Cinétype vs Smolcam
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Cinétype
Create unique, high-definition videos from pixel data extracted from photos and drawings. This app explores the creative process of image generation, celebrating the birthing of visuals through animation parameters.
- Pixel art animation
- Video generation from pixel data
- Animation parameter controls
- High-definition video results
- Supports photos and drawings
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The Cinétype app is a pixel art UFO. The objects produced by the Cinétype app belong to a new kind of photographic media, where the birthing-process of images is brought forward, taking power and celebrating its profound meaningfulness over the "ultimate" image itself — through the use of cinemagics. Building on the work behind the Pixel is Data app, the Cinétype app provides a palette of animation parameters to produce surprising, high definition video results using pixel data extracted from photos and drawings alike. The Cinétype app is a tribute to the invention of photography by French engineer Nicéphore Niepce and its original, slow motion, chemical processing. It's free, forever. #Cinetype #CinetypeApp #PixelisData #PixelArt #PixelsInMotion #RealityIsOverrated #GoMakeArt #Celestial #Glitch #VideoArt
Smolcam
This app offers a customizable retro camera experience with a variety of color palettes and dithering options. It provides a simple, distraction-free interface for capturing and saving photos instantly to your library.
- Customizable retro aesthetic
- Multiple color palettes (3-bit to 24-bit)
- Bayer ordered dithering option
- Zoom support for all device cameras
- Instant save to photo library
- Distraction-free interface
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Smolcam transforms your iPhone into a small, lightweight camera with a customizable retro aesthetic. Features: - Completely free: no ads or in-app purchases - Choose from 8 colors (3-bit) to 16 million (24-bit) color palettes - Enable Bayer ordered dithering, or blue noise dithering for increased detail at low bit depths - Supports zooming through all the cameras your phone has - Instant save to photo library - Simple distraction-free interface that runs smoothly on any device and won't kill your battery
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Smolcam at 5.0 against Cinétype's 4.2. Cinétype's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 8 months) and ratings volume (17 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Smolcam holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Cinétype has 17 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Cinétype ships an update every 3 days, Smolcam every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Cinétype | Smolcam |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (17 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 17 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 8 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Matthieu Savary | Jasper Morgal |
Customer experience
Cinétype
Smolcam
In-app purchases
Cinétype
No in-app purchases
Smolcam
No in-app purchases
