SmartGo One

Name: SmartGo One
Rating: 4.8 (1533 reviews)
Author: Smart Go, Inc.

Learn, play & study Go game

Free · In‑App Purchases

1.5K Ratings
Ages

4+
Years
Category

Board
Developer

Smart Go, Inc.
Language

EN
+ 6 More
Size

98.8
MB

SmartGo One is the only Go app you’ll need whether you’re just getting started with Go or are a seasoned master. Learn, play, and win with SmartGo One! The ancient game of Go can be enjoyed on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac in a whole new way. Also known as igo (囲碁), wéiqí (围棋), or baduk (바둑), Go starts out with a blank game board that fills as you work to capture territory and stones from your opponent. You can start with a board size of 9x9 and then move onto larger ones measuring 13x13 and 19x19 as your skills grow. SmartGo One increases its difficulty as players improve, with an automatically-adjusted handicap ensuring you’re never playing an opponent that’s beyond your capabilities. But don’t be fooled into thinking SmartGo will hold your hand — you’ll still be challenged! With a strong engine based on KataGo, expect a battle as your improving skills demand it. SmartGo One gives Go fans a way to play, but it goes far beyond that. With SmartGo One you’ll also be able to read books about Go while replaying moves that those books describe to help you get a better understanding. A collection of more than 125,000 pro-level game records means you’ll never stop learning from masters both modern and much, much older. Players can also take advantage of a growing library of Go problems. Solving those problems is a great way to improve your in-game decision making. Stuck or keen to learn how a master would play any position you find yourself in? SmartGo’s pattern matching technology will cross-reference your game board with those of historical games, showing you how other players dealt with the situation at hand. No matter your level of skill, SmartGo One will help you improve. Features include: • Choice of 9x9, 11x11, 13x13, and 19x19 boards • Very strong game engine (KataGo) • Fast response • Manual choice of handicap or automatic handicap adjustment • Advanced features allow players to record, annotate, and then edit their games for future learning and improvement • A territory estimator • Hints • Undo and Replay capabilities • Tutorial with over 100 problems • Extensive user manual We value your privacy, and only collect the minimum information necessary to make our apps work well for you. You can read more at https://smartgo.com/privacy.html. This app is licensed under the standard Apple Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Ratings & Reviews

4.8

out of 5

1.5K Ratings

One is the one must have Go app!
04/13/2022

G4rrett413
There is so much in the free version! I was just a at tournament and someone was complaining that their “free” game recording app would not save unless you bought it. Completely nuts! If only I had looked at SmartGo One before, I would have told my friend that the free download records and saves games, has extensive commenting tools, has computer play on small boards, and lets you read and interact with Go books. The FREE tutorial on playing Go is great. Any beginner would be pleased to have so much content in a single package.For the serious student of Go there is so much when you subscribe to the Pro version for less than a dollar a month. 114,000 professional games and counting, a giant set of problems, and play against the computer on full size board.I only purchased an iPad because I wanted a portable version of SmartGo software when I saw it being demonstrated in a cafeteria line at a US Go Congress many years ago. I am so pleased to see a new version come out.
One is the one must have Go app!
04/13/2022

G4rrett413

There is so much in the free version! I was just a at tournament and someone was complaining that their “free” game recording app would not save unless you bought it. Completely nuts! If only I had looked at SmartGo One before, I would have told my friend that the free download records and saves games, has extensive commenting tools, has computer play on small boards, and lets you read and interact with Go books. The FREE tutorial on playing Go is great. Any beginner would be pleased to have so much content in a single package.For the serious student of Go there is so much when you subscribe to the Pro version for less than a dollar a month. 114,000 professional games and counting, a giant set of problems, and play against the computer on full size board.I only purchased an iPad because I wanted a portable version of SmartGo software when I saw it being demonstrated in a cafeteria line at a US Go Congress many years ago. I am so pleased to see a new version come out.
Good gameplay, poor app user experience
Jun 1

rlr524
The gameplay in SmartGo one seems fine so far and it has some good features, especially if you get the very fair priced Pro add-on. The computer gameplay is good; it’s challenging, like playing a very experienced opponent, but that’s how you improve. The thing to keep in mind is this app isn’t to teach you how to play Go or optimal strategy, it’s for you to practice Go. You will need to dive into some of the many great books about playing Go to learn the basics and strategies and the app even helps you find those books. The issues that lose the app a star are around user experience. The app’s layout is not intuitive and if you happen to have skipped the first time user demo (which a professional app developer should know most people do) there is absolutely no help available, not even a way to launch the demo again. Don’t know what that icon does? Too bad. Don’t know what the colors mean on move recommendations? Oh well. You’re left to just click buttons and try to infer what does what and what setting changes what function on your own. This app needs the developer to spend some money having a UX professional do a thorough review and then take their recommendations and implement them.

Developer Response
The icons are explained in the user manual: switch to the Books tab, then Tutorial & Help, then SmartGo One User Manual. The intro screens are available in Settings > About SmartGo One > Welcome Tour. Thanks for the feedback – I'm constantly working on making the app easier to use, but as a lone developer, there's always more to do than there is time for.
Good gameplay, poor app user experience
Jun 1

rlr524

The gameplay in SmartGo one seems fine so far and it has some good features, especially if you get the very fair priced Pro add-on. The computer gameplay is good; it’s challenging, like playing a very experienced opponent, but that’s how you improve. The thing to keep in mind is this app isn’t to teach you how to play Go or optimal strategy, it’s for you to practice Go. You will need to dive into some of the many great books about playing Go to learn the basics and strategies and the app even helps you find those books. The issues that lose the app a star are around user experience. The app’s layout is not intuitive and if you happen to have skipped the first time user demo (which a professional app developer should know most people do) there is absolutely no help available, not even a way to launch the demo again. Don’t know what that icon does? Too bad. Don’t know what the colors mean on move recommendations? Oh well. You’re left to just click buttons and try to infer what does what and what setting changes what function on your own. This app needs the developer to spend some money having a UX professional do a thorough review and then take their recommendations and implement them.
Developer Response Aug 4
The icons are explained in the user manual: switch to the Books tab, then Tutorial & Help, then SmartGo One User Manual. The intro screens are available in Settings > About SmartGo One > Welcome Tour. Thanks for the feedback – I'm constantly working on making the app easier to use, but as a lone developer, there's always more to do than there is time for.
Such a step down.
08/04/2022

jbrizz
I’ve been running SmartGo apps since they started, mostly for the (GO) problems. I bought this new one just to support the developer. Not that I haven’t played a game against it si this review doesn’t apply to that piece. The GO problems in this game are RIFE with mistakes that a good proofreading would catch. “White to kill”, then black lives and the message says “this exchange doesn’t help black”. Makes no sense. This after following the suggested moves because I thought I was confused. Or, you play the correct sequence but you play one more move than the software was expecting and the stone pictured on the upper right gets a red star indicating you’ve made a mistake. When it’s not a mistake, it’s what would be the correct next move. Probably 20% of the problems have something like these. I’m a paid user, full version.
Such a step down.
08/04/2022

jbrizz

I’ve been running SmartGo apps since they started, mostly for the (GO) problems. I bought this new one just to support the developer. Not that I haven’t played a game against it si this review doesn’t apply to that piece. The GO problems in this game are RIFE with mistakes that a good proofreading would catch. “White to kill”, then black lives and the message says “this exchange doesn’t help black”. Makes no sense. This after following the suggested moves because I thought I was confused. Or, you play the correct sequence but you play one more move than the software was expecting and the stone pictured on the upper right gets a red star indicating you’ve made a mistake. When it’s not a mistake, it’s what would be the correct next move. Probably 20% of the problems have something like these. I’m a paid user, full version.
Quality system
10/14/2024

-Gryfon-
An excellent application. Play matches against either computers or other people (in person), review professional games across centuries of Go history, purchase, download, and read texts on Go from numerous authors (including interactive problems within the text). The developer has done an excellent job with building this program, and also responds quite promptly to bug reports. Full 19x19 play does seem to be limited to the pro version, but it is well worth the one-time payment, in my personal opinion.
Quality system
10/14/2024

-Gryfon-

An excellent application. Play matches against either computers or other people (in person), review professional games across centuries of Go history, purchase, download, and read texts on Go from numerous authors (including interactive problems within the text). The developer has done an excellent job with building this program, and also responds quite promptly to bug reports. Full 19x19 play does seem to be limited to the pro version, but it is well worth the one-time payment, in my personal opinion.

• You can now export your books as EPUB directly from SmartGo One. • Settings for exporting a book are now displayed when you tap on the Share icon. • Add numbering of last 10 moves: Settings > Board Display > Move Numbering. (Combines well with replay by 10 moves on the second toolbar.) • Fix bug where tapping on iCloud Drive would not work. • Fix bug where menu in search field wasn't working.