Comparison

Smart NFC vs Shell Keyboard

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

Head to head
About

Smart NFC

This app allows users to read, write, and interact with NFC tags directly from their compatible iPhone. It supports various record types, tag formatting, and direct memory access for advanced customization. Background reading is also available on newer devices.

Highlights
  • Read, write, duplicate, erase, and lock NDEF tags
  • Format tags as NDEF
  • Interact with links and social media records
  • Background tag reading
  • Direct tag memory access
  • Send custom commands to tags
Features
Read full description

NFC is supported on iPhone 7 or newer only; iPad and iPod Touch do not have the hardware to interact with NFC tags. ----- Read, write, interact, and hack your NFC tags on your supporting iPhone! Smart NFC is one of the first apps to support native NFC writing directly from your device. With numerous custom records to get you started, you'll be writing to most NDEF-formatted NFC tags in no time. Don't have any NDEF-formatted tags? Format them in the Advanced section. Tag-specific features are being added that allow you to edit a tag's memory directly, which opens the doors to all kinds of new features! Tag not scanning? NDEF format new tags from the Advanced section to get them working right! An NFC tag is written with a single "Message" which contains any number of "Records." These records define text, links, and data to be stored on the tag. Most tags can be scanned by holding the top of your iPhone within a few centimeters. A chip is only limited only by its size. As long as the chip is NDEF-formatted (most are, and other formats will be supported in a later version) and it has enough space, the limits are endless! Features: - Read, write, duplicate, erase, and permanently lock NDEF-formatted tags - Monitor a tag's max capacity (usually somewhere between 256-1024 Bytes) - Read, write, and interact with links (https://, sms://, facetime://, mailto:, etc.) - Write a variety of pre-defined Social Media and website records - Read and write text records with multiple language localizations - Use Background Tag Reading to interact with NFC tags without an app. Write a link to a tag and then tap it to your phone. Voila! (Supported on iPhone XS and newer) - Review and rewrite previous messages from your History to another tag - Format factory-programmed tags as NDEF tags in-app (Supports most common tags such as Type 2 and Type 5 NFC tags) - Read and write directly to a tag's memory - Send custom commands directly to a tag - And of course, target your users better by using a tag's unique identifier Extras: - Dark Mode - Privacy: we collect nothing as you use the app. Supported Devices: - NFC scanning is available on iPhone 7 and newer. iPad and iPod Touch do not have the required hardware. - Background Tag Reading is available on iPhone XS and newer. iOS will present a notification for the first valid link stored on a tag. Supported Tags: - Any NDEF-formatted tags - MIFARE Ultralight - NTAG 213/215/216 - NXP ICODE® Tags, ISO 15693 Tags, and Type 5 Tags Future support for: - MIFARE DESFire Limitations: - MIFARE Classic tags are not currently supported by iOS Future features: - Include a tag's ID and/or its read count in a record - Password-protect an NFC chip - Connect to a Bluetooth device Feel free to Tweet feature requests to me at @0xA1EC

About

Shell Keyboard

This custom keyboard provides essential keys like Ctrl, Esc, and arrow keys that are missing from the standard iOS keyboard. It's designed for terminal applications, sending precise control codes and escape sequences for seamless command-line interaction on iOS and iPadOS devices.

Highlights
  • Dedicated terminal layer with Ctrl, Esc, Tab, arrow keys
  • Ctrl and Alt as proper modifiers with lock functionality
  • Full function-key layer (F1-F12)
  • Configurable arrow key behavior for different apps
  • Multiple keyboard layouts for iPad (60% and 75%)
  • Seven customizable themes (light and dark)
  • Privacy-focused, no Full Access required
Features
Read full description

Shell Keyboard adds the keys a terminal actually needs — the ones iOS's default keyboard leaves out. Working over SSH or in a local shell needs Ctrl, Esc, Tab, arrow keys, and function keys, none of which exist on the standard iOS keyboard. Shell Keyboard is a custom keyboard built specifically for terminal apps like Blink, Termius, Prompt, a-Shell and iSH — it sends the exact ASCII control codes and ANSI/VT escape sequences your terminal expects, the same bytes a physical keyboard would send. NEW ON IPAD: A REAL KEYBOARD Choose a 60% or 75% layout, the compact keyboards terminal users already type on. The 75% layout puts Esc, F1–F12, a number row, Caps Lock, Home, End, Page Up, Page Down and inverted-T arrow keys on one screen, and Shift types the symbol printed on each key, just like a physical keyboard. The 60% layout keeps the function keys, navigation and arrows one fn press away. iPad opens in the 75% layout; the original ShellKey layout is one tap away in Settings. WHAT'S INCLUDED • A dedicated terminal layer: Ctrl, Alt, Esc, Tab, arrow keys, Home/End/PgUp/PgDn, and the punctuation a shell prompt uses constantly • Ctrl and Alt as proper modifiers — latch one for a single keypress, or double-tap to lock it on, like a hardware keyboard • A full function-key layer: tap fn and the top row becomes F1 through F12, while every other row stays exactly where it was • Arrow keys that match the app you're in — Normal for shells, Application for vim, tmux, less and htop, or Move the Cursor for ordinary text fields • Return or Enter: long-press the Return key to switch between a carriage return and a line feed • A plain QWERTY layer and a complete symbols layer, for ordinary text — hostnames, paths, commit messages — without leaving the keyboard • Seven themes — Shell, Ember, Glacier, Dusk, Moss, Void (pure black) and High Contrast — each in light and dark, and an Appearance option to keep the keyboard light or dark everywhere • On iPad, 60% and 75% layouts (75% by default), described above • A searchable reference inside the app, listing every key alongside the exact escape sequence and hex bytes it sends • Every key emits the exact byte sequence a real terminal expects SETTINGS LIVE IN THE KEYBOARD Touch and hold the key with the small gear (or tap the gear key on the iPad's 60% and 75% layouts) for Haptic feedback, Theme, Appearance and, on iPad, Layout. They live in the keyboard itself because, without Full Access, iOS keeps a keyboard and its app apart, and Shell Keyboard never asks for Full Access. BUILT FOR PRIVACY Shell Keyboard never asks for Full Access. It cannot reach the network. It never reads, stores, or transmits anything you type — every key it sends is decided from the key you tapped, and nothing else. No analytics, no crash reporting, no account. GOOD TO KNOW In a terminal or editor running inside a web browser — code-server, Jupyter and the like — the keys that send a multi-character escape sequence don't get through: the arrow keys, F1 through F12, Home, End, Page Up, Page Down, Shift+Tab and Alt combinations. Everything that sends a single byte works there normally, including every Ctrl combination, Esc, Tab, Return and ordinary typing. Web pages listen for key press events and iOS only lets a keyboard extension insert text, so this is an iOS limitation that applies to every third-party keyboard, not something an app can work around. WHO IT'S FOR Anyone who SSHes from an iPhone or iPad — sysadmins, developers, and anyone tired of missing Ctrl+C.

Screenshots

Smart NFC4 screens
Shell Keyboard4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Shell Keyboard at 100% against Smart NFC's 48%. Shell Keyboard also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and chart position (#4 vs #48). Smart NFC's advantage is monetization model (free vs paid) and ratings volume (92 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

Smart NFC costs $1.99 and Shell Keyboard $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Shell Keyboard holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Smart NFC has 92 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 48% of Smart NFC's written reviews are positive against 100% of Shell Keyboard's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Smart NFC versus Shell Keyboard: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSmart NFCShell Keyboard
Price$1.99$1.99
Rating4.5 (92 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews47.6% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings92 — better1
Update frequencyFortnightlyFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
Best chart rank#48#4 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS14.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAlec O'ConnorNguyen Nguyen

Customer experience

Smart NFC

All ratings92 ratings
Positive87.0%
Neutral2.2%
Negative10.9%
Written reviews21 reviews
Positive47.6%
Neutral14.3%
Negative38.1%

Shell Keyboard

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Smart NFC

No in-app purchases

None

Shell Keyboard

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Smart NFC free?
Smart NFC costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Shell Keyboard free?
Shell Keyboard costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Smart NFC or Shell Keyboard?
Shell Keyboard is rated higher. Smart NFC averages 4.5 out of 5 from 92 ratings, while Shell Keyboard averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Smart NFC or Shell Keyboard have ads?
Neither Smart NFC nor Shell Keyboard shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Smart NFC or Shell Keyboard?
Smart NFC ships an update fortnightly, and Shell Keyboard fortnightly. Most recently, Smart NFC was updated on November 3, 2026 and Shell Keyboard on November 1, 2026.
Which is more popular, Smart NFC or Shell Keyboard?
Smart NFC currently peaks at #48 in the App Store charts, and Shell Keyboard at #4. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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