ZBrush vs Notebook Studio
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ZBrush
Create detailed 3D models and digital sculptures on your iPad. This app offers industry-leading sculpting tools, advanced detailing, and seamless integration with desktop versions for professionals and hobbyists alike.
- Digital sculpting and 3D painting
- 200+ pressure-sensitive brushes
- Sculptris Pro & Dynamic Tessellation
- Live Boolean modeling
- 3D Layers for non-destructive editing
- Seamless desktop interoperability
- Direct export for 3D printing
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ZBrush for iPad. Create stunning 3D models, digital sculptures, concept art, and detailed characters with ZBrush for iPad—the award-winning, industry-leading digital sculpting app trusted by professional artists across film, AAA games, collectibles, toy design, jewelry, illustration, and 3D design. ZBrush for iPad brings unrivaled desktop-grade digital sculpting and 3D painting power into an intuitive, touch-first mobile environment optimized for Apple Pencil. Take complete creative freedom on the go with high-poly mesh density, proprietary digital clay brushes, procedural detailing, and seamless cross-platform interoperability. Subscribers to Maxon One or ZBrush desktop can download the iPad app and sign in to activate full access instantly. A comprehensive free tier is also available to start sculpting immediately. NEW FOR IPAD • Spotlight Integration: Seamlessly load reference images directly onto the canvas, apply projection painting and texture mapping across complex mesh surfaces, and extract custom 3D geometry from 2D source imagery. • 3D Layers: Store high-resolution sculpting details, PolyPaint color channels, and masking non-destructively. Effortlessly toggle layer visibility, blend sculpt deformations, and refine feature intensity with precise slider controls. CORE SCULPTING & MODELING FEATURES • 200+ Sculpting Brushes: Pressure-sensitive digital brushes engineered for Apple Pencil and Apple Pencil Pro, supporting squeeze, roll, hover, double-tap gestures, and haptic feedback. • Sculptris Pro & Dynamic Tessellation: Add local mesh detail on the fly without manual topology management. • DynaMesh Digital Clay: Re-topologize mesh density evenly during early concept exploration. • ZRemesher: Industry-standard automatic retopology for clean, optimized edge flow. • Live Boolean: Non-destructive real-time union, subtraction, and intersection modeling. • PolyPaint: High-resolution 3D painting directly on vertex geometry without preliminary UV unwrapping. • Advanced Detailing: VDM Brushes, Surface Noise, Retopo Brush, Subdivision Modeling, NanoMesh, and ArrayMesh. DESKTOP INTEROPERABILITY & EXPORT • One-Click GoZ: Seamless transfer of ZTool and ZProject files between iPad and desktop ZBrush. • 3D Print Hub: Direct export for additive manufacturing and 3D printing workflows. HIGH-PERFORMANCE HARDWARE OPTIMIZATION Handles up to 90+ million polygons per mesh on M4 iPad hardware. Optimized for multi-touch gestures, custom hotkey bars, rapid undo/redo touch shortcuts, and real-world photogrammetry base mesh imports for high-end digital asset creation. TARGET CREATIVE USE CASES 1. Game Developers: Hero character modeling, creature design, and environment asset creation. 2. Collectibles & Toy Designers: High-detail prototyping and precise 3D print preparation. 3. Film & VFX Artists: Production-grade concept sculpting and digital asset creation. 4. Industrial & Jewelry Designers: Precision organic detailing for consumer products, apparel, and hardware. 5. 2D Illustrators & Concept Artists: Fast 3D block-outs and visual design expansion. LANGUAGE SUPPORT English, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Spanish, German, French, and Portuguese (BR).
Notebook Studio
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Design tailored, hyperlinked PDF planners and digital notebook templates calibrated specifically for e-ink displays and tablet. General graphic design tools like Canva or Adobe Express are built for RGB color monitors and commercial print. Notebook Studio is engineered from the ground up for the unique physics of electronic paper: ultra-sharp 1-bit monochrome vector lines, calibrated dot-grid contrast, and lightweight hyperlinked documents that turn pages instantly without lag. CALIBRATED FOR E-INK • Contrast Tuning: Fine-tune line weights and dot grids to eliminate ghosting and faint rules on Carta 1200 and Gallery 3 screens. • Fast Page Turns: Lean vector rendering ensures massive multi-page planners load smoothly without taxing e-reader memory. • True-to-Scale Layouts: Exact pixel-and-millimeter canvas templates tailored for reMarkable Paper Pro, reMarkable 2, Supernote A5 X/A6 X2 Nomad, Onyx Boox Note/Go series, and Kindle Scribe. DEEP CUSTOMIZATION & SMART LAYOUTS • Automated Hyperlink Engine: Build structured yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily agendas with click-through navigation tabs generated automatically. • Modular Grid Designer: Configure dot grid spacing, French ruling, Cornell note sections, isometric grids, music staves, and habit tracking matrices. • Smart Layout Generator (v1.2): Speed up layout generation with layout assistance that balances margins and line distributions automatically. OFFLINE INTEGRITY & PRIVACY • 100% Local Processing: Notebook Studio requires no account, collects no telemetry, and operates completely offline. • No Cloud Dependencies: Your documents remain strictly on your iPad/Mac until you export them directly via AirDrop, local storage, or your e-reader's companion app. • One-Time Purchase: Pay once, own it forever. No monthly subscriptions, no tier locks, and no watermarks. DEVICE & SYSTEM COMPATIBILITY • Optimized for iPadOS 17.0+ and macOS 14.0+ with full Apple Pencil support. • Direct PDF export verified compatible with reMarkable, Ratta Supernote, Onyx Boox (NeoReader), Kindle Scribe, Kobo Elipsa, and Goodnotes/Notability. --- ABOUT THE DEVELOPER Notebook Studio is built independently by an e-ink enthusiast and audio/software engineer dedicated to distraction-free digital stationery. Feedback and template feature requests are welcome at support@notebookstudio.app.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: ZBrush at Free against Notebook Studio's $6.99. Notebook Studio's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and update cadence (every 10 days vs monthly). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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
ZBrush is free to download; Notebook Studio costs $6.99 up front. ZBrush sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Notebook Studio asks for nothing beyond the download.
ZBrush ships an update monthly, Notebook Studio every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on November 8, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ZBrush | Notebook Studio |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $6.99 |
| Rating | 4.1 (268 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 52.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 268 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 10 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Devices | iPad | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.1 GB | 11 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | MAXON Computer GmbH | SAMUEL JOSEPH PROCTOR |
In-app purchases
ZBrush
- ZBrush Monthly$9.991 Month
- ZBrush Annual$89.991 Year
Notebook Studio
No in-app purchases









