Comparison

iBunkoHD vs 青空本棚

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

Head to head
About

iBunkoHD

Experience reading novels, documents, and comic books with a realistic interface that mimics a physical book. Organize your library with a bookshelf, add notes to bookmarks, and easily transfer files from various cloud services. Enjoy enhanced readability with smart screen design and quick page navigation.

Highlights
  • Realistic paper book interface
  • Vertical and horizontal writing support
  • Double page spread view
  • Built-in Aozora Bunko library access
  • Customizable bookshelf organization
  • Bookmark with notes and text selection
  • Multiple file format support (.txt, .pdf, .zip, .rar, .cbz, .cbr)
Features
Read full description

iBunkoHD provides you the best way to read novels, documents and comic books on iPad. Thanks to a realistic interface, you can enjoy reading as you would with a real paper book. Reading on your iPad is now easier than ever! This is a great iPad app for all the book lovers! Won Good Design Award 2010 Ranked #1 in the Japanese App Store in 2010 Read books and comics in vertical setting with comfort ・Support both horizontal (left open) and vertical (right open) writings. ・The app automatically detects the binding direction of a PDF document. Double page spread and page effect ・When viewed landscape mode, the pages switch to the double page spread. The pages containing landscape format images are automatically treated as a double page spread. ・You can "flip" pages just like reading a real paper book. Feature about 230 built-in books and "Aozora Bunko" ・ You can download a book with simple controls from "Aozora Bunko", the Japanese digital library that provides copyright-free Japanese literary works. ・ The app comes with the well-known books from "Aozora Bunko". "Bookshelf" function ・Create a bookshelf as you need. ・You can easily choose a book you'd like to read by browsing the book covers displayed on the shelf. "Bookmark" function ・You can place as many bookmarks as you want and add notes on it. ・Select text as a bookmark in order to highlight the sentence. Supported file formats. iBunkoHD supports the following file formats as books: - .txt .pdf - .zip .rar (containing .txt or .jpg/.png files) - .cbz .cbr Transfer files ・Transfer the files using iTunes 'File Sharing' via the USB cable as well as via Dropbox, SkyDrive, pogoplug, Box, SugarSync. The app also supports both the WebDAV and the FTP servers. Utilize data from PDF ・Support the table of contents or hyperlinks on the file. ・Select and search words (when the data contains text). ・Using our own processing technology, app can select a Japanese words smoothly. Smart screen design removing the white space ・Eliminate unnecessary white space for better readability on the screen. Thumbnails of pages show quick reference for where you'd like to read ・List the page thumbnails at the bottom of the screen or in the full screen. ・The page with bookmarks will be attached a mark. You can also display only the page thumbnails which contain bookmarks. History back pages ・Viewed pages are saved in history so you can easily go back to the previous page. Look up words in the dictionary ・You can use the iPad's built-in dictionary as well as other dictionary apps that support custom URL schemes. ・Just select text and tap the button to look up the word. Support Bluetooth keyboards ・You can read without touching the screen by using the compatible device. Passcode lock ・You can set passcode lock on specific bookshelves or the "folder" screen that stored transferred files. Various page settings ・Available various settings such as enable/disable the flipping effect or change the position of the tap control. ・Customize your iBunkoHD to suit your own preferences! You will find many more convenient functions and settings.

About

青空本棚

This e-book viewer allows you to download and read works from Aozora Bunko comfortably. It offers a simple, user-friendly interface with extensive customization options for a personalized reading experience.

Highlights
  • Download Aozora Bunko books
  • Text-to-speech audio reading
  • Swipe page turning
  • Bookmark functionality
  • Table of contents access
  • Adjustable font size and family
  • Customizable background colors
Features
Read full description

青空文庫の作品をダウンロードして快適に読める電子書籍ビューアです。シンプルで使いやすく、カスタマイズ機能も充実。お気に入りの名作を自分好みの設定でお楽しみください。 【主な機能】 音声読み上げ機能:朗読を聞きながら読書可能 スワイプでページめくり:直感的な操作で快適な読書 しおり登録:読みかけのページを簡単保存 目次表示機能:目的の章へすぐアクセス フォントサイズ変更:文字を見やすく調整 フォントファミリー変更:お好みの書体で読書 背景色変更(白・セピア・ブラック):目に優しい表示に切り替え 青空文庫からダウンロード:無料で名作を入手

Screenshots

青空本棚4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: 青空本棚 at Free against iBunkoHD's $6.99. 青空本棚 also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and rating (4.3 vs 4.0). iBunkoHD's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (58% vs 50%). On ratings volume and in-app purchases 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

青空本棚 is free to download; iBunkoHD costs $6.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

青空本棚 holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7 and 6 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 58% of iBunkoHD's written reviews are positive against 50% of 青空本棚's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iBunkoHD ships an update every 2 months, 青空本棚 weekly. Both last shipped on October 27, 2026.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
iBunkoHD versus 青空本棚: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriBunkoHD青空本棚
Price$6.99Free — better
Rating4.0 (7 ratings)4.3 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews58.5% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings7 — better6
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidAd-supported — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.4
Further details — not scored
Size35 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDWANGO Co., Ltd.SHINA NAKAMURA

Customer experience

iBunkoHD

All ratings7 ratings
Positive71.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative28.6%
Written reviews142 reviews
Positive58.5%
Neutral9.2%
Negative32.4%

青空本棚

All ratings6 ratings
Positive83.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative25.0%

In-app purchases

None

iBunkoHD

No in-app purchases

None

青空本棚

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is iBunkoHD free?
iBunkoHD costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is 青空本棚 free?
青空本棚 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, iBunkoHD or 青空本棚?
青空本棚 is rated higher. iBunkoHD averages 4.0 out of 5 from 7 ratings, while 青空本棚 averages 4.3 from 6 ratings.
Do iBunkoHD or 青空本棚 have ads?
青空本棚 shows ads; iBunkoHD does not.
Which is updated more often, iBunkoHD or 青空本棚?
iBunkoHD ships an update every 2 months, and 青空本棚 weekly. Most recently, iBunkoHD was updated on October 27, 2026 and 青空本棚 on October 27, 2026.

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