Chinese Annotator vs ChineseVlog
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Chinese Annotator
This app helps you learn Chinese by reading ePub books. It allows you to add Pinyin and English definitions directly to the text, and track your vocabulary knowledge. You can also export your learned words for flashcard review.
- Import ePub files
- Add Pinyin and English definitions
- Track known words and characters
- Hide known Pinyin/definitions
- Export word lists for flashcards
- Print pages to PDF
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A Chinese ePub reader to assist you in reading Chinese characters. After importing an ePub, you can add Pinyin and English on to the text in a 3-line format. After annotating the text in this way, you can then mark on a word by word basis which definitions you already know and which characters you know. There is a setting that hides the pinyin or definitions of words that you know. In this way, you are forced to look at the character and recall it instead of relying on pinyin. A word list is also available to allow you to see all words, words with unknown definitions, or words with unknown pinyin. This list of words can be exported to a file to be imported in to a flash card system, like Pleco. This allows you to easily pick out all the words you don't know in a publication and review them. You can also print the page of the book currently being displayed. In iOS 10 and greater, you can print to PDF.
ChineseVlog
Learn authentic Chinese through real-life video content like vlogs and TV clips. Features interactive subtitles, pinyin, translations, grammar analysis, and vocabulary tools for effective study.
- Real Chinese vlogs and clips
- Interactive subtitles with instant translation
- Toggleable pinyin display
- Russian & English line translations
- Grammar analysis
- Flashcards, dictation, and shadowing exercises
- Personal vocabulary notebook with spaced repetition
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ChineseVlog is an immersive Chinese learning platform built around real, authentic video content — not textbook dialogues. What you get: - Hundreds of real Chinese vlogs, TV drama clips and stand-up comedy - Interactive subtitles: click any word for instant translation - Pinyin above every character — toggle on/off anytime - Russian & English translations for every line - Grammar analysis for key sentences - Flashcards, dictation and shadowing exercises - Personal vocabulary notebook with spaced repetition - Study progress sync across all devices Perfect for: For anyone who wants to go beyond textbooks and truly understand — and speak — natural, authentic Chinese. Free trial: Several videos available for free. Full access requires a one-time course package purchase. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: ChineseVlog at Free against Chinese Annotator's $0.99. ChineseVlog also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.1) and review sentiment (100% vs 72%). Chinese Annotator's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (30 vs 1). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
ChineseVlog is free to download; Chinese Annotator costs $0.99 up front. ChineseVlog sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $4.99 per month. Chinese Annotator asks for nothing beyond the download.
ChineseVlog holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Chinese Annotator has 30 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 72% of Chinese Annotator's written reviews are positive against 100% of ChineseVlog's.
Chinese Annotator ships an update every 2 weeks, ChineseVlog weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and September 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Chinese Annotator | ChineseVlog |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.1 (30 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 72.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 30 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 65 MB | 53 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Jon Hargett | 雨荷 周 |
Customer experience
Chinese Annotator
ChineseVlog
In-app purchases
Chinese Annotator
No in-app purchases
ChineseVlog
- Monthly Subscription$4.991 Month









