MackinVIA vs Dolphin EasyReader
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MackinVIA
Access your school's digital library, including eBooks and audiobooks. This reader app provides instant access to your checked-out materials, notes, and favorites, with powerful tools for annotation and offline reading.
- Offline access to downloaded resources
- Bookmarking and note-taking
- Highlighting and search within books
- Customizable text and audio controls
- Integrated dictionary and citation tools
- Table of Contents and page view options
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Explore your school’s eBooks, audiobooks, and other digital resources with the MackinVIA Reader, an easy-to-use app that’s fully integrated with your MackinVIA Backpack. The MackinVIA Reader gives you instant access to your favorites, checkouts, and notes, and you’re always one tap away from searching your school’s MackinVIA for more titles. Features include: -Bookmarks -Note-taking -Highlighting -Search within the book -Citations -Merriam-Webster™ dictionary -Customizable text size and font -Text-to-speech -Audio controls -Table of Contents -Single or dual page view -Download resources for offline access To get started, simply enter your school’s name along with your MackinVIA Backpack username and password.
Dolphin EasyReader
This app provides accessible reading for individuals with print disabilities like dyslexia and vision impairments. It connects to global libraries and talking newspaper services, offering customizable text, audio playback, and support for various formats.
- Accessible book libraries
- Talking newspaper access
- Customizable fonts and colors
- Adjustable text size and contrast
- Text-to-Speech (TTS) audio
- Braille display support
- Multiple document format support
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Open a World of Accessible Books EasyReader removes barriers to reading, enabling anyone with a print disability to read independently. Global links to over 50 libraries connects you to millions of titles and empowers you to read in ways that work best for you. EasyReader offers a customisable reading experience and supports a wide range of accessibility needs including dyslexia and vision impairment. Download and read classic literature and bestselling fiction, textbooks and non-fiction, picture books and children’s stories and more. Access magazines, newspapers and periodicals or import files and read clipboard text. It’s easy to customise your reading experience so it suits your own reading needs and preferences. Easy Navigation Browse, download and navigate books easily, whether you read visually, audibly or with braille. You’ll move intuitively through content with EasyReader: skip pages, jump to chapters, add bookmarks and search keywords to find information instantly. Empowering Dyslexic readers: - Choose dyslexia-friendly fonts - Adjust text and background colours - Highlight words and sentences, read along to audio - Modify letter and line spacing, adjust lines visible to reduce distractions - Explore Tools are available to boost study and revision Blind and Partially Sighted readers: EasyReader offers an exceptional experience for readers with vision impairments: - Adjust text size with touchscreen gestures - Choose custom colour contrasts - Read using braille displays - Switch to linear reading mode for screen readers and braille - Access to premium image descriptions available Audio Books & Text-to-Speech (TTS) Listen to narrated audio books and use Text to Speech (TTS) to read books, newspapers and more. Speech synchronises perfectly with on-screen highlights for a perfect read-along experience. - Choose from a selection of reading voices - Adjust reading speed, volume and pronunciation - Adjust sentence and word highlights Read a Range of Formats Choose from the widest range of book and document formats. including DAISY 2 and 3, ePub, MathML, Microsoft Word (DOCX), PDF, HTML and text files. Help & Support The 'Ask a Question’ feature in EasyReader Help offers instant guidance. It uses built-in AI to search user guides, the Knowledge Base and training materials. Step-by-step help is also available on the Dolphin website. Share feedback or report a bug directly in the app to help Dolphin continue improving EasyReader. EasyReader Libraries List Global ABC Global Book Service Bookshare Project Gutenberg Bookshare Google Classroom Google Drive Microsoft Education Microsoft OneDrive UK: Calibre Audio RNIB Bookshare RNIB Newsagent RNIB Reading Services USA & Canada: Bookshare CELA NFB Newsline NLS Bard SQLA Sweden: Inläsningstjänst AB Legimus MTM Taltidningar Europe: Anderslezen (Belgium) ATZ (Germany) Bibliothèque Sonore Romande (Switzerland) Bookshare Ireland (Ireland) Buchknacker (Switzerland) CBB (Netherlands) DZB Lesen (Germany) DZDN (Poland) Eole (France) Getem (Turkey) KDD (Czech Republic) Libro Parlato (Italy) Luetus (Finland) NBH Hamburg (Germany) NCBI Overdrive (Ireland) NLB (Norway) Nota (Denmark) Oogvereniging (Netherlands) Passend Lezen (Netherlands) Pratsam Demo (Finland) SBS (Switzerland) TiBi (Norway) UICI (Italy) Unitas (Switzerland) Vereniging Onbeperkt Lezen (Netherlands) WBH (Germany) Rest of World: av3715 (Russia) Blind Low Vision NZ (New Zealand) ChildVision Online Bookshelf (Ireland) LKF (Russia) NSBS (Suriname) SAPIE (Japan) Sugamya Pustakalaya (India) Vision Australia (Australia) Please note: Library memberships can be set up on their websites, links are provided in-app. Terms of Service (EULA) https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Dolphin EasyReader at 4.0 against MackinVIA's 3.4. MackinVIA's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and review sentiment (56% vs 35%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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
Both are free to download. Dolphin EasyReader sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. MackinVIA asks for nothing beyond the download.
Dolphin EasyReader holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 160 and 128 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 56% of MackinVIA's written reviews are positive against 35% of Dolphin EasyReader's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
MackinVIA ships an update every 3 months, Dolphin EasyReader every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MackinVIA | Dolphin EasyReader |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.4 (160 ratings) | 4.0 (128 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 55.6% of reviews — better | 35.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 160 — better | 128 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 727 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Mackin Book Company | Dolphin Computer Access Ltd |
Customer experience
MackinVIA
Dolphin EasyReader
Bugs and requests
MackinVIA
Reported bugs
20 issues- Not logging in
- Sent back to App Store during sign-in
- App not loading
- School not appearing in sign-in options
- App immediately says user doesn't have it after getting off
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- Cannot download update from iTunes
- App gets stuck opening to a white screen
- Cannot access downloaded books on other devices
- Keeps signing out
- App crashes before sign-in window on older iPads
- Audio freezes, glitches, or bugs out
- Audio skips around and freezes
- App crashes when trying to read a book
- Cannot get into a book due to 'on another device' error
- Resource downloaded to another device error
- App crashes after latest update
- Downloaded books cannot be opened (corrupted file)
- Active session error prevents usage
- Newest update has made the app glitchy
- Login doesn't work after logging in from school
Requested features
10 requests- Add more book series
- Add graphic novels/manga
- Make books unlimited
- Add voiceover support
- Improve turning pages motion
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Improve font adjustment
- Add a section to see checked-out books
- Improve advanced search functionality
- Allow bookmarks to stay in place
- Fix issues with downloaded books on multiple devices
Dolphin EasyReader
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
MackinVIA
No in-app purchases
Dolphin EasyReader
- Premium Personal Monthly$4.991 Month
- Premium Personal Annual$49.991 Year
Questions
Is MackinVIA free?
Is Dolphin EasyReader free?
Which has better reviews, MackinVIA or Dolphin EasyReader?
Do MackinVIA or Dolphin EasyReader have ads?
Which is updated more often, MackinVIA or Dolphin EasyReader?
Other comparisons
