# a vs NotifyBridge

The clearest difference is price: a at Free against NotifyBridge's $0.99. a also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 5 weeks). On ads, chart position and device support there is nothing between them.

a is free to download; NotifyBridge costs $0.99 up front. NotifyBridge sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. a asks for nothing beyond the download.

a ships an update every 2 weeks, NotifyBridge every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | a | NotifyBridge |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $0.99 |
| Rating | **[4.6 (124 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/a-shell-mini/id1543537943/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **124** | — |
| Positive reviews | 77.4% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 5 weeks |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Best chart rank | **#36** | #57 |
| Size | 380 MB | 3 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Nicolas Holzschuch](https://appshunter.io/developer/1450994948) | [Nicolae Gherasim](https://appshunter.io/developer/1437386557) |

## What reviewers say

### a

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/a-shell-mini/id1543537943)

**Currently charting:** #36 Top Free · Developer Tools (US App Store)

This app provides a local Unix terminal emulator for iOS devices, enabling users to run various Unix commands, transfer files, and edit them. It supports programming languages like Python and JavaScript, along with network utilities and image/video conversion tools.

**Highlights:** Local Unix terminal emulator, File transfer (scp, curl), Text editing (vim, ed), Programming languages (Python, Lua, JavaScript), Network utilities (nslookup, ping), Image and video conversion (ffmpeg), Shortcuts integration

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great app for shortcuts
- 🚀 Efficient and functional
- 💡 Useful for IT tasks
- ✨ Free and awesome
- 💻 Good for remote server connection

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Font size not adjustable
- 🐛 Keyboard icons too large
- 🐛 App deletes itself
- 🐛 Rotating screen scrambles display
- 🐛 Pasting text shows strange characters

**Reported bugs**

- Keyboard icons comically large
- App deletes itself
- Rotating iPhone/iPad scrambles display
- Pasting text results in strange characters
- App only uses half of the screen when editing files

**Requested features**

- Option to use old keyboard buttons
- Add openssl support
- Add libx265 codec for ffmpeg
- Support telnet command
- Add possibility to compile from source


### NotifyBridge

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notifybridge-iot-push-api/id6761703365)

**Currently charting:** #57 Top Paid · Developer Tools (US App Store)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 25,000 Push Credits | $1.99 | one-time |
| 100,000 Push Credits | $3.99 | one-time |
| 500,000 Push Credits | $19.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is a free?

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

### Is NotifyBridge free?

NotifyBridge costs $0.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Do a or NotifyBridge have ads?

Neither a nor NotifyBridge shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, a or NotifyBridge?

a ships an update every 2 weeks, and NotifyBridge every 5 weeks. Most recently, a was updated on November 13, 2026 and NotifyBridge on November 5, 2026.

### Which is more popular, a or NotifyBridge?

a currently peaks at #36 in the App Store charts, and NotifyBridge at #57. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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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.*