Comparison

Secret Notepad with Password vs ZZZ Let's Read!

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

Head to head
About

Secret Notepad with Password

Securely store your private thoughts and images with a password-protected vault. Features biometric unlock, screen blurring, and the ability to attach photos directly to notes without saving them to your camera roll.

Highlights
  • Password and biometric authentication
  • Screen blurring for privacy
  • Attach photos directly to notes
  • Photos not saved to camera roll
  • Undo/redo support
  • Search functionality
  • Dark mode
Features
Read full description

Got notes you'd rather keep to yourself? This app is a private notes app that keeps your secrets safe with a password and biometric authentication. While you're writing, the screen is blurred so no one nearby can read what you're typing. Set a simple numeric PIN or a complex alphanumeric password — whichever you prefer — and unlock it in an instant with Face ID or Touch ID. You can also attach photos directly to your notes. Pick from your photo library or take a shot right there on the spot. Photos taken inside the app are never saved to your camera roll, so even the most sensitive images stay locked away inside your notes. Photos and notes, all in one place ・Attach photos from your photo library ・Take a photo on the spot and insert it instantly ・Photos taken in the app are not saved to your camera roll ・Blur is applied to attached photos too, keeping them private ・Tap a photo to view it full screen Privacy and protection you can count on ・Face ID, Touch ID, and iOS passcode support ・Set anything from a simple numeric PIN to a complex alphanumeric password — change it anytime ・Password entry is hidden from view so no one can peek ・Blur the screen while writing; adjust the intensity with a simple slider Write with ease, find in a flash ・Undo and redo support — fix mistakes in a tap ・No limit on the number of notes ・Wide range of fonts and text sizes; Dynamic Type supported for comfortable reading ・Sort by last edited, created date, or title; manual ordering available ・Search to find any note quickly ・Dark mode supported ・Optimized for the larger iPad display

About

ZZZ Let's Read!

Features
Read full description

ZZZ Let's Read! — On-device OCR for Japanese (vertical, horizontal, classical, kuzushiji) and English Point your camera at a book or a receipt, and get text in an instant. Every byte of OCR runs locally on your device — captured images and recognized text never leave your phone. Ideal for privacy-conscious users and offline environments. ◆ SUPPORTED OCR LANGUAGES AND SCRIPTS ◆ This App recognizes only the following: • Japanese — vertical (tategaki) and horizontal (yokogaki) writing, modern Japanese, classical/pre-modern kanji, and kuzushiji (cursive handwriting). 7,141 characters of the NDLmoji charset. • English — basic Latin alphabet (A–Z / a–z), digits, and common punctuation. Other writing systems are NOT recognized: Simplified/Traditional Chinese, Korean (Hangul), Cyrillic, Arabic, etc. Accented Latin characters (é, ñ, ü, ç, ã, …) are also not in the OCR charset. The app interface is available in 6 languages, but the OCR engine itself supports only Japanese and English. ◆ FEATURES ◆ Document Mode — Books, Manuscripts, Classical Japanese • Powered by the National Diet Library's NDLOCR-Lite • 7,141-character NDLmoji charset including pre-modern Japanese kanji • "Detect" outlines all text regions — tap to OCR only what you need • "Read all" runs OCR on the entire page in one go • Copy or share recognized text • Pinch-to-zoom on the captured snapshot Receipt Mode — Automated Bookkeeping • Auto-extract amount and date from any receipt • Multi-currency: JPY, USD, GBP, EUR, and more • Date formats: Gregorian, Reiwa/Heisei, abbreviated wareki, English month names (e.g. 16AUG2015) • Auto-detects DD/MM vs MM/DD by device locale • Handles European decimal comma (15,65 €) correctly • Bill splitter — divides the amount by N people • Share CSV via Mail / Drive / messenger, or clear with one tap ◆ SIX INTERFACE LANGUAGES ◆ Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, Portuguese. Unsupported locales fall back to English automatically. ◆ PRIVACY BY DESIGN ◆ • Fully offline OCR — no network required for recognition • Captured photos are discarded after OCR; nothing is sent to a server • Only the camera and one CSV file on internal storage are accessed • Network is used solely for ad delivery (Google AdMob) ◆ WHO IT'S FOR ◆ • Students and researchers studying classical Japanese • Writers and editors quoting from physical books • Freelancers, sole proprietors, and households tracking receipts • Travelers logging expenses across multiple countries • Anyone handling confidential documents or working offline ◆ REQUIREMENTS ◆ • iOS 13.0 or higher • ~200 MB free storage • Rear-facing camera • Internet not required for OCR (used only for ads) ◆ OPEN-SOURCE CREDITS ◆ The OCR engine in this App is built on these open-source assets, redistributed under their respective licenses. • National Diet Library NDLOCR-Lite — CC BY 4.0 • PARSeq scene-text recognition model — Apache License 2.0 • PaddlePaddle PP-OCRv4 detection model — Apache License 2.0 The native iOS port (Swift + ONNX Runtime) is the work of this App's developer. ◆ MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTION (REMOVE ADS) ◆ • The "Remove Ads" monthly plan hides all ads in the app • Payment is charged to your Apple ID account • The subscription renews automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period • Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period • You can manage or cancel anytime in iOS Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions ◆ TERMS OF USE (EULA) ◆ This App is provided under the following End User License Agreement (EULA). Terms of Use: https://smolt-stage.com/home/privacy/zzz-ocr-terms.html ◆ PRIVACY POLICY ◆ This App handles information in accordance with its privacy policy. For details, see "About" inside the App or the link in this store listing.

Screenshots

Secret Notepad with Password3 screens
ZZZ Let's Read!4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: ZZZ Let's Read! at none against Secret Notepad with Password's shown. ZZZ Let's Read! also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases 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. Secret Notepad with Password sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and ZZZ Let's Read! sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Secret Notepad with Password ships an update monthly, ZZZ Let's Read! fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Secret Notepad with Password versus ZZZ Let's Read!: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSecret Notepad with PasswordZZZ Let's Read!
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (4 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings4 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyFortnightly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB125 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developermanabu uedaSMOLT STAGE, K.K.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Secret Notepad with Password

One-time1
  • Ad-Free Plan(Lifetime)$2.99
1 purchases

ZZZ Let's Read!

Subscriptions1
  • ZZZ Let's Read! Premium$0.991 Month

Questions

Is Secret Notepad with Password free?
Secret Notepad with Password is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ZZZ Let's Read! free?
ZZZ Let's Read! is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Secret Notepad with Password or ZZZ Let's Read! have ads?
Secret Notepad with Password shows ads; ZZZ Let's Read! does not.
Which is updated more often, Secret Notepad with Password or ZZZ Let's Read!?
Secret Notepad with Password ships an update monthly, and ZZZ Let's Read! fortnightly. Most recently, Secret Notepad with Password was updated on October 6, 2026 and ZZZ Let's Read! on October 20, 2026.

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