Comparison

Phocus vs Blur background.

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Phocus

This AI-powered app creates DSLR-style portraits by simulating realistic background blur and offering advanced 3D relighting capabilities. It allows for precise control over depth, lighting, and scene atmosphere, transforming any photo into a cinematic masterpiece.

Highlights
  • DSLR-style portrait creation
  • Realistic background blur simulation
  • Advanced 3D relighting
  • AI-powered subject detection
  • DSLR lens emulation
  • Portrait video blur
Features
Read full description

Featured by Apple in “Powered by Apple Intelligence” and “Great Apps Updated for iOS 27” around the world, and in “Best New Apps and Updates” in the US and Canada. Phocus is a portrait camera and depth editor for iPhone, iPad, and iPhone Duo. See each lens's bokeh live before you shoot, or bring any photo from your library, even one taken without Portrait mode, and reshape its focus and depth with tools that understand distance, not just outlines. SHOOT - Eight lens characters, from clean and modern to swirly vintage and black and white, each with its own bokeh rendered live in the viewfinder - The blur you see is the blur you get, in the photo and the editor - Live AI depth for real-time blur even where the camera can't measure depth on its own - Live aperture and focus control - Manual ISO, shutter speed, white balance, exposure, and focus - Histogram, zebra, focus peaking, level, and timer - RAW and ProRAW capture - Import your own .cube LUTs, or choose from Daily, Film Looks, Vintage, Signature, and Mono - Lens and color look suggestions with Apple Intelligence, generated on device - Siri, Shortcuts, Lock Screen, and Control Center to open the camera you need EDIT - Change aperture, focus, blur falloff, and bokeh shape after the shot - Edit any photo in your library: AI depth adds realistic blur even to photos taken without Portrait mode - Edit the depth map directly: every color is a distance, so you can pick a depth and brush it over any area - Select a subject with a tap on iOS 27, then refine it with Brush, Erase, and Hardness - Masks in Portrait, Depth, and Select modes - Curves, adjustments, tone, and film grain - 3D Relight and 3D Scene Preview for depth-aware lighting - Copy a photo's look onto other photos, with undo and redo for every change - Save as Portrait keeps the depth with your photo - Export depth maps and portrait mattes - Portrait video blur - Built-in tutorials and Mask Help MADE FOR EVERY SCREEN Phocus adapts to iPhone, iPad, and iPhone Duo. Open your Duo for more room to shoot and edit, or partially fold it with the preview and controls on either side of the fold. "Looking for an app that not only adds the Portrait mode effect to your photos but does a bit more? Then Phocus is the one you're looking for." — iMore "The app is a fine example of technical and artistic craftsmanship." — iGeeksBlog PHOCUS PRO Unlock every lens, look, and tool with Phocus Pro. Subscriptions are billed weekly, monthly or annually at the rate selected depending on the subscription plan. Terms of use: https://rayinformatics.com/terms Privacy policy: https://rayinformatics.com/privacy Contact: https://rayinformatics.com/contact

About

Blur background.

Easily add a professional-looking blurred background to your photos, mimicking the effect of dual-camera portrait modes. This machine learning-powered app lets you enhance existing images or those taken with a single lens, offering various blur styles and adjustable intensity.

Highlights
  • Add blur to any photo
  • Machine learning based
  • Multiple blur styles (Bokeh, Motion, etc.)
  • Adjustable blur intensity
  • Enhance single-camera photos
Read full description

PTMD is an application that allows you to add blur background on photo, similar to phones with two cameras. The app is based on machine learning. • Add blur background on old photo or photos taken with one camera in one moment. • The application provides several blur styles (Bokeh, Box, Motion, Crystallize, Pixelate). • Choose the intensity of blur using the slider.

Screenshots

Phocus4 screens
Blur background.4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Blur background. at none against Phocus's 7. Blur background. also leads on iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.0). Phocus's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 21 months) and review sentiment (50% vs 29%). On price, rating, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Phocus sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. Blur background. asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Phocus holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Phocus has 6.8K ratings behind it against 334, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Phocus's written reviews are positive against 29% of Blur background.'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Phocus ships an update fortnightly, Blur background. every 21 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Phocus versus Blur background.: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhocusBlur background.
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (6.8K ratings) — better4.4 (334 ratings)
Positive reviews49.5% of reviews — better29.4% of reviews
Number of ratings6.8K — better334
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 21 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size320 MB19 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRAY INFORMATICS YAZILIM TEKNOLOJI MEDYA DANISMANLIK VE EGITIM TICARET LIMITED SIRKETIAlexander Sukhanov

Customer experience

Phocus

All ratings6,840 ratings
Positive88.8%
Neutral4.8%
Negative6.4%
Written reviews501 reviews
Positive49.5%
Neutral5.2%
Negative45.3%

Blur background.

All ratings334 ratings
Positive83.5%
Neutral4.8%
Negative11.7%
Written reviews51 reviews
Positive29.4%
Neutral11.8%
Negative58.8%

User reviews

Phocus

From 6.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Good app
  • 👍 Best tool camera app
  • 👍 Easy editing, works great
  • 👍 Makes your phone current

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Hilariously terrible effects
  • 🔒 Can't limit access to personal stuff
  • 🐛 Awful, blurs everything
  • 🐛 Crashes too much
  • 🐛 Doesn't render, gets stuck

Blur background.

From 334 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ✨ Great bokeh effect
  • 🐶 Portrait mode for pets
  • 🎛️ Adjustable blur background
  • 👍 Easy to use (for some)
  • 💯 Does what it says (for some)

Room to improve

  • ❓ No instructions provided
  • 🚫 Lacks back/next buttons
  • 😵 Difficult to navigate
  • 📸 Fails to detect subjects
  • 🖼️ Blurs entire photo

Bugs and requests

Phocus

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Can't save pictures
  • Photos don't download
  • Unable to save picture
  • Camera crashes when clicking portrait
  • App dies if you don't upgrade

Requested features

4 requests
  • Change bokeh shapes/effects
  • Add manual brush to control bokeh
  • Make it a photo extension in Photos app
  • Add more shadows and directional lighting

Blur background.

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • App freezes on startup
  • Fails to access photos
  • Unresponsive touch controls
  • App crashes
  • Incompatible with iOS 15
Show 3 more
  • Photo arrives already blurred
  • Subject not recognized
  • Unable to delete photos

Requested features

9 requests
  • Add instructions
  • Improve subject detection
  • Add save functionality
  • Make app universal for iPad
  • More intuitive interface
Show 4 more
  • Add more editing functions
  • Improve edge detection
  • More gradual blur fall-off
  • Option to go back and start new pic

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Phocus

Subscriptions4
  • Phocus AI Weekly2 variants$3.997 Days
  • Phocus AI Monthly2 variants$7.991 Month
  • Phocus AI Yearly3 Days trial$19.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Phocus AI Yearly$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Phocus AI Unlimited Access$49.99
None

Blur background.

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Phocus free?
Phocus is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Blur background. free?
Blur background. is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Phocus or Blur background.?
Phocus is rated higher. Phocus averages 4.6 out of 5 from 6.8K ratings, while Blur background. averages 4.4 from 334 ratings.
Do Phocus or Blur background. have ads?
Neither Phocus nor Blur background. shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Phocus or Blur background.?
Phocus ships an update fortnightly, and Blur background. every 21 months. Most recently, Phocus was updated on October 26, 2026 and Blur background. on October 22, 2026.

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