Bionic Reading® User Reviews

Bionic Reading AG

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Misleading and doesn’t work well

The format of the documents created is very poor. What’s worse is that I attempted to cancel my subscription through the app, but was still charged 100 dollars a year later. Apparently you have to jump through many hoops to cancel your subscription. I told them the day of the renewal that I don’t want the next year long subscription, but they refused to cancel my subscription or refund me. I only used the product once and never will again because the design is so bad. The founder even reached out to me and stated he was left “speechless” by my behavior. Terrible company that has a ton of loopholes to cancel your subscription just so they can scam you 100 bucks. Don’t buy this.

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jdcali15

17 days ago

Can’t Convert PDFs & difficult to Unsubscribe

Nowhere on the free version of the app does it say it cannot convert PDFs. I’m a student and was hoping to convert my PDF readings to Bionic text PDFs. So, I paid $13 just to unlock the upload feature and find out that it does not take PDFs. I then went to unsubscribe and THERE IS NO CLEAR WAY TO.
The FAQ section simply directs me to the website of bionic reading which is essentially the app. But there is no option to unsubscribe. When I click the Account button, you’d think it would allow you to click manage account but it doesn’t.
The fact that it’s not what i wanted AND they make it difficult to unsubscribe is extremely frustrating.

I do not and will not be recommending this service/app.

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Dominicgrz13

2 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear Dominic. Sorry to hear that you didn’t have a good experience and give us 2*. We don’t know who told you that. That motivates me a lot. You can upload Word files without any problems. The PDFile can have a very complex formatting. For this reason we can not offer you this function. Sorry. A simple page layout in PDFile format is certainly editable. But as soon as it has a complex structure, a conversion is problematic. According to Microsoft, it is possible to upload and edit PDF files in MS Windows. We have developed a special Bionic Reading® for Microsoft Word. An add-in that you can use in your Word. Please have a look at our website. If you buy the app in the App Store, you must manage your subscription in the iOS app. Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato from Bionic Reading® 🤓🇨🇭

Doesn’t support PDF

I was excited to try the Bionic Reading app, but it quickly became a frustrating and disappointing experience. The free version doesn’t allow you to upload files, which meant I couldn’t fully test its functionality. Unfortunately, after paying for the premium version, I discovered the app doesn’t support PDF files – a major dealbreaker for me.

What made matters worse was their poor customer service. I immediately requested a refund after realizing the app wouldn’t meet my needs, but they refused to refund me. Instead, they kept my money and continue to offer a subpar product. If you’re considering this app for serious reading or file support, think twice before purchasing. I wouldn’t recommend it.

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btrinkle

2 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear btrinkle. Sorry to hear that you didn’t have a good experience and give us 1*. According to Microsoft, it is possible to upload and edit PDF files in MS Windows. We have developed our product “Bionic Reading® for Microsoft Word”. An add-in that you can use in your Word. Please have a look at our website. We don’t know who told you that. That motivates me a lot. You can upload Word files without any problems. The PDFile can have a very complex formatting. For this reason we can not offer you this function. Sorry. A simple page layout in PDFile format is certainly editable. But as soon as it has a complex structure, a conversion is problematic. If you purchase your subscription via the Apple App Store, we have no control over your subscription. Only Apple can do that. Our support team will have replied to you within 12 hours and told you how to manage your subscription. Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato from Bionic Reading® 🤓🇨🇭

Absolute rubbish

Doesn’t work. Tells me I have reached my limit and I haven’t even converted one web page!! This would be amazing if it worked! If it could work on all apps and webpages without having to convert it even better. This is a complete waste of time and effort! 0 stars!!

Doris Hartgrove

4 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear Doris. That is very strange. Websites can be converted without any problems as long as you accept the cookie settings; and its for free. There is only a limit message when uploading a file. You’re very welcome to tell us what’s not good. We are happy to learn. Feel free to send us your feedback via bionic-reading.com/faq/. That would be constructive and helpful. Thank you very much. Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato🇨🇭

Pricing Is Insane

I am all for paying for a service like this because it does make reading a lot more accessible for me with my dyslexia and brain fog/executive dysfunction…

But the pricing is absolutely bonkers and I see now why it’s reviewed so low/badly.

You only can convert a few thousand characters per MONTH. Even as a paid user, unless you go for the plus package at $14/mo, you’re limited to 5000 characters or LESS per month. That’s maybe 500 words.

That’s a SINGLE long paragraph.

That means the fact you can convert to various ebooks or convert websites is meaningless bc you’ll never be able to use those with such a low character limit. (I tried to test a website I knew I would want to use this with and couldn’t because it gave me an error saying I had reached my limit despite this being the first thing I attempted to do in the app… meaning website conversion is useless unless you pay for the plus and get unlimited characters.

They could have at least given you 5000 words for $4/mo. That’s still nothing; that’s maybe two long news articles or one very short story.

And honestly, for $14/mo, you should get a lot more file conversions than 90, imo.

Looks like there are other apps with similar reading tech to this one. They’re higher reviewed, so perhaps they don’t screw over their customers as badly.

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Rrquinta

5 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear Rrquinta. I’m a bit confused, because what you write would be insane. Unfortunately, what you write is not quite true. We would like to help. That’s why we developed the concept for Bionic Reading® in 2009. There is a limit to the number of characters you can insert in the text area. And this is even free of charge for 2000 characters. With every upload. Not total. You get 5000 characters per upload with the Premium subscription. I really ask you to go to our website again. There you can see the pricing and what features are available. And this applies to all 6 Bionic Reading® apps together. Feel free to send us your feedback via bionic-reading.com/faq/. That would be constructive and helpful. Thank you very much. Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato🇨🇭

Glitches and no way to contact them

I've opted for the Premium Plus subscription after initially subscribing to the Premium one, but can only access the latter (which is of no use for longer documents) and there is no way to rectify this on my end or get in contact with BR for them to fix their issue. Messages on FB Messenger go unanswered. Not worth subscribing to if they can't be contacted to fix issues on their end.

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Gioz5

5 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear Gioz5. Sorry to hear that, and give us 2*. It’s very important that your login method remains consistent. Your initial registration is crucial and is then applicable for all other App logins (“Sign in with email”, “Sign in with Google” or “Sign in with Apple”). We’re happy to help. You’re very welcome to tell us what’s not good. Feel free to send us your feedback via bionic-reading.com/faq/. That would be constructive and helpful. Thank you very much. Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato🇨🇭

Has non working functions, cannot upload files

Trying to upload files, converted to different formats within the size parameters and it will not process. Basically useless. I would pay a small amount to have a working app to try this out, this app really needs to be able to do what it advertises and what functions are actually in the app which is adding bionic reading capabilities

Edit: they charged me an annual and it shows my membership is free. This company is smoke and mirrors.

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Ali_Anon135

5 months ago

Response from developer

Hi Ali. Please try it again... NEW: Bionic Reading® for Apple iOS and macOS, Google Android, Microsoft Windows, Google Chrome and Web. We offer you the free version “Discover” and the subscriptions “Premium” and “Premium Plus”. • NEW “Bionic Reading® Reader”. • NEW “Bionic Reading® Library”. • NEW Synced content. — NOTE: We have a problem with the subscriptions within the apps. But you can register and upgrade in the Bionic Reading® Web App (https://reader.bionic-reading.com/). After that you can use all 5 other apps without any problems. I hope you will try it again. Best regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato🇨🇭

Wasted 7 minutes of my life

Downloaded the app
Found a website to test the app
Entered it
Hit process
Then it said, reached the limit I can use…
Ummmmm after literally 1 website that it DIDN’T even show me any super bionic anything!!!

NadeneM

6 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear NadeneM. That is very strange. Websites can be converted without any problems as long as you accept the cookie settings. There is only a limit message when uploading a file. You’re very welcome to tell us what’s not good. We are happy to learn. Feel free to send us your feedback via bionic-reading.com/faq/. That would be constructive and helpful. Thank you very much. Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato🇨🇭

Great concept. Never will I buy this on a monthly sub.

Doesn’t read pdf. Way overpriced. $17 a month for this you have to be out of your mind. I will pay $2.50/month (cdn) tops for this when you can read pdf. More great ideas put behind the crushing monthly subscription pay wall. 1 star.

Aaaandrew12345

7 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear Andrew. Sorry to hear that, and give us 1*. The PDFile can have a very complex formatting. For this reason we can not offer you this function. Sorry. A simple page layout in PDFile format is certainly editable. But as soon as it has a complex structure, a conversion is problematic. We have 6 Bionic Reading® Apps. For free or Premium. Bionic Reading® for Apple iOS and macOS, Google Android, Microsoft Windows, Google Chrome and Web. We offer you the free version “Discover” and the subscriptions “Premium” and “Premium Plus”. We think this is fair for you and for us as developers of Bionic Reading®. Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato🇨🇭

Lifetime app required

This app should have a lifetime payment option rather than recurring payments. Secondly, I’m not comfortable with the app reading all the information on my phone. This needs to be outlined clearly. Lastly, it requires deeper integration with the entirety of iPhone OS.

GunthertheThird2

7 months ago

Response from developer

Hi dear Raziyl. Sorry to hear that you did not have a good experience and give us 1*. We continue to develop our Apps every day...You can always send us your message via bionic-reading.com/faq/. This would be very helpful. Our surveys showed that our users (especially with ADHD, dyslexia, reading difficulties) need different subscriptions. We think this is fair for everyone. For you and for us as developers of Bionic Reading®. Thank you for your understanding. By the way, we also contacted Apple directly to ask if they would like to integrate Bionic Reading® as a fixed standard in their platforms...Respectful regards from the Swiss Alps, Renato🇨🇭