# Envision AI vs Essimu

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Envision AI at none against Essimu's 3. Envision AI also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 6 months). Essimu's advantage is iOS requirement (12.4 vs 16.6). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Essimu sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Envision AI asks for nothing beyond the download.

Envision AI ships an update every 5 weeks, Essimu every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Envision AI | Essimu |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.2 (596 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/envision-ai/id1268632314/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **596** | — |
| Positive reviews | 58.1% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 weeks** | Every 6 months |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 373 MB | 32 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | **12.4** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Envision Technologies B.V.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1127228636) | [Alex Kisakye](https://appshunter.io/developer/1701232799) |

## What reviewers say

### Envision AI

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/envision-ai/id1268632314)

This app uses AI and OCR to read text, describe surroundings, and identify objects for users who are blind or have low vision. It offers features like instant text reading in multiple languages, document scanning, scene description, and object detection to promote independence.

**Highlights:** Instant text reading in 60+ languages, Audio-guided document scanning, Scene and object description, Barcode scanning for product info, People and object detection, Image and PDF description

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and accurate text recognition
- 🔍 Excellent object and scene description
- 👍 Helpful for independence and accessibility
- 🔍 Accurate barcode and color recognition

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and stability issues
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 💰 Expensive subscription model
- 🌐 Limited language support

**Reported bugs**

- Instant text reader mixes languages and has poor formatting
- Document scanning sometimes fails to detect document edges
- Facial recognition often misidentifies people
- Barcode scanner not working reliably in latest version

**Requested features**

- Add support for more languages, including Punjabi and Gujarati
- Improve handwriting recognition accuracy
- Implement offline mode for text recognition
- Add a feature to save and organize recognized text


### Essimu

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/essimu/id6458441242)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Wallet

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Purchase 10 Credits | $12.00 | one-time |
| Purchase 20 Credits | $25.00 | one-time |
| Purchase 50 Credits | $55.00 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Envision AI free?

Envision AI is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Essimu free?

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

### Do Envision AI or Essimu have ads?

Neither Envision AI nor Essimu shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Envision AI or Essimu?

Envision AI ships an update every 5 weeks, and Essimu every 6 months. Most recently, Envision AI was updated on November 11, 2026 and Essimu on October 30, 2026.

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