ListenerGS vs SpeedReader
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
ListenerGS
This app transforms your modern device into a speech recognition input for a network-connected Apple IIGS. Speak into your device, and your words will be typed into compatible GS applications, such as text editors.
- Speech recognition for Apple IIGS
- Network connectivity
- Text input for GS applications
- Works with text editors
- Modern device integration
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ListenerGS allows you to use your modern device as a speech recognition peripheral for a network capable Apple IIGS. Your GS needs to be running System 6.0.x and have the Marinetti TCP/IP stack installed and you must have some kind of network interface on your machine. The Uthernet II card is highly recommended. Also, you must have the corresponding Listener new desk accessory installed on your GS. Because this is a new desk accessory, ListenerGS should work with any desktop application on your GS that accepts text. It works best with text editors like Hermes and Teach. With it setup, you can open a network connection from your modern device to your GS. When you tap the "Listen and Send Text" button, you will find that the words you say should be typed out onto your GS.
SpeedReader
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## App Description Reading shouldn't be this hard. SpeedReader is a free Safari extension that lets you speed read any web page using RSVP (Rapid Serial Visual Presentation) โ showing one word at a time at a controlled pace. For neurodivergent readers โ people with ADHD, dyslexia, or other processing differences โ traditional reading is exhausting. Eyes jump between lines, focus drifts mid-paragraph, and articles get abandoned halfway through. RSVP removes the cognitive overhead of eye tracking and line scanning, so your brain just processes. **How it works** Tap the SpeedReader icon in Safari's toolbar. The article text is extracted automatically and words appear one at a time with a highlighted focus point. Tap anywhere to pause, tap again to resume. That's it. **Features** โข Focus-point highlighting โ each word highlights its optimal recognition point, the letter your eye naturally anchors to โข Context preview โ pause and see the surrounding sentence to re-orient quickly โข Punctuation pacing โ periods and commas add natural micro-pauses so content flows like speech โข Speed control โ 100 to 600 words per minute โข OpenDyslexic font โ toggle the dyslexia-friendly font with one tap โข Light and dark mode โ follows your system theme or override manually โข Keyboard shortcuts โ on Mac and iPad: Space to play/pause, arrows to navigate โข Text selection fallback โ select any text on a page and speed read just that โข Works entirely offline โ no data leaves your device No accounts. No subscriptions. No tracking. Free and open source.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: SpeedReader at every 4 days against ListenerGS's every 18 months. ListenerGS's advantage is device support (4 vs 2) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ListenerGS ships an update every 18 months, SpeedReader every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ListenerGS | SpeedReader |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | โ |
| Update frequency | Every 18 months | Every 4 days โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | โ |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac โ better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 โ better | 17.0 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 3 MB | 6 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Halcyon Touch Software | Chris Cantu |
In-app purchases
ListenerGS
No in-app purchases
SpeedReader
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is ListenerGS free?
Is SpeedReader free?
Do ListenerGS or SpeedReader have ads?
Which is updated more often, ListenerGS or SpeedReader?
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