# TV vs Carmin

The clearest difference is price: Carmin at Free against TV's $2.99. Carmin also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 9 months). TV's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ads (none vs shown). On device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Carmin is free to download; TV costs $2.99 up front. Carmin sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. TV asks for nothing beyond the download.

TV ships an update every 9 months, Carmin every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | TV | Carmin |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $2.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | — | **[4.3 (223 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/carmin/id1527982107/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | — | **223** |
| Positive reviews | — | 55.4% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | **Every 5 weeks** |
| Monetization | — | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 5 MB | 18 MB |
| Requires iOS | **11.0** | 12 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [John Lullie](https://appshunter.io/developer/370571602) | [Chuan Nguyen Van](https://appshunter.io/developer/1527982109) |

## What reviewers say

### TV

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tv-tools/id485333065)

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Carmin

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/carmin/id1527982107)

Access a comprehensive library of regularly updated automotive electrical wiring diagrams for car repair and study.  Includes videos and technical documents for research and reference.

**Highlights:** Electrical wiring diagrams, Regularly updated diagrams, Videos library, Technical documents, Car repair reference, Study purposes

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly | $4.99 | per month |
| Annual | $49.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 📚 Comprehensive vehicle diagram database
- 💰 Free version available with good content
- 🎯 Helpful for car diagnostics and repairs
- ⚡ Quick access to wiring information
- 🌍 Supports multiple vehicle brands and models

**What reviewers complain about**

- 📺 Excessive advertisements in free version
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and instability on iOS
- 🚫 Limited vehicle coverage (missing years and models)
- 🔤 Diagrams display as code/symbols instead of images
- 🌐 Language limitations (primarily English)

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when opening diagrams on iOS
- App only opens one diagram per session before crashing
- Requires reinstallation to function properly
- Diagrams display as code/hieroglyphics instead of images
- Crashes on iOS 15, 16, and 17

**Requested features**

- Search functionality by make/model/year
- Alphabetical sorting of vehicles
- Favorites/bookmarks for frequently used diagrams
- Wiring color codes display
- Ability to isolate specific wiring for clarity


## Frequently asked questions

### Is TV free?

TV costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Carmin free?

Carmin is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do TV or Carmin have ads?

Carmin shows ads; TV does not.

### Which is updated more often, TV or Carmin?

TV ships an update every 9 months, and Carmin every 5 weeks. Most recently, TV was updated on October 5, 2026 and Carmin on October 16, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*