Manual Camera vs illumeter
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- Manual focus control
- Adjustable ISO sensitivity
- Variable shutter speed
- Customizable white balance
- Long exposure photography
- RAW photo capture
Read full descriptionHide 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
illumeter
This app functions as a portable light meter, allowing users to measure exposure values like aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. It offers features for logging shots with location and settings, and provides customization options for a personalized user experience.
- Exposure measurement (Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO)
- Tap-to-focus exposure lock
- Exposure compensation
- Frame logging with location and settings
- List and map view of logged frames
- Customizable settings and appearance
Read full descriptionHide full description
illumeter, The Simplest Light Meter in Your Pocket. Exposure Meter • Choose the value you want to measure from Aperture, Shutter Speed, or ISO. • The selected value automatically adjusts based on changes in the other two settings. • Tap a specific point on the screen to lock the exposure to that area. • An exposure compensation feature is provided to help you handle various challenging lighting conditions. Frame Logging • Log your frames by composing your shot and pressing the shutter button. • Location, date and time, EV value, and settings are recorded with each frame. • Review your recorded frames in a list and on a map. • Easily delete or edit incorrect frames. Settings & Personalization • Easily toggle various features on or off. • Deactivate or remove unused values. • Customize the app's appearance and feedback to your preference.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: illumeter at 100% against Manual Camera's 58%. illumeter also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2) and rating (4.6 vs 4.3). Manual Camera's advantage is ratings volume (440 vs 11) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.0). On price, update cadence, ads 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
Both are free to download. Manual Camera sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per year. illumeter asks for nothing beyond the download.
illumeter holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Manual Camera has 440 ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of Manual Camera's written reviews are positive against 100% of illumeter's.
Manual Camera ships an update every 4 weeks, illumeter every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and July 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Manual Camera | illumeter |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (440 ratings) | 4.6 (11 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 57.8% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 440 — better | 11 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Vladislav Dugnist | Seunghun Yang |
Customer experience
Manual Camera
illumeter
Bugs and requests
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 moreShow fewer
- 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 moreShow fewer
- Ability to change lenses on iPhone 12Pro
- More settings and controls
- Fix alignment issue with aperture symbol
illumeter
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Manual Camera
- Manual Camera PRO7 Days trial$5.991 Year
- Manual Camera PRO7 Days trial$11.991 Year
illumeter
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Manual Camera free?
Is illumeter free?
Which has better reviews, Manual Camera or illumeter?
Do Manual Camera or illumeter have ads?
Which is updated more often, Manual Camera or illumeter?
Other comparisons















