Comparison

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier vs Binoculars

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

Head to head
About

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier

This app transforms your device into a powerful magnifying glass and zoomable camera. Easily read small print, inspect details, or view objects up close with infinite zoom, image filters, and a built-in flashlight. It's designed for clarity and ease of use in any lighting condition.

Highlights
  • Infinite digital zoom
  • Zoomable camera functionality
  • Freeze live view
  • Built-in flashlight with adjustable brightness
  • Multiple image filters
  • Manual focus and exposure controls
Features
Read full description

The original and still the best. ***************************************************** The New York Times – Gadgetwise: App of the Week “Of the several magnification apps I tried, my favorite is Magnifying Glass from I-Beam. The iPhone app is simplicity itself. Turn it on, point the camera at the fine print, and touch the plus button until it is enlarged enough to read. Two other built-in features I like: the button that instantly resets the image to low magnification, and the camera button, which lets you take a photo of your close-up.” — Roy Furchgott, The New York Times ***************************************************** Magnifying Glass helps you see more clearly on your iPhone and iPad. Whether you’re reading small text, examining fine details, or viewing objects up close, Magnifying Glass provides powerful visual tools that are easy to use and fully under your control. With infinite zoom, the ability to freeze, rotate, filter, and enhance the live view, and manual control over focus and exposure, you can adjust the image exactly how you need it. A built-in flashlight with adjustable brightness helps illuminate hard-to-see areas, making it easier to read and inspect in low-light situations. Magnifying Glass also works as a fully functional zoom camera, making it useful at home, at work, or on the go. Try it today and see why it was named App of the Week by The New York Times. Features: - Infinite digital zoom to make small text easier to read - Fully functional zoomable camera - Freeze the view to inspect images without motion - Built-in flashlight with adjustable brightness - Multiple image filters, including a special high-contrast mode - High-contrast enhancement to reveal details in low light - Stabilization mode for crisp, sharp images - Manual focus and exposure controls - Support for front and rear cameras - Multiple interface themes to personalize your experience

About

Binoculars

This app provides extreme telephoto zoom capabilities for your mobile device, offering up to 32x magnification. It utilizes the full-sensor resolution for high-quality zoomed photos and videos, and includes GPS features to show your location and remember where pictures were taken.

Highlights
  • 32X extreme telephoto zoom
  • High-resolution photo and video
  • Full-sensor resolution processing
  • Active image stabilization
  • GPS location display
  • Picture location memory
  • Google Cardboard mode
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

The Original Binoculars App and Highest Rated on the App Store with 32X Telephoto Zoom. This is the REAL THING with true 32x Photo-Quality Zoom and one-tap access to Satellite Aerial View of your location. Say goodbye to grainy zoomed pictures and say hello to the original Binoculars app for iOS. Binoculars by i4software is the ONLY Binoculars app on the app store that uses the full-sensor resolution of your iOS device to deliver the very best possible real-time zoom enlargement with stabilization. See the ratings and reviews for yourself. Other apps simply blow up the video preview without active stabilization resulting in terrible picture quality. Binoculars actually processes the full resolution photo sensor as fast as possible and then crops in on that full resolution photo image resulting in a much higher quality enlargement and a much more useful image. Why pack binoculars when they can now be a part of your phone? Zoom in up to 32x (on latest iOS devices with Telephoto Lens) and up to 16x on older devices. For a closer look at nature, sporting events, or someone in the distance use our digital binoculars for high-resolution photo or video while in extreme zoom mode. From i4software, creators of Vizzywig, Flashlight and Fast Camera! • Binoculars incorporates GPS technology and displays your location on the map, shows your latitude and longitude coordinates, and remembers the exact location of your pictures. • Binoculars’ simple user-interface makes it fast and easy to use for all ages. • Includes Google Cardboard mode in landscape orientation.

Screenshots

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier4 screens
Binoculars4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier at Free against Binoculars's $4.99. Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier also leads on review sentiment (69% vs 36%) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). Binoculars's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ads (none vs shown). On rating, ratings volume and device support 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

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier is free to download; Binoculars costs $4.99 up front. Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Binoculars asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier against 4.5 for Binoculars. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6.6K and 3K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 69% of Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier's written reviews are positive against 36% of Binoculars's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier ships an update monthly, Binoculars every 3 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier versus Binoculars: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMagnifying Glass +++ MagnifierBinoculars
PriceFree — better$4.99
Rating4.6 (6.6K ratings) — better4.5 (3K ratings)
Positive reviews69.0% of reviews — better35.7% of reviews
Number of ratings6.6K — better3K
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 3 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#186 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.611.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size43 MB106 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperI-Beami4software

Customer experience

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier

All ratings6,623 ratings
Positive89.7%
Neutral4.5%
Negative5.8%
Written reviews546 reviews
Positive69.0%
Neutral6.0%
Negative24.9%

Binoculars

All ratings2,940 ratings
Positive87.1%
Neutral5.3%
Negative7.6%
Written reviews171 reviews
Positive35.7%
Neutral7.6%
Negative56.7%

User reviews

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier

From 6.6K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Excellent app
  • 🚀 Powerful magnification
  • 👍 User-friendly interface
  • 🚀 Versatile features
  • 👍 Great for small details

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional blurriness
  • 🐛 Freezing/locking issues
  • 🐛 Compatibility problems
  • 🐛 Inconsistent performance
  • 🔋 Drains battery quickly

Binoculars

From 3K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Zoom functionality
  • 👍 Useful for sports/events
  • 👍 Good for vision-impaired users

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
  • 🔍 Zoom quality not as advertised
  • 💰 Watermark on paid version
  • 🔍 Image quality issues
  • 🔍 Limited zoom range

Bugs and requests

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Rapid button tapping causes lockups
  • Rotate function gets stuck spinning
  • Simultaneous button presses lead to crashes
  • Freeze mode doesn't save images properly

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add pinch-to-zoom functionality
  • Improve image stabilization
  • Provide more manual control options
  • Allow loading and editing of saved photos
  • Integrate with other apps (e.g. iNaturalist)

Binoculars

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Upside down/mirrored display
  • Video recording issues
  • Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions
  • Zoom functionality not working as expected

Requested features

5 requests
  • Flashlight mode for low light
  • Higher zoom levels
  • Better image/video quality
  • Remove watermark on paid version
  • Support for dual-lens cameras

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier

One-time3
  • Themes$0.99
  • Filters$0.99
  • Premium Upgrade$2.99
None

Binoculars

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier free?
Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Binoculars free?
Binoculars costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier or Binoculars?
Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier is rated higher. Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier averages 4.6 out of 5 from 6.6K ratings, while Binoculars averages 4.5 from 3K ratings.
Do Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier or Binoculars have ads?
Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier shows ads; Binoculars does not.
Which is updated more often, Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier or Binoculars?
Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier ships an update monthly, and Binoculars every 3 months. Most recently, Magnifying Glass +++ Magnifier was updated on November 1, 2026 and Binoculars on November 1, 2026.

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