Banjo Tuner vs BigKeys Large Key Keyboard
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Banjo Tuner
This application provides standard tuning notes for the 5-string banjo. It's a simple tool designed to help banjo players achieve accurate tuning.
- Standard tuning notes
- 5-string banjo support
- Accurate tuning reference
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Tune your 5-string banjo with accurate standard tuning reference notes.
BigKeys Large Key Keyboard
This keyboard app features significantly larger keys and letters, designed to improve visibility for users with low vision. It employs a "hold and slide" typing method to prevent accidental presses and ensure accurate character selection.
- Larger keys
- Larger letters
- Hold and slide typing
- Improved visibility
- Customizable layout
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Big, easy-to-read keys for seniors and anyone with low vision. Type in Messages, Mail and every other app with fewer typos. PAY ONCE One purchase, and BigKeys is yours. No subscription, no advertising, and nothing held back behind a later purchase — every feature on this page is included. MUCH BIGGER KEYS Each row of the usual keyboard is split across two rows, so every key is roughly twice as wide. The letters grow with them. Four sizes, from Medium up to about three times the standard key. MORE OF YOUR SCREEN, SAME BIG KEYS Turn on the thin strip above the keys and the keyboard takes less of the screen, while every key stays exactly as big. BIG EMOJI Tap the smiley key next to 123 for the iPhone's own emoji, as big as the keys. The ones you sent last come first. SEE THE KEY BEFORE YOU COMMIT Nothing is typed when you touch a key. Hold your finger down and the letter appears above it, very large. If it is the wrong one, slide to the right one and let go. Only then is it typed. COLOURS THAT WORK FOR YOUR EYES Yellow on black, white on black, black on yellow, black on white, or matching your iPhone's light and dark mode. If bright screens are painful, the dark themes are not a novelty — they are the point. HEAR WHAT YOU TYPE BigKeys can speak each key as your finger passes over it, and each word as you finish it. It works alongside VoiceOver rather than talking over it. WORD SUGGESTIONS Suggestions appear in large type as you type, and BigKeys learns the words you use most. All of it happens on your iPhone. TEN LANGUAGES, ONE KEYBOARD English, Hebrew, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Russian and Arabic — including right-to-left. Add it once and switch between them from the keyboard. NOTHING LEAVES YOUR IPHONE BigKeys never asks for "Allow Full Access". You can check: Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards > BigKeys. There is no such switch. Without it iOS will not let a keyboard reach the network at all, so nothing you type can go anywhere. BEFORE YOU BUY iOS never allows any third-party keyboard into a password field. Apple's own keyboard appears instead. This is true of every keyboard app on the App Store and cannot be changed. Setting BigKeys up takes about a minute. The app walks you through it one step at a time, in large print, and tells you when it is working.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Banjo Tuner at Free against BigKeys Large Key Keyboard's $5.99. Banjo Tuner also leads on rating (4.4 vs 2.0) and ratings volume (394 vs 1). BigKeys Large Key Keyboard's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (daily vs every 15 months). On in-app purchases 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
Banjo Tuner is free to download; BigKeys Large Key Keyboard costs $5.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Banjo Tuner holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 2.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Banjo Tuner has 394 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Banjo Tuner ships an update every 15 months, BigKeys Large Key Keyboard daily. Both last shipped on November 10, 2026.
| Parameter | Banjo Tuner | BigKeys Large Key Keyboard |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $5.99 |
| Rating | 4.4 (394 ratings) — better | 2.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 53.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 394 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 15 months | Daily — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #188 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 14 MB | 7 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | +4 |
| Developer | Alvin Yu | Tzahi Bergman |
Customer experience
Banjo Tuner
BigKeys Large Key Keyboard
Bugs and requests
Banjo Tuner
Reported bugs
8 issues- No sound output despite app being enabled
- Buttons do not respond when pressed
- Audio cuts off mid-note
- Multiple notes playing simultaneously
- Pitch notes are flat or inaccurate
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- App depends on ringer volume instead of app volume
- Sporadic functionality - works sometimes, not others
- Scam pop-ups offering iPad giveaways
Requested features
9 requests- Add microphone input to detect instrument pitch
- Support for alternate tunings (tenor, Irish tenor, etc.)
- Continuous note playback instead of single play
- Visual feedback for tuning accuracy
- Ability to customize tunings per string
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- Better audio quality and longer note sustain
- Remove or reduce advertisements
- Auto-repeat note functionality
- Compatibility with different string instruments
BigKeys Large Key Keyboard
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Banjo Tuner
No in-app purchases
BigKeys Large Key Keyboard
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Banjo Tuner free?
Is BigKeys Large Key Keyboard free?
Which has better reviews, Banjo Tuner or BigKeys Large Key Keyboard?
Do Banjo Tuner or BigKeys Large Key Keyboard have ads?
Which is updated more often, Banjo Tuner or BigKeys Large Key Keyboard?
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