Wakana vs TGSpeechBox
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side ā with what reviewers say about each.
Wakana
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Main Features Font customization Display of kanji pronunciation in the specified language (ruby) Mutual conversion between Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, and Shinjitai Dictionary function by clicking words Recommended especially for language learners, translators, researchers of Japanese/Chinese, and language enthusiasts. ā Freely selectable display fonts: Handwritten-style font Pixel-style font ā Display of kanji pronunciation (ruby function) It is possible to add ruby above kanji: Mandarin (Standard Chinese / Putonghua) Cantonese Taiwanese (Taipei / Tainan style) Japanese Korean Sino-Vietnamese (Vietnamese readings) ā Ruby notation formats: Pinyin alphabet Zhuyin symbols (Bopomofo) Hiragana Katakana Hangul ā Tone mark display Tone marks can be set to "on / off". ā Character form conversion function Conversion is possible to the following character types: Simplified Chinese Traditional Chinese Shinjitai ā Word highlighting Background color is added to converted words for visual clarity. ā Dictionary function Click dictionary: Clicking a word displays its translation in the specified language as a pop-up. ā Example of customization You can freely combine options such as: "Japanese kun-yomi + Zhuyin (Taiwan) + Simplified Chinese + Handwritten-style font"
TGSpeechBox
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TGSpeechBox is a high-quality speech synthesizer that works as a system voice with VoiceOver and as a standalone text-to-speech app. Features: ⢠26 languages with natural-sounding speech ⢠Full VoiceOver integration ā use as your primary system voice ⢠7 voice presets plus YAML-defined voice profiles ⢠Deep engine tuning: pitch mode, voice tone, formant sharpness, inflection, tremor, breathiness, and more ⢠Phoneme editor: fine-tune individual speech sounds with live preview ⢠Pronunciation dictionary: add custom word pronunciations with IPA override support ⢠Stress, compound, and character dictionaries for advanced control ⢠Export and share your customizations ⢠Adjustable sample rate (11025ā44100 Hz) ⢠Rate override and rate boost for VoiceOver ⢠Language lock: keep your preferred language regardless of system setting ⢠Runs entirely on-device ā no internet required, no data leaves your phone TGSpeechBox uses a Klatt-style formant synthesis engine with eSpeak-ng for phoneme generation. It is open source under the MIT license. Built by a blind developer, designed for accessibility from day one.
Screenshots
Verdict
Wakana and TGSpeechBox are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters ā price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them ā neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
Scored on Price Ā· Rating Ā· Positive reviews Ā· Number of ratings Ā· Update frequency Ā· Ads Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Monetization Ā· Best chart rank Ā· Devices Ā· Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
| Parameter | Wakana | TGSpeechBox |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | ā | Weekly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Devices | iPhone, Mac | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.0 ā better |
| Further details ā not scored | ||
| Size | 79 MB | 33 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Daichi Kato | Tamas Geczy |
In-app purchases
Wakana
No in-app purchases
TGSpeechBox
No in-app purchases









