Comparison

Focos vs Manual Camera

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

Head to head
About

Focos

Transform your iPhone and iPad photos with DSLR-like bokeh and depth-of-field effects. This app uses computational photography to let you refocus, adjust aperture, and add multiple lights in 3D space, unlocking endless creative possibilities.

Highlights
  • AI-powered depth calculation
  • Adjustable aperture and bokeh effects
  • Refocus photos after capture
  • Add and control multiple 3D lights
  • Simulate lens characteristics
  • 3D depth map visualization
  • Augmented reality preview
Features
Read full description

Focos is a big step into the future of computational photography and light-field camera, bringing DSLR-like photography to your iPhone and iPad Pro, with beautiful bokeh effects usually achievable only with professional large aperture cameras. With the technology of computational photography, you can make unlimited changes to your photos, focus after the fact, change the aperture repeatedly, and add multiple lights in 3D space, exceeding the limits of any editing tools you’ve known before. The creative potential unleashed by Focos is endless. The Verge, "Focos has long been one of the most ambitious photo-editing apps on iOS, turning any photo into a 'portrait mode'-style image with fully adjustable depth of field, no matter what kind of camera you took it with." MAIN FEATURES - Take photos with shallow depth of field, without manually painting or making selections. - The AI engine can calculate depth of field automatically for all photos. - True 3D imaging. - Simulate large apertures to create real bokeh effects normally only possible with DSLR cameras and expensive lenses. - Import all existing photos and customize the bokeh effect. - Re-focus portrait photos that have already been taken, with a simple tap. - Choose from various simulated aperture diaphragms to generate different bokeh spot effects. - Professional options to simulate lens characteristics, such as creamy, bilinear, swirly, and reflex effects, and more. - Visualize the depth of areas within your portrait photos in a 3D view, and intuitively add depth filters. - Add multiple lights in a 3D space, and adjust the color, brightness and so on for each light. - Check the portrait picture in the real world with augmented reality technique. - It is possible to patch the depth map precisely on iPad with Apple Pencil. - Intuitive and easy to use, with built-in video tutorials. - An essential tool for all iPhones and iPads. Do you have questions or suggestions? Contact us via support @ focos . me.

About

Manual Camera

Take full control of your mobile photography with manual adjustments for focus, ISO, shutter speed, and white balance. Achieve professional-looking shots with reduced noise and creative motion blur effects.

Highlights
  • Manual focus control
  • Adjustable ISO sensitivity
  • Variable shutter speed
  • Customizable white balance
  • Long exposure photography
  • RAW photo capture
Features
Read full description

With mcamera you can control parameters that are not available in the standard camera app: - Focus distance - ISO sensitivity - Shutter speed - White balance With manual control of shutter speed you can keep ISO as low as possible which will give you less noise on the photos. Long shutter speed would also give you opportunity to take photos with smeared elements such as car lights or smooth river water. Terms of service: https://vdugnist.com/mcamera_tos.html

Screenshots

Focos4 screens
Manual Camera3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Focos at 4.7 against Manual Camera's 4.3. Focos also leads on ratings volume (51K vs 440). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads 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. Focos sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days and Manual Camera sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Focos holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Focos has 51K ratings behind it against 440, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 51% of Focos's written reviews are positive against 58% of Manual Camera's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Focos ships an update every 2 weeks, Manual Camera every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Focos versus Manual Camera: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFocosManual Camera
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (51K ratings) — better4.3 (440 ratings)
Positive reviews50.7% of reviews57.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings51K — better440
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 4 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS14.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size332 MB25 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMosaic S.r.l.Vladislav Dugnist

Customer experience

Focos

All ratings51,408 ratings
Positive93.1%
Neutral2.8%
Negative4.2%
Written reviews750 reviews
Positive50.7%
Neutral5.2%
Negative44.1%

Manual Camera

All ratings440 ratings
Positive83.9%
Neutral4.5%
Negative11.6%
Written reviews45 reviews
Positive57.8%
Neutral2.2%
Negative40.0%

User reviews

Focos

From 51K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent depth of field control
  • 👍 Powerful photo editing features
  • 🎨 Versatile lighting and effects
  • 💡 Ability to edit non-Portrait mode photos
  • 🔍 Precise focus adjustment

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
  • 🤔 Steep learning curve for advanced features
  • 🔍 Inaccurate depth mapping in some cases
  • 🖼️ Reduced quality for free version exports

Manual Camera

From 440 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Useful for manual focus
  • 👍 Good for astronomy photos
  • 👍 Allows specific parameter settings
  • 👍 Great for low light environments
  • 👍 Free long exposure photos

Room to improve

  • 👎 Free version HEIF format
  • 👎 Requires access to all photos
  • 👎 Aspect ratio issues in free version
  • 👎 Difficult to use slow shutter
  • 👎 Cannot take selfies

Bugs and requests

Focos

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App freezes or crashes when editing certain photos
  • Depth adjustments not saving properly
  • Inconsistent behavior when switching between editing modes

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to save edited photos with depth map
  • More precise brush tools for depth editing
  • Improved hair/fine detail handling
  • Faster processing and loading times
  • Easier organization and management of edited photos

Manual Camera

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • Unable to save photos
  • Aspect ratio not saving correctly in free version
  • Slow shutter not working as expected
  • App crashes
  • Cannot access selfie camera
Show 3 more
  • EXIF data not displayed in native Photos app
  • ISO value discrepancy between slider and display
  • Cannot save photos due to photo access settings

Requested features

8 requests
  • Ability to turn on macro focus mode
  • Option to switch to selfie camera
  • Longer exposure times (e.g., 30 seconds)
  • Support for ultra wide and telephoto cameras
  • ND filter for daylight slow shutter speeds
Show 3 more
  • Ability to change lenses on iPhone 12Pro
  • More settings and controls
  • Fix alignment issue with aperture symbol

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Focos

Subscriptions7
  • Focos Pro Weekly7 Days trial$1.997 Days
  • Focos Pro Weekly7 Days trial$3.997 Days
  • Focos Pro Weekly$3.997 Days
Show 4 more
  • Weekly Subscription - Standard$3.997 Days
  • Standard Weekly - Free Trial7 Days trial$3.997 Days
  • Weekly Creator Bundle - FT7 Days trial2 variants$9.997 Days
  • Weekly Creator Bundle$9.997 Days
One-time2
  • Monthly subscription$1.99
  • Lifetime unlimited access$12.99
2 purchases

Manual Camera

Subscriptions2
  • Manual Camera PRO7 Days trial$5.991 Year
  • Manual Camera PRO7 Days trial$11.991 Year

Questions

Is Focos free?
Focos is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Manual Camera free?
Manual Camera is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Focos or Manual Camera?
Focos is rated higher. Focos averages 4.7 out of 5 from 51K ratings, while Manual Camera averages 4.3 from 440 ratings.
Do Focos or Manual Camera have ads?
Neither Focos nor Manual Camera shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Focos or Manual Camera?
Focos ships an update every 2 weeks, and Manual Camera every 4 weeks. Most recently, Focos was updated on September 26, 2026 and Manual Camera on September 23, 2026.

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