Comparison

Ear Spy Apps vs Annotate Audio

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

Head to head
About

Ear Spy Apps

Securely hide private photos, videos, and files in a password-protected vault. Capture high-quality audio with advanced recording features, including long-range directional microphones and night vision. Enhance audio clarity and customize sound with EQ adjustments for professional-grade results.

Highlights
  • Secure private vault
  • Advanced audio recording
  • Long-range directional microphone
  • Night vision recording
  • Password protection
  • EQ adjustments
Features
Read full description

Keep important private photos, videos, and files hidden in plain sight! Adaptive Audio Recording for All Environments: ■ Capture high-quality audio with our advanced recorder. ■ Boost audio clarity for professional-grade recordings. ■ Secure your sensitive files with password protection. ■ Customize sound quality with EQ adjustments. Long-Range Directional Microphone: ■ Enhance distant sounds up to 30 feet away, focusing on voices amidst noisy backgrounds. ■ Experience unblemished audio capture, free from unwanted ambient noise. Night Vision Recording: ■ Record in low-light conditions with night vision. Private Vault for Photos, Videos, and Files: ■ Store your confidential photos, videos, and files in a secure, password-protected vault. ■ Ensure your sensitive data remains hidden from prying eyes. ■ Keep everything organized and accessible within the app. Enhanced Privacy: ■ Protect your recordings and data with password encryption. ■ Choose from multiple microphone options for precise recording. ■ Record from the iPhone bottom mic, earpiece, or earbuds. ■ Empower yourself with complete audio and visual control. Enhance your experience with Premium Features: ◆ Noise Reduction: Clear audio in any environment. ◆ Secure Vault: Protect photos, videos, and files. ◆ Dark Mode: Sleek and easy on the eyes. ◆ Powerful Recorder: Advanced recording tools. ◆ Sound Effects: Elevate your audio projects. Upgrade now to unlock these premium benefits! Choose security and control over your sensitive data. Terms of use: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LoTUoT94Bf7MyGX1JfNs5whsNo8FdZUixn5Eu_PZlUM/edit?usp=sharing Privacy policy: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1x-TBOpV7OaSZmDfrv__aomvytUddMhcXW4vNhsXnjlA/edit?usp=sharing

About

Annotate Audio

Features
Read full description

Teach your iPhone to recognise any sound. Then let it listen for you, recording only when that sound happens. Annotate Audio learns the sounds you care about: your dog barking, a snore, a cough, a baby crying, a doorbell. Leave it listening overnight or while you're out, and come back to clips of exactly what you asked for, sorted into folders. No hours of silence to scroll through. HOW IT WORKS 1. Pick a sound. Each sound gets its own folder. Add a "Not …" folder too, so it learns the difference. 2. Record some reps. Every recording is a rep. Five reps of two sounds is enough to start. 3. Tap Train. Your model is built right on your iPhone in a few minutes. No cloud, no code. 4. Turn on auto record. It listens and saves a clip every time it hears your sound. NEVER MISS THE START Auto record keeps a short rolling buffer, so every clip begins before the sound did. Manual recordings can include the 2 seconds before you tapped record, too. A DOG THAT LEARNS WITH YOU Your pixel pup levels up as you record: Puppy, Learning, Good dog, Top dog. It earns a collar at 5 reps, a tag at 50 and a crown at 100, and tells you what it still needs before it can train. MADE FOR REAL LIFE • Barking or whining while you're away • Snoring, sleep talking and coughing at night • A baby crying in the next room • Doorbells, alarms, appliances and machines • Birds, wildlife and field recordings • Any sound you want to catch, count or collect FEATURES • Train custom sound classifiers on your iPhone • Auto record triggered by the sounds you trained • Detects several sounds at once and files each clip in its own folder • Low, mid and high confidence settings • Pre-buffer so clips start before the sound • Manual recording, open-ended or 5 seconds • Live waveform and clip playback • Move clips between folders to clean up your training data • Switch between several trained models • Keeps listening in the background, and dims the screen when the phone is face down or covered • iCloud sync of recordings and models across your devices • ZIP export of recordings, including a training layout for Create ML on Mac PRIVATE BY DESIGN Training and listening happen on your device. No account. No ads. No tracking. Your recordings stay in your own iCloud. ONE PRICE Pay once. No subscription. FOR MAKERS AND RESEARCHERS Annotate Audio is also a quick way to collect and label audio datasets in the field and train Core ML sound models without writing code: bioacoustics, machine monitoring, smart-home experiments, or checking whether a sound is recognisable before you build.

Screenshots

Ear Spy Apps4 screens
Annotate Audio3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Ear Spy Apps at Free against Annotate Audio's $3.99. Ear Spy Apps also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.0). Annotate Audio's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and update cadence (weekly vs every 5 weeks). On 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Ear Spy Apps is free to download; Annotate Audio costs $3.99 up front. Ear Spy Apps sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days. Annotate Audio asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Ear Spy Apps ships an update every 5 weeks, Annotate Audio weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Ear Spy Apps versus Annotate Audio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEar Spy AppsAnnotate Audio
PriceFree — better$3.99
Rating4.4 (1.2K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews79.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.2K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS14.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size45 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNino GogoladzeMarco Luthi

Bugs and requests

Ear Spy Apps

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Can't open existing files
  • No sound recording in free version
  • Won't restore itself after reinstall

Requested features

3 requests
  • Longer free trial period
  • Restore full access after reinstall
  • Reduce ad frequency in free version

Annotate Audio

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Ear Spy Apps

Subscriptions4
  • Unlimited Access - Weekly$5.997 Days
  • Hearing Amplifier, SpyFall$9.991 Month
  • Hearing Amplifier - Ear Spy$19.993 Months
Show 1 more
  • Tape Recorder, SpyTec3 Days trial$34.991 Year
None

Annotate Audio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Ear Spy Apps free?
Ear Spy Apps is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Annotate Audio free?
Annotate Audio costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Ear Spy Apps or Annotate Audio have ads?
Neither Ear Spy Apps nor Annotate Audio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Ear Spy Apps or Annotate Audio?
Ear Spy Apps ships an update every 5 weeks, and Annotate Audio weekly. Most recently, Ear Spy Apps was updated on October 19, 2026 and Annotate Audio on October 9, 2026.

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