a vs Desktop Browser
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
a
Run a full Unix-like terminal environment on your iOS device. Execute a wide range of commands, edit files, and even program using included interpreters and compilers. Supports multitasking and integration with Shortcuts.
- Local Unix terminal emulator
- SSH client
- File transfer (scp, curl)
- Text editing (vim, ed)
- Scripting languages (Python, Lua, Perl, JS)
- C/C++ compiler
- TeX distribution
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a-Shell is a complete local terminal emulator, allowing to run most Unix commands on your iOS device. You can transfer files using scp and curl, edit them with vim and ed, process them using grep, awk and sed. You can work with git repositories using lg2. Most commands are compiled for iOS native Arm64 format, making them fast and well integrated with the BSD Unix that powers iOS/iPadOS. a-Shell includes Python, Lua, Perl, JavaScript, C, C++ for programming and TeX (texlive 2025, with Tikz and LuaTeX) for text processing. There are also multiple network utilities: nslookup, ping, whois, ifconfig... Type help for help, help -l to get the full list of commands. a-Shell can be controlled from Shortcuts: run commands in order, process files in a-Shell, get the results as text or files, transfer files to other apps... a-shell uses iOS 13+ “multiple windows” ability, so you can run multiple shells at the same time, with different commands, in different directories. You can edit a file in one window with vim and process it in the other with python. Compile your C or C++ programs to webAssembly using clang or clang++, and execute the resulting binary. A complete webAssembly SDK is included (WASI-libc). a-Shell is the complete version. If you need a smaller app, and you don't need a C compiler, a TeX engine, or numpy and matplotlib, there is a-Shell mini.
Desktop Browser
Experience a full desktop web on your mobile device. This browser simulates a large, resizable screen to display desktop versions of websites, avoiding mobile-optimized layouts. Enjoy features like zoom control, full-screen mode, and privacy-focused data collection.
- Desktop website rendering
- Zoomable screen (1x-3x)
- Full screen mode
- Portrait/landscape transitions
- Favorites management
- UI customization
- Multiple tabs (Pro)
- Theme customization (Pro)
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Zoomable is a browser that provides a full desktop web experience. It simulates a large and resizable screen and shows the desktop version of websites, so you can stay away from those bad mobile web experiences. • Zoom freely between 1x and 3x. • Seamless transitions between portrait and landscape mode. • Supports full screen mode. • Save and manage favorites. • Lightning fast and super small install size. • Supports UI customization for both portrait and landscape mode. • Respects user privacy; the app only collects anonymous diagnostic data unrelated to browsing, and you can opt out. • [Pro] Multiple tabs. • [Pro] Customize themes. The app is designed for everyone, it works great with many websites. However, it is particularly useful for developers. For example, accessing App Store Connect and Firebase Console works great in this app because of the screen scale feature.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: a at none against Desktop Browser's 3. a also leads on review sentiment (79% vs 64%). Desktop Browser's advantage is ratings volume (3.3K vs 553). On price, rating, 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
Both are free to download. Desktop Browser sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. a asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for a against 4.5 for Desktop Browser. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Desktop Browser has 3.3K ratings behind it against 553, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 79% of a's written reviews are positive against 64% of Desktop Browser's.
a ships an update monthly, Desktop Browser every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | a | Desktop Browser |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (553 ratings) — better | 4.5 (3.3K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 78.6% of reviews — better | 64.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 553 | 3.3K — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #19 — better | #22 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.9 GB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Nicolas Holzschuch | Actowise LLC |
Customer experience
a
Desktop Browser
User reviews
a
From 553 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Powerful terminal with Linux commands
- 👍 Useful for programming and development
- 🔒 Secure and reliable
- 💡 Impressive capabilities for an iOS app
- 👍 Helpful documentation and developer support
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
- 🔍 Limited customization options
- 🔍 Missing some basic terminal features
- 🔍 Compatibility issues with certain packages
Desktop Browser
From 3.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 👍 Intuitive user interface
- 🔍 Effective desktop mode
- 💡 Useful zoom feature
- 🔒 Secure browsing
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and reloads
- 🔍 Inconsistent desktop mode performance
- 📱 Incompatible with some mobile apps
- 💸 Paid version required for full functionality
- 🔌 High battery consumption
Bugs and requests
a
Reported bugs
3 issues- Toolbar buttons not accessible in portrait mode on some devices
- Pasting from clipboard can insert unexpected characters
- Sourcing certain script files causes crashes
Requested features
5 requests- Add support for package managers like Homebrew or APT
- Implement more advanced shell features like job control and better tab completion
- Integrate Git for version control
- Allow installing additional packages and libraries
- Improve clipboard and file management integration
Desktop Browser
Reported bugs
4 issues- Issues connecting to local IP addresses
- Inability to use Google account login
- Blank pages when resizing or zooming
- Redirects to search engine instead of desired site
Requested features
5 requests- Add ad-blocking capabilities
- Implement local network access
- Allow setting as default browser
- Introduce a virtual trackpad mode
- Improve bookmark management
In-app purchases
a
No in-app purchases
Desktop Browser
- 2 Extra Tabs$2.99
- Pro Lifetime$9.99
- Pro Lifetime$14.99
