Comparison

AmberDraw vs PicoChat for iMessage

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

Head to head
About

AmberDraw

Create unique animated art with brushes that move as you draw. No keyframes or timelines needed, just pick a brush and let its built-in motion bring your strokes to life. Export your creations as video for social media or further editing.

Highlights
  • Animated brushes with unique motion
  • Full brush customization
  • Layer support
  • Custom canvas dimensions
  • Apple Pencil support
  • Video export
Features
Read full description

AmberDraw is a drawing app where the brushes themselves animate. Not filters. Not effects added afterwards. The motion is built into every single stroke. Pick up your Apple Pencil, draw a line, and watch it wiggle, scatter, flow, or pulse — live, as you draw. There are no keyframes. No timelines. No exporting to After Effects just to make something move. You draw, and it's already animated. The wiggle line aesthetic, finally in an app If you've ever loved the hand-drawn, jittery motion style — in title sequences, illustrated reels, motion posters — AmberDraw is how you make that. Each brush has its own character: Scribble shakes with nervous energy, Gradient flows like liquid, Particle explodes outward, Charcoal drifts like smoke. You're not choosing a tool, you're choosing a feeling. What's inside • Animated brushes, each with unique bespoke motion • Full brush customisation — speed, density, size, behaviour • Layers for organisation and creative control • Custom canvas dimensions • Apple Pencil support • Import images directly onto your canvas • Transform tool for repositioning and scaling • Export your finished piece as video — ready to post Who it's for Artists who composite across apps. Illustrators who want their work to breathe. Designers making content for social. Anyone who's opened Procreate and thought — what if this moved? Export your animations as video and bring them straight into After Effects, CapCut, or anywhere else you work. AmberDraw fits into your workflow, not the other way around. Free to download. Unlock the full brush library with Pro. Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy policy: https://sites.google.com/view/amberdraw-privacypolicy/home

About

PicoChat for iMessage

Relive the nostalgia of early 2000s handheld messaging with this retro drawing app for iMessage. Create tiny pixel art, use unique emoji, and share your creations with friends, even if they don't have the app installed. Features include undo, saving favorites, and customization options.

Highlights
  • Create tiny drawings in iMessage
  • Dozens of pixel emoji
  • Undo mistakes
  • Save favorite drawings
  • Customize name and color
Read full description

Remember sitting on the bus and messaging your friends via your favorite two-screened handheld? Relive those memories with PicoChat, a tiny retro drawing app for iMessage! Featuring all the nostalgic features you remember and a few extras including the ability to undo, save favorites, and more! This open-source iMessage app is perfect for sending drawings to your friends who can see you art even if they don't have the app installed. With PicoChat, you can: • Create tiny drawings right in iMessage • Use dozens of pixel emoji • Undo mistakes with the click of a button • Save favorites to come back to later • Customize your name and color scheme And much more, download PicoChat today and try it out for yourself! Note: The terms Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS, and PictoChat are registered trademarks of Nintendo Co., Ltd. This app is in no way affiliated with Nintendo.

Screenshots

AmberDraw3 screens
PicoChat for iMessage3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: PicoChat for iMessage at none against AmberDraw's 2. PicoChat for iMessage also leads on update cadence (daily vs every 2 weeks) and rating (4.5 vs 4.3). AmberDraw's advantage is ratings volume (324 vs 98). On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. AmberDraw sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. PicoChat for iMessage asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PicoChat for iMessage holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 324 and 98 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of AmberDraw's written reviews are positive against 79% of PicoChat for iMessage's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

AmberDraw ships an update every 2 weeks, PicoChat for iMessage daily. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
AmberDraw versus PicoChat for iMessage: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAmberDrawPicoChat for iMessage
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (324 ratings)4.5 (98 ratings) — better
Positive reviews67.6% of reviews79.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings324 — better98
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.016.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size40 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMykyta GaidukovIdrees Hassan

Customer experience

AmberDraw

All ratings322 ratings
Positive81.7%
Neutral9.6%
Negative8.7%
Written reviews188 reviews
Positive67.6%
Neutral18.1%
Negative14.4%

PicoChat for iMessage

All ratings89 ratings
Positive91.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative9.0%
Written reviews53 reviews
Positive79.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.8%

Bugs and requests

AmberDraw

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

PicoChat for iMessage

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Settings don't save
  • Cursor turns into scribbles when writing too fast
  • Rainbow pen lags the app and force closes messages
  • Doesn't accommodate all screen sizes

Requested features

4 requests
  • Bigger keyboard size
  • Dark Mode support
  • Scaling fix for iPad
  • Ability to transform photos into drawings

In-app purchases

2 purchases

AmberDraw

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly7 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Pro Yearly7 Days trial$9.991 Year
None

PicoChat for iMessage

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is AmberDraw free?
AmberDraw is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PicoChat for iMessage free?
PicoChat for iMessage is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, AmberDraw or PicoChat for iMessage?
PicoChat for iMessage is rated higher. AmberDraw averages 4.3 out of 5 from 324 ratings, while PicoChat for iMessage averages 4.5 from 98 ratings.
Do AmberDraw or PicoChat for iMessage have ads?
Neither AmberDraw nor PicoChat for iMessage shows ads.
Which is updated more often, AmberDraw or PicoChat for iMessage?
AmberDraw ships an update every 2 weeks, and PicoChat for iMessage daily. Most recently, AmberDraw was updated on October 30, 2026 and PicoChat for iMessage on October 22, 2026.

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