Open Access Helper vs Core Anesthesia
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Open Access Helper
Easily find legal, free versions of paywalled scientific articles using trusted APIs. Seamlessly connect to university library proxies like EZProxy and OpenAthens. This open-source tool respects your privacy and makes research more accessible.
- Find legal, free scholarly articles
- Access paywalled research
- Integrates with unpaywall.org and core.ac.uk
- Seamless EZProxy/OpenAthens connection
- Indicates version type (Published, Accepted, Submitted)
- Open-source and privacy-respecting
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Open Access Helper: Effortless Access to Scholarly Articles Unlock Open Access Easily find legal, free-to-read versions of paywalled scientific articles. Open Access Helper uses the trusted APIs from unpaywall.org and other sources to locate open access copies, making research more accessible for students, researchers, and curious minds. How It Works When you view a research article, the extension detects its DOI (Digital Object Identifier) and checks for an available open access version. Simply click the Open Access Helper badge to access the document! As you hover over the badge, it will indicate whether you’ll be accessing the “Published Version,” “Accepted Version,” or “Submitted Version.” EZProxy or OpenAthens Made Simple If your university library uses EZProxy or OpenAthens for off-campus access, this extension makes it seamless to connect. Just set your institution’s domain (e.g., harvard.edu), and with one click, you can proxy the current page through your library’s server. 100% Legal and Privacy-Respecting Every link provided leads to officially open-access or legally archived copies of research articles. Plus, Open Access Helper doesn’t collect personal data—just anonymous usage stats to improve functionality. Open Source & Developer-Friendly This is a passion project—check out the code, share feedback, or report bugs. Your contributions and ideas are always welcome! Get started today—make research easier and more accessible with Open Access Helper!
Core Anesthesia
This app offers a curriculum of audio episodes for CRNAs and students to earn CEUs, pass tests, and review for boards. Designed for busy schedules, episodes can be listened to anywhere and include printed outlines and sources.
- Continuing education episodes
- Board review content
- Podcast format for on-the-go learning
- Printed outlines and sources included
- Designed for CRNAs and students
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Core Anesthesia is continuing education and board review built for nurse anesthetists, made by CRNAs who remember how little time there is. Learn by listening. The curriculum is delivered as podcast episodes you can take anywhere: the commute, the gym, the drive between clinical sites. Every episode comes with learning objectives, a printed outline, cited sources, and a read-along transcript. EARN AANA CE CREDIT • Class A credits logged as you listen • Certificates ready to download when you need them • No paperwork and no separate reporting STUDY WITH PURPOSE • 1800+ practice questions with rationales that explain the answer • Custom quizzes across 19 anesthesia categories • See which topics are strong and which need work • High-yield cheat sheets and procedure videos • Search that finds the episode, sheet, or clip you meant TAKE IT OFFLINE Download episodes and cheat sheets for flights, commutes, and dead zones. Anything you save stays available with no signal. For SRNAs preparing for boards and CRNAs maintaining certification. End user license agreement: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Core Anesthesia at 4.9 against Open Access Helper's 4.0. Core Anesthesia also leads on review sentiment (90% vs 50%) and ratings volume (535 vs 4). Open Access Helper's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 14) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads 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
Both are free to download. Core Anesthesia sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Open Access Helper asks for nothing beyond the download.
Core Anesthesia holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Core Anesthesia has 535 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Open Access Helper's written reviews are positive against 90% of Core Anesthesia's.
Open Access Helper ships an update monthly, Core Anesthesia every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 15, 2026 and September 28, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Open Access Helper | Core Anesthesia |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (4 ratings) | 4.9 (535 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | 90.2% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 4 | 535 — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 16.4 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 52 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Claus Wolf | Student Nurse Anesthesia LLC |
Customer experience
Open Access Helper
Core Anesthesia
Bugs and requests
Open Access Helper
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Core Anesthesia
Reported bugs
5 issues- Episodes won't play offline or without Wi-Fi despite having data
- Premium subscription doesn't always unlock premium-labeled episodes
- Home screen categories don't display all available episodes
- Inconsistent episode visibility between app and podcast platforms
- Playback buffering and connectivity issues in the car
Requested features
6 requests- Chronological episode listing (1 to most recent)
- Better filtering and sorting options
- Episode download capability for offline listening
- Improved search functionality for specific topics
- Clearer distinction between free and premium content
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- Enhanced navigation to reduce confusion about available episodes
In-app purchases
Open Access Helper
No in-app purchases
Core Anesthesia
- Student Premium Monthly7 Days trial$9.991 Month
- CRNA Premium Monthly3 Days trial$64.991 Month
- Student Premium Yearly7 Days trial$99.991 Year
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- CRNA Premium Quarterly$179.003 Months
- CRNA Premium Yearly3 Days trial$599.001 Year
- Airway Core Module$49.99
- Equipment Core Module$49.99
- Pharmacology Core Module$49.99
Show 6 moreShow fewer
- Anatomy Core Module$149.99
- core_crna_10$199.00
- core_crna_30$299.00
- CRNA USAP 25%$449.99
- CRNA Promotion$539.00
- core_crna_60$599.00
Questions
Is Open Access Helper free?
Is Core Anesthesia free?
Which has better reviews, Open Access Helper or Core Anesthesia?
Do Open Access Helper or Core Anesthesia have ads?
Which is updated more often, Open Access Helper or Core Anesthesia?
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