Comparison

Polar vs Tech Manual

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

Head to head

About

Polar

Features

Read full description

The Polar-ESS App uses an API and connects to your Polar-ESS Cloud Monitoring account. The APP provides basic information about your Home Energy Demand, Solar PV Generation, Grid import energy and Battery Usage To view the Privacy Policy and EULA please visit the links provided in the app, or visit https://givenergy.co.uk/website-privacy-policy/ and https://polar-ess.co.uk/terms/ respectively.

About

Tech Manual

Features

Read full description

Specialising in structural insurance warranties and now offering building control services, ICW strives to be the partner of choice to developers, builders, brokers and homeowners, delivering high standards of customer service with a personal touch.pecialising in structural insurance warranties and building control services, ICW is an insurance partner for developers, builders, brokers.

Screenshots

Polar3 screens

Tech Manual4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Tech Manual at none against Polar's 1. Tech Manual also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.4). Polar's advantage is update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 3 months). On price, ads 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

Both are free to download. Polar sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $25.00 per year. Tech Manual asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Polar ships an update every 5 weeks, Tech Manual every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 5, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 3 level

Polar versus Tech Manual: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter	Polar	Tech Manual
Price	Free	Free
Update frequency	Every 5 weeks — better	Every 3 months
Ads	No	No
In-app purchases	Yes	No — better
Devices	iPhone, iPad	iPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS	17.4	13.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size	69 MB	439 MB
Age rating	4+	4+
Developer	GivEnergy Software Limited	The Honest Agency

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Polar

Subscriptions1

Yearly Subscription1 Year trial$25.001 Year

None

Tech Manual

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Polar free?

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

Is Tech Manual free?

Tech Manual is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

Do Polar or Tech Manual have ads?

Neither Polar nor Tech Manual shows ads.

Which is updated more often, Polar or Tech Manual?

Polar ships an update every 5 weeks, and Tech Manual every 3 months. Most recently, Polar was updated on September 5, 2026 and Tech Manual on September 20, 2026.