Fans of Doctor Who can now get their hands on his famous Sonic Screwdriver gadget, albeit in a virtual form on their iPhones.

Developer Useless Creations has released Doctor Who: Sonic Screwdriver, an app celebrating the BBC drama's 50th anniversary, under official licence from BBC Worldwide.

The app, which is being sold for £1.49 on Apple's App Store, includes four 3D models of Sonic Screwdrivers from past series of the show, belonging to the third, fourth, tenth and eleventh Doctors – respectively: Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, David Tennant and Matt Smith.

Fans can activate each virtual device using the augmented reality app then wave it about in the real world, tilting their handset to change its pitch. The app uses the iPhone's camera flash, and promises "authentic sounds from the TV show".

It's not the first official Doctor Who app. Publisher Random House launched Doctor Who Encyclopedia in October 2011, an iPad app covering the ninth, tenth and eleventh Doctors, with episodes, characters and locations.

There is also an official Doctor Who Comics app from IDW Publishing; a Doctor Who: The Mazes of Time mobile game published by BBC Worldwide; a Doctor Who: EyeStalk photography app to "take photos and movies using a Dalek point of view"; and an iOS version of Immediate Media's Doctor Who Adventures magazine for younger fans.

The new app's release comes as the BBC prepares for the screening of the 50th anniversary episode of Doctor Who, Day of the Doctor, which will air on 23 November with simultaneous 3D cinema screenings in the UK, US and Canada.