Comparison

Roommate Albert vs SpamSentry

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

Head to head
About

Roommate Albert

Effortlessly track utility meter readings by simply taking photos. The app automatically detects values and timestamps from your pictures, offering suggestions for easy confirmation. It supports various meter types and keeps all data securely on your device.

Highlights
  • Read meter values from photos
  • Automatic value and timestamp detection
  • Supports electricity, gas, and water meters
  • Handles day/night tariffs
  • On-device data processing
  • Export data to CSV
Features
Read full description

Meter readings from the photos you take anyway. Snap your electricity, gas or water meter with the Camera app whenever you walk past it. Roommate Albert later finds those photos in your library, reads the value and the time each was taken, and hands you a ready-made suggestion. One tap confirms it. HOW IT WORKS β€’ Snap it: with the Camera app, Roommate Albert doesn’t have to be open. A photo from three months ago is found just like one from today. β€’ Find it: in the Review tab, tap Search Photos. The app compares new photos with each meter’s reference photo and reads the serial number, so it tells apart two identical meters in the same basement. β€’ Confirm it: every suggestion arrives filled in with meter, register, value and the date from the photo. A value lower than an earlier one is flagged for correction, because meters never run backwards. FOR YOUR METERS β€’ Electricity, gas, cold water, hot water and heat β€’ Day and night tariff meters as two registers (HT and NT) β€’ Meter replacement: add the new meter as a new device, earlier readings stay, and the statistics show both in one series β€’ Monthly consumption statistics β€’ Enter a reading without a photo by hand under Enter Reading YOUR DATA β€’ Everything stays on your iPhone: photos, recognition and readings are processed on the device. No server, no account. β€’ Nothing enters your history before you confirm it. β€’ Export as a ZIP with a CSV file for spreadsheets and the photos of all readings. β€’ Import data from the previous version under Settings β†’ Import, as often as you like, without duplicates. Reading with the on-device language model requires iOS 27 with Apple Intelligence; without it, text recognition reads on its own. Did the app misread a value or miss a meter? Write to us from Settings β†’ Contact Support. Terms of Use: https://juliankahnert.de/roommate/en/terms/

About

SpamSentry

Features
Read full description

SpamSentry is the smart spam call and message blocker that protects your peace. Built with Apple's CallKit and MessageFilter frameworks, it delivers system-level blocking that works even when the app is closed. KEY FEATURES: Community Blocklist Automatically sync with a curated database of known spam numbers. Updated regularly to catch the latest robocall campaigns and scam operations. Custom Blocklist Add specific phone numbers to your personal blocklist with custom labels. Manage your blocked numbers with ease using search and swipe-to-delete. Area Code Blocking Block entire area codes known for spam activity. One tap to silence all numbers from suspicious area codes. Contact Protection Never accidentally block someone you know. SpamSentry automatically protects your contacts from being added to the blocklist. Temporary Pause Expecting an important call from an unknown number? Pause blocking for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or 1 hour with one tap. Extension Health Monitor Real-time monitoring of your CallKit extension status. Get alerts when the extension needs attention and repair it with a single tap. Number Search Quickly check if a phone number is in the blocklist. See whether it was blocked by the community database or your custom rules. Dashboard Stats Track how many calls have been blocked with daily and total statistics. See your protection status at a glance. PRIVACY FIRST: SpamSentry does not collect, store, or transmit any personal data. All your information stays on your device. No analytics, no tracking, no ads. HOW IT WORKS: 1. Download SpamSentry from the App Store 2. Enable SpamSentry in Phone Settings under Call Blocking and Identification 3. Enable SpamSentry in Messages Settings under Unknown and Spam 4. Sync the community blocklist 5. Enjoy a spam-free phone experience SpamSentry works at the system level using Apple's CallKit framework, so blocked calls are silenced before your phone even rings. Message filtering uses the IdentityLookup framework to automatically sort junk messages into a separate list. Take back control of your phone. Download SpamSentry today.

Screenshots

Roommate Albert4 screens
SpamSentry4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Roommate Albert at Free against SpamSentry's $3.99. SpamSentry's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Roommate Albert is free to download; SpamSentry costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard3 real differences Β· 5 level
Roommate Albert versus SpamSentry: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRoommate AlbertSpamSentry
PriceFree β€” better$3.99
Positive reviews52.4% of reviewsβ€”
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksβ€”
AdsYesNo β€” better
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidβ€”
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.017.0 β€” better
Further details β€” not scored
Size21 MB3 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperJulian Kahnertθ΄Ί 周

In-app purchases

None

Roommate Albert

No in-app purchases

None

SpamSentry

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Roommate Albert free?
Roommate Albert is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SpamSentry free?
SpamSentry costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Roommate Albert or SpamSentry have ads?
Roommate Albert shows ads; SpamSentry does not.

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