Real Paint mixing tools vs AB_AR
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Real Paint mixing tools
This app helps painters compute opaque paint mixing recipes from images for various commercial brands. It supports multiple color spaces and offers different mixing strategies for precise color creation, reducing paint waste.
- Compute paint mixing recipes from images
- Supports multiple commercial paint brands
- Includes various color spaces (sRGB, CMYK, Lab, etc.)
- Offers multiple mixing strategies
- Exact and rounded recipe options
- Import Optishade images for dental colors
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Painters can load an image, pick colors and obtain OPAQUE paint mixing recipes for several commercial paint brands. This is useful for art students, painters with color vision difficulties, and professionals working in painting conservation and restoration. It can also help reduce paint, time, and money waste. Optishade images can be imported directly from the Optishade by StyleItaliano app and used by technicians to create gum or dental colors for mockups. RealPaint includes many color spaces: sRGB, Display P3, CMYK, HSL, HSV/B, Lab, Lch-ab, Luv, Lch-uv, XYZ, xyY, and Munsell coordinates. Munsell coordinates are calculated from the original and extrapolated Renotation Data with high precision, even near the neutral axis. You can also check the color transformation error for full control over conversions. RealPaint includes one Ideal Paint set and many measured Paint Sets from well-known manufacturers: Createx, Daler-Rowney, Ferrario, Gamblin, Grumbacher-Chartpak, Golden, Liquitex, Maimeri, Royal Talens, Schmincke, Sennelier, Vallejo, and Winsor & Newton. Each Paint Set includes 8 paint bases. Once you select a Paint Line, you can purchase the 8 bases wherever you prefer and use them for all your paintings. The 6 colored bases in each Paint Set are optimized to cover the widest possible opaque color space, providing as many mixable colors as possible. Some sets also include phthalocyanine pigments because they offer a wider mixing gamut, although they may be more difficult for beginners. The apps in the “Real Paint mixing tools” family use measured spectral data from painted samples. A large portion of the RGB/P3 space can be mixed, but not every RGB/P3 color is physically achievable with real paints. This is not an app limitation, but a consequence of paint physics. However, many colors outside the RGB/P3 color space can also be mixed by manually adjusting paint amounts on the “Mixing” page. Paint recipes can be generated with several Mixing Strategies: “B and W + 2 Colors”: Black and White first create a gray, then 2 colored bases adjust Hue and Saturation. “B or W + 3 Colors”: 3 colored bases set Hue and Saturation, while either Black or White sets the Value. “At least one opaque”: shows all possible opaque mixing combinations. “No Black used”: shows opaque combinations without Black. “All bases at once”: calculates one recipe using all bases together. The result is usually not unique and opacity is not guaranteed, but it can be useful for color gamut testing. Each recipe can be Exact or Rounded: “Exact recipe” calculates each base amount with 0.01-unit precision. To obtain percentage values, enter 100 as the total amount. This is useful for weight-based measurements with a scale. “Rounded recipe” expresses each base amount as an integer and uses the smallest possible total amount. It is useful for volume-based measurements, such as drops, spoons, or squared paper with paint squeezed directly from tubes. Digital images usually do not fit entirely within the gamut of real paint sets. RealPaint can estimate an approximate desaturation value to adapt an image to the selected Paint Set and current mixing parameters. This heuristic value is approximate, but usually provides very good results. Please note that paint color may vary within the same tube or jar, between different batches, and when manufacturers change formulations over time. Always mix small test amounts first to make sure the computed recipes meet your needs! To learn how to use the app, watch the video tutorials on YouTube by searching for “Real Paint mixing tools”.
AB_AR
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AB_AR is an Augmented Reality experience developed for artist Angela Bulloch. The AB_AR application will be running from 1.9-1.12.2024 for the duration of the 15th Gwangju Biennale. Make sure to turn off Silent mode to experience the AR sound works To access the target images online, go to https://app.angelabulloch.com/target_stone.jpg https://app.angelabulloch.com/target_textile_beanbag.jpg https://app.angelabulloch.com/target_window.jpeg
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: AB_AR at Free against Real Paint mixing tools's $12.99. AB_AR also leads on update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 4 months) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.5). Real Paint mixing tools's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and chart position (#107 vs unranked). On in-app purchases 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
AB_AR is free to download; Real Paint mixing tools costs $12.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Real Paint mixing tools ships an update every 4 months, AB_AR every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Real Paint mixing tools | AB_AR |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $12.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.2 (19 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 82.4% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 19 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 6 weeks — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Best chart rank | #107 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.5 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 29 MB | 442 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | AI4res srl | Angela Bulloch |
In-app purchases
Real Paint mixing tools
No in-app purchases
AB_AR
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Real Paint mixing tools free?
Is AB_AR free?
Do Real Paint mixing tools or AB_AR have ads?
Which is updated more often, Real Paint mixing tools or AB_AR?
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