Bardley vs SeraphIRC
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bardley
An audiobook player designed for privacy, allowing users to own their books and enjoy them without tracking or subscriptions. It offers powerful tools for organization, metadata enrichment, and a distraction-free listening experience.
- Privacy-first design with zero data collection
- Instant metadata search from multiple sources
- Built-in PDF companion viewer
- Advanced series organization and tracking
- Enhanced listening experience with variable speed and smart timer
- Professional library management with various import and sorting options
- Accessibility features including VoiceOver support
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Bardley keeps your listening habits completely private while giving you the power to organize, enrich, and enjoy your audiobook library — no account required. NO SUBSCRIPTION. Start with up to 5 audiobooks. Upgrade to Bardley Pro once to unlock an unlimited library, iCloud sync, JellyFin, LibriVox access, and every future premium feature — forever. No monthly fees, no tricks. COMPLETE PRIVACY PROTECTION Zero data collection. No tracking. No accounts. Your audiobooks and listening history stay with you where they belong. While other apps harvest your data for profit, Bardley respects your privacy by default — every network feature is opt-in, never forced. INSTANT METADATA SEARCH Search Open Library, PodcastIndex, and Audnexus simultaneously to find the right cover art, author, narrator, series info, and chapter names. One tap to apply everything. Your sideloaded books deserve proper metadata. BUILT-IN PDF COMPANION VIEWER Attach study guides, liner notes, or companion PDFs directly to any audiobook. Full PDF viewer with page navigation, table of contents, and thumbnails — all without leaving the app. It remembers your last page, too. SERIES ORGANIZATION THAT ACTUALLY WORKS Tired of scrolling through random book lists trying to find Book 3? Bardley groups series books together and lets you set custom reading order. Filter by series, track progress across entire collections, and never lose your place in multi-book stories again. ENHANCED LISTENING EXPERIENCE Variable playback speed from 0.5x to 2.0x. Smart sleep timer that pauses at chapter endings — not mid-sentence. Configurable skip controls. Detailed bookmarks with notes. Chapter navigation with progress tracking. Seamless resume every time you reopen the app. PROFESSIONAL LIBRARY MANAGEMENT Import through Files, AirDrop, or sharing. Supports MP3, M4A, M4B, AIFF, and WAV. Automatic chapter detection. Add custom artwork while keeping originals safe. Switch between grid and list views. Filter by progress, group by author or series, sort seven different ways. BUILT FOR ACCESSIBILITY Bardley adapts to your settings. Five levels of adaptive layout sizing, full VoiceOver support with rich playback announcements, and haptic feedback for every control — so the app works the way you do. CLEAN, DISTRACTION-FREE DESIGN Choose from multiple UI styles to match your taste. Powerful search and filtering. Progress indicators on every book. No ads, no clutter, no distractions — just your audiobooks. Your audiobooks. Your privacy. Your way.
SeraphIRC
A modern IRC client for iOS that syncs seamlessly with a Soju bouncer. Enjoy push notifications, shared history, and customizable themes across devices. Offers robust IRCv3 support and privacy-focused features.
- Soju bouncer integration
- Push notifications
- Cross-device history sync
- 21 built-in color themes
- Multiple presentation modes
- IRCv3 support
- FiSH encryption
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SeraphIRC is a native IRC client for iPhone and iPad, supporting direct IRC and ZNC/Soju bouncer connections. Notable features: - 21 built in color themes - 3 presentation modes: Chat bubbles, classic UI, Modern UI (default) - Pinned channel/query favorites at the top of your treebar - Extensive IRCv3 support - Push notifications even when app is in the background - Photo and file sharing through your Soju bouncer's file host - Thread replies, with plain-text fallback so they read correctly on every other client - Reactions & Message Redactions where server support exists - Every message and control is labeled and ordered for screen reader use - GIF search with your own Giphy key. SeraphIRC ships no key and does not see your searches - FiSH (Blowfish) encryption support using CBC or ECB for channels, queries, and channel topics - Privacy-first: no ads, no analytics, no third-party SDKs of any kind. Credentials live in the iOS keychain - Pairs with SeraphIRC for desktop on Linux, Windows, and macOS to synchronize user ignore lists via Soju.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Bardley at Free against SeraphIRC's $3.99. SeraphIRC's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and chart position (#139 vs unranked). On rating, ratings volume, update cadence and 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
Bardley is free to download; SeraphIRC costs $3.99 up front. Bardley sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. SeraphIRC asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Bardley against 5.0 for SeraphIRC. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 3 respectively.
Bardley ships an update every 8 days, SeraphIRC fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Bardley | SeraphIRC |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $3.99 |
| Rating | 5.0 (4 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) |
| Number of ratings | 4 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 8 days — better | Fortnightly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #139 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 17.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 24 MB | 17 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Joseph Poirier | Seraph Technologies LLC |
Customer experience
Bardley
SeraphIRC
In-app purchases
Bardley
- Lifetime Pro$5.99
SeraphIRC
No in-app purchases









