Comparison

Painter Eye vs Crit_ColourStudio

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

Head to head
About

Painter Eye

Transform photos into art on real paper using AR projection. This app acts as a portable tracing studio, overlaying images onto your canvas for accurate drawing. Explore multiple creative modes and AI-powered tools to bring your artistic visions to life.

Highlights
  • AR projection for drawing on real surfaces
  • Portable tracing studio
  • Four creative modes: Camera, AR, Board, Paint
  • Import photos and use stencils
  • AI-powered line-ready references
  • Adjust size, rotation, and transparency
Features
Read full description

Turn any photo into art on real paper with Painter Eye — your AR art projector and portable tracing studio for iPhone and iPad. HOW IT WORKS Painter Eye works like an art projector, light box, and AR tracing tool in one. Open your reference, point your camera at paper or canvas, and see the image overlaid with accurate proportions. Prop your phone on a glass, tripod, or stack of books — then adjust size, rotation, and transparency with intuitive sliders at the bottom of the screen. Trace with pencil, pen, or brush on real surfaces, not only on the display. FOUR CREATIVE MODES • Camera — live-camera tracing: move and resize your reference while you draw • AR — track an anchor image on a real object so your sketch stays aligned when you move the phone • Board — sketch on a digital canvas with built-in brushes and tools • Paint — color and finish your artwork SKETCHING & TEMPLATES Import photos from your library or explore stencils and categories inside the app. Apply filters, turn pictures into outlines, build compositions step by step, and transform portraits into expressive sketches. Painter Eye: Canvas Creator adds colors, drawing styles, and monochrome looks for both on-screen and on-paper workflows. AI & MORE Create line-ready references faster, browse templates, and go from idea to finished sketch in minutes — whether you love anime, portraits, or everyday subjects. WHO IT'S FOR Beginners learning proportions, hobbyists, students, and artists who want accurate tracing on real paper with their own photos — without expensive projector equipment. Experience the joy of artistic expression where augmented reality and creativity meet. Terms of Use - https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy - https://www.notion.so/Privacy-Policy-371324c3d26880a5961eea460064aa99?source=copy_link

About

Crit_ColourStudio

Features
Read full description

Learn colour by playing with it. Colour Studio helps design students, educators and curious makers discover how colour behaves. Arrange coloured papers, explore visual illusions and solve design challenges that turn colour theory into something you can see and use. PLAY YOUR WAY THROUGH COLOUR Explore 12 missions across three creative rooms: • The sorting room: arrange papers by lightness and colour intensity. • The illusion room: change the surroundings and discover how a colour’s appearance shifts. • The print room: choose colour combinations that make poster text readable. Each completed mission adds a composition to your personal exhibition. Experiment at your own pace, with hints, undo and opportunities to try again. There are no timers or lives to lose. KEEP DISCOVERING Try three daily colour questions: same or different, which is lighter, and find the odd one out. Read the explanations, explore how backgrounds change appearances and share your result. Continue in the endless sorting room, with untimed practice in lightness, chroma and hue. Discover the 42 papers in your paper box by using them in experiments and saved work. ONE CONNECTED LEARNING PATH The Learn map brings twelve guided steps and every other exercise together across eight areas: perception, the nature of colour, human vision, colour attributes, colour relationships, colour interaction, meaning in design, and screen to print. Follow the suggested path or explore freely. Time estimates help you choose an activity, and Today gives you a clear next step. Short review cards bring ideas back over time, with optional reminders. Hints offer guidance in stages. Optional suggestions use your practice to offer another angle, with the evidence available for you to inspect. This processing happens on your device. FROM SCREEN TO PRINT Your screen is not the standard. Explore press-gamut limits, how paper affects colour and why samples that match under one light can differ under another. Learn how tolerance, physical references and proofing support colour decisions, then complete a practical brief that ends in a colour specification. Print and lighting previews are teaching estimates, not production proofs. CREATE AND TAKE YOUR PALETTES FURTHER Give four papers a role in the Palette Stylist, then try them on a poster, packaging, a textile, a room and an app screen. Compare greyscale, colour-vision simulations and print estimates. Explore colours from a photograph with the Fall leaf study. Export palettes for Procreate, Adobe, GIMP and Inkscape, copy CSS and hex values, or share a Colour Studio palette through AirDrop or Files. FIND THE IDEA YOU NEED Search 54 colour terms, all 42 papers, exercises, Play missions and your own Notebook. Everyday words, alternative spellings and typo support help you find a useful starting point. KEEP YOUR DISCOVERIES Save studies, palettes and reflections in your Notebook. Share selected work for discussion or critique, export a backup and restore it when needed. Deleted Notebook work stays recoverable for 30 days. FOR EDUCATORS Share steps, exercises and reference entries through links and QR codes. Projector mode displays the colour plate while controls stay on your phone. An optional classroom pilot supports learning checks. Results stay on each device until the learner chooses to share them. LOOK CLOSELY, LEARN AT YOUR OWN PACE Colour Studio values personal observation while recognising that displays, viewing conditions and perception vary. Larger text, reduced motion, paper-name labels and appearance options support comfortable exploration. Build your eye for colour, one discovery at a time.

Screenshots

Painter Eye4 screens
Crit_ColourStudio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Crit_ColourStudio at none against Painter Eye's 5. Crit_ColourStudio also leads on ads (none vs shown). Painter Eye's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs weekly). On price, device support and iOS requirement 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

Both are free to download. Painter Eye sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Crit_ColourStudio asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Painter Eye ships an update every 2 days, Crit_ColourStudio weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 8, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Painter Eye versus Crit_ColourStudio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPainter EyeCrit_ColourStudio
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (6.2K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews74.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings6.2K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterWeekly
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.117.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size166 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperIvan HulidauKamalanarayanan Kamalakannan

Bugs and requests

Painter Eye

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Drawing screen appears black
  • Tracing feature is not working as expected
  • App crashes or freezes occasionally

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more drawing templates and options
  • Implement a search feature
  • Improve offline functionality
  • Provide more customization options
  • Enhance the drawing tools and precision

Crit_ColourStudio

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Painter Eye

Subscriptions4
  • 1 Month3 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • 3 Months$16.993 Months
  • 1 Year$19.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • 1 Year$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$29.99
None

Crit_ColourStudio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Painter Eye free?
Painter Eye is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Crit_ColourStudio free?
Crit_ColourStudio is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Painter Eye or Crit_ColourStudio have ads?
Painter Eye shows ads; Crit_ColourStudio does not.
Which is updated more often, Painter Eye or Crit_ColourStudio?
Painter Eye ships an update every 2 days, and Crit_ColourStudio weekly. Most recently, Painter Eye was updated on November 8, 2026 and Crit_ColourStudio on October 31, 2026.

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