perks!

Oct. 17, 2022

v 2.2.3

Autumn is here! It's time to drill kanji with a special event. Complete challenges to unlock special perks!

Oct. 14, 2022

v 2.2.2

Autumn is here! It's time to drill kanji with a special event. Complete challenges to unlock special perks!

Oct. 11, 2022

v 2.2.1

Fixes and improvements.

Sept. 18, 2022

v 2.2

App icon reworked!

Sept. 11, 2022

v 2.1

New:
• iOS 16 Lock Screen widgets
• Better list management view from the focus mode and Kana selection
• Fixes and improvements

April 12, 2022

v 2.0.1

--- Version 2.0.1 ---
• Fixed statistics on the Kana screen (thanks to FantasticG & paploolearned for reporting!)
• Improved Focus Study mode (thank you Joey for suggesting!)
• Fixed some typo (thank you JJC1138!)
• Other fixes and improvements.

--- Version 2.0 update notes (reminder): ---

BENKYŌ 2.0 IS HERE!

Enjoy exploring Japanese with more convenience, and study even better with the new features of this major app version.
Thank you to all users who sent me feedback and suggestions that helped build this update. More suggestions will be incorporated in the future.
Around 30,000 lines of code were written for this update, here is what it brings:

* NEW search system: search in the whole library (or apply filters), get fast results, and quickly access search history. Available in the new library tab
* NEW Focus study mode: Practice recalling kana, kanji or vocabulary without the quiz pressure, tap to Toggle the answer’s visibility (ie. The flashcard’s back). There is no score or timer, so you can focus on memorising. UI options are available for this mode, including an animated blur background to help you get in the zone. Access this mode from a list or after a quiz to review wrong answers.
* NEW UI/UX and new content for the home tabs
→ LIBRARY
* The “Explore” tab is now named “Library” to better reflect its purpose. It presents itself in a whole new fashion and offers quick access to Kanji, Vocabulary and Kana browsing, as well as your custom lists and your browse history.
* Use the draw search to experiment handwriting and let the app find Kanji or Kana that matches your drawing
* New search bar (details above)
→ QUIZ
* The “Study” tab has also been redesigned. It now focusses only on quiz, with quick access to FlexSRS, Smart and custom quizzes.
* New FlexSRS introduction view for better familiarisation with this special kind of quiz that can boost your learning!
→ Statistics
* Track your progress on this new dedicated tab. Get global metrics at a glance, or dive into detailed stats.
* New study streak card with best and current streaks, keep on studying and get better everyday!
* New pie chart visualisation of flashcard mastery
→ Settings
* Settings now get their own tab along with added options and a fresh look
* And also…
* Better compatibility with mac equipped with Apple Silicon processors
* New onboarding flow to better welcome you to Benkyō
* Quiz scope performance optimised
* Quiz options screen now displays available flashcard kinds for each type of entry according to the quiz scope
* You can now quiz up to 1000 questions in a single custom/smart quiz session
* You can now swipe between entries in your lists
* Font size in new screens adapts to your « text size » iPhone setting
* UI improvements in multiple screens
* Fixed a crash occurring on the quiz scope screen when a lot of lists containing a lot of entries in custom quiz were selected
* Updated technical grounds
* Code rationalisation for faster future updates and better maintenance
* Multiple optimisations, fixes and improvements

This update enhances your experience by taking advantage of the latest iOS technologies like SwiftUI, therefore iOS 14 or more recent is required.
As always, let me know if you like the update and your suggestions (settings → keep in touch)
Please leave an App Store review to help more Japanese learners know what you think of Benkyō!

April 1, 2022

v 2.0

BENKYŌ 2.0 IS HERE!

Enjoy exploring Japanese with more convenience, and study even better with the new features of this major app version.
Thank you to all users who sent me feedback and suggestions that helped build this update. More suggestions will be incorporated in the future.
Around 30,000 lines of code were written for this update, here is what it brings:

* NEW search system: search in the whole library (or apply filters), get fast results, and quickly access search history. Available in the new library tab
* NEW Focus study mode: Practice recalling kana, kanji or vocabulary without the quiz pressure, tap to Toggle the answer’s visibility (ie. The flashcard’s back). There is no score or timer, so you can focus on memorising. UI options are available for this mode, including an animated blur background to help you get in the zone. Access this mode from a list or after a quiz to review wrong answers.
* NEW UI/UX and new content for the home tabs
→ LIBRARY
* The “Explore” tab is now named “Library” to better reflect its purpose. It presents itself in a whole new fashion and offers quick access to Kanji, Vocabulary and Kana browsing, as well as your custom lists and your browse history.
* Use the draw search to experiment handwriting and let the app find Kanji or Kana that matches your drawing
* New search bar (details above)
→ QUIZ
* The “Study” tab has also been redesigned. It now focusses only on quiz, with quick access to FlexSRS, Smart and custom quizzes.
* New FlexSRS introduction view for better familiarisation with this special kind of quiz that can boost your learning!
→ Statistics
* Track your progress on this new dedicated tab. Get global metrics at a glance, or dive into detailed stats.
* New study streak card with best and current streaks, keep on studying and get better everyday!
* New pie chart visualisation of flashcard mastery
→ Settings
* Settings now get their own tab along with added options and a fresh look
* And also…
* Better compatibility with mac equipped with Apple Silicon processors
* New onboarding flow to better welcome you to Benkyō
* Quiz scope performance optimised
* Quiz options screen now displays available flashcard kinds for each type of entry according to the quiz scope
* You can now quiz up to 1000 questions in a single custom/smart quiz session
* You can now swipe between entries in your lists
* Font size in new screens adapts to your « text size » iPhone setting
* UI improvements in multiple screens
* Fixed a crash occurring on the quiz scope screen when a lot of lists containing a lot of entries in custom quiz were selected
* Updated technical grounds
* Code rationalisation for faster future updates and better maintenance
* Multiple optimisations, fixes and improvements

This update enhances your experience by taking advantage of the latest iOS technologies like SwiftUI, therefore iOS 14 or more recent is required.
As always, let me know if you like the update and your suggestions (settings → keep in touch)
Please leave an App Store review to help more Japanese learners know what you think of Benkyō!

March 27, 2022

v 1.2

Many technical and UI/UX improvements.
This version sets the grounds for Benkyō 2.0, that will allow you. to learn Japanese in an even better app, therefore it requires iOS 14.0 or newer.
Let me know your thoughts by leaving a review on the App Store!

June 9, 2021

v 1.1.1

This version adds a FAQ and other improvements.
Let the world know how Benkyō is helping you learn Japanese by leaving a review on the App Store!