# Panels vs Japanese Hiragana Widget

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Japanese Hiragana Widget at none against Panels's 5. Japanese Hiragana Widget also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs every 9 days) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). Panels's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (13K vs 4). On price, rating and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Panels sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Japanese Hiragana Widget asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Panels against 4.8 for Japanese Hiragana Widget. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Panels has 13K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 70% of Panels's written reviews are positive against 60% of Japanese Hiragana Widget's.

Panels ships an update every 9 days, Japanese Hiragana Widget every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Panels | Japanese Hiragana Widget |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (13K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/panels-comic-reader/id1236567663/reviews)** | [4.8 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/japanese-hiragana-widget/id1549616889/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **13K** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | **70.2% of reviews** | 60.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days | **Every 3 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Best chart rank | **#156** | — |
| Size | 166 MB | 82 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Produkt Studio](https://appshunter.io/developer/1236567662) | [CAO HUNG LE](https://appshunter.io/developer/1542899848) |

## What reviewers say

### Panels

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/panels-comic-reader/id1236567663)

**Currently charting:** #156 Top Free · Book, #170 Top Grossing · Book (US App Store)

Enhance your comic reading with advanced features and a clean interface. Enjoy DRM-free titles, extensive file format support, and seamless cross-device synchronization. Organize your library and customize your reading experience.

**Highlights:** Universal comic format support (CBR, CBZ, CB7, PDF, ePUB), Cross-device reading progress sync, OPDS server streaming and downloading, DRM-free comic store with creator support, Advanced reading presets and page filters, Library organization with custom themes, Content security with password/Face ID

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Panels+ Monthly | $1.49 | per month |
| Panels+ Yearly | $14.99 | per year |
| Panels 3 Upgrade | $9.99 | one-time |
| Panels 2 | $19.99 | one-time |
| Panels 3 | $19.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Smooth and responsive
- 👍 Clean and modern UI
- 💡 Useful features like panel view and vertical scrolling
- 🔒 No ads in paid version
- 👍 Good import and organization options

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
- 🔒 Useful features locked behind paywall
- 🔒 Subscription model instead of one-time purchase
- 🐛 Issues with page navigation and zoom
- 🐛 Problems with reading right-to-left content

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when opening large files
- Issues with page order and navigation
- Problems with zooming and scrolling
- Syncing and importing bugs
- Compatibility issues with older devices

**Requested features**

- Ability to create sub-folders and nested collections
- Automatic sorting and organization of comics
- Option to lock reading direction
- Double-tap to zoom functionality
- Progress tracking and bookmarking features


### Japanese Hiragana Widget

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/japanese-hiragana-widget/id1549616889)

Master Japanese characters with this app. Learn Hiragana and Katakana through interactive study modes, including individual letter and line-based learning. Test your knowledge with multiple-choice and short-answer quizzes to quickly advance your Japanese language skills.

**Highlights:** Learn individual Hiragana and Katakana letters, Study characters by line, Review 50-character tables, Multiple-choice tests, Short-answer tests, Pronunciation audio

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Panels free?

Panels is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Japanese Hiragana Widget free?

Japanese Hiragana Widget is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Panels or Japanese Hiragana Widget?

Panels is rated higher. Panels averages 4.8 out of 5 from 13K ratings, while Japanese Hiragana Widget averages 4.8 from 4 ratings.

### Do Panels or Japanese Hiragana Widget have ads?

Japanese Hiragana Widget shows ads; Panels does not.

### Which is updated more often, Panels or Japanese Hiragana Widget?

Panels ships an update every 9 days, and Japanese Hiragana Widget every 3 days. Most recently, Panels was updated on November 9, 2026 and Japanese Hiragana Widget on November 3, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*