NetBuddy ForensicChef vs Metadata Viewer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side β with what reviewers say about each.
NetBuddy ForensicChef
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ForensicChef β mobile forensics and data transformation toolkit Quickly import, inspect, transform and export forensic captures and text data on your iPhone or iPad. Build repeatable "recipes" of operations to automate parsing, decoding, filtering and formatting so you can reproduce results reliably and share findings with colleagues. Key features: Import from files or clipboard: accept raw capture files and text (PCAP, base64/hex dumps, CSV, JSON and plain text) via the Share sheet or clipboard. Reusable recipes: chain operations (parse, filter, decode, extract, format) into named recipes that you can save, run and modify. Lightweight operations: common forensic helpers such as hex/base64 decode, timestamp conversion, field extraction, regex search/replace, and CSV/JSON formatting. Secure local exports: export results to local files for secure sharing or archival; temporary-file export ensures reliable access for the system share sheet. Reproducibility: save, export and version recipes so analyses can be repeated and audited. Privacy-first: all processing occurs locally on-device; nothing is uploaded without your explicit action. Who itβs for? Mobile forensics practitioners who need a portable tool for quick parsing and triage. Security analysts and incident responders who want reproducible, shareable transformations of capture or text artifacts. Developers and researchers who need a compact playground for testing parsing and data-extraction logic. Getting started Paste or import a capture/text into the Input. Add operations from the picker and arrange them into a recipe. Run the recipe to produce transformed Output. Export or share results securely when needed. Download ForensicChef to speed up mobile forensic triage, keep analyses reproducible, and share results securely β all from your device.
Metadata Viewer
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Metadata Viewer: File Info reveals technical details stored in photos, videos, audio, PDFs, documents, ebooks, and archivesβprivately on your iPhone. Choose from Files or Photos and get an organized report without sending the file to a server. Expand the category you need while the rest stays easy to scan. SEE WHAT IS REALLY THERE Only present, accessible values appear. Empty or unsupported fields are omitted. Reports include a file summary followed by dates, type identifiers, MIME type, and other available properties. PHOTOS AND IMAGES Inspect common image metadata through Image I/O: β’ Dimensions, color model, bit depth, alpha, orientation, and DPI β’ EXIF camera, lens, exposure, and capture information β’ Embedded GPS coordinates and location values β’ Optional raw metadata dictionaries for deeper inspection AUDIO AND VIDEO Inspect media through AVFoundation: β’ Duration, playability, and protected-content status β’ Track count and media type β’ Video dimensions and frame rate β’ Audio channels and sample rate β’ Codec identifiers and estimated bitrate β’ Common and format-specific container tags Each audio or video track is summarized separately, so mixed media files remain understandable. PDF, OFFICE, AND OPENDOCUMENT PDF reports can include page count, title, author, subject, keywords, creator, producer, dates, version, and other readable document attributes. Metadata Info reads package properties from DOCX, XLSX, PPTX, macro-enabled Office variants, ODT, ODS, and ODP. Reports can include authorship, revisions, application details, page or slide counts, statistics, and custom properties. EPUB AND ZIP PACKAGES Inspect EPUB publication metadata such as title, creator, language, identifier, publisher, date, subject, rights, and contributors when present. For ZIP and supported package formats, view archive type, entry count, and uncompressed size. Parsing stays local and bounded; encrypted or unsupported archives are not expanded. QUICK, FOCUSED WORKFLOW Browse Files or choose from Photos, then review the summary. Expand one category inline; opening another collapses the first. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Inspection runs on your device. No account or upload is required, and there are no analytics or advertising SDKs. DAILY USE AND UNLIMITED ACCESS One successful inspection is free each local calendar day. Cancelled selections, loading errors, and failed inspections do not use the daily inspection. After the daily inspection is used, choose recommended Yearly Access or optional Forever Access for unlimited inspections. Restore Purchases is available in Settings and on the purchase screen. Existing Lifetime Access purchases remain valid. YEARLY AND FOREVER ACCESS: - Metadata Info inspects selected files locally on your device. It does not require an account, upload files for processing, or include analytics or advertising SDKs. - One successful metadata inspection is free each local calendar day. After that daily inspection is used, unlimited access is required before another completed result is shown. - Yearly Access is an auto-renewable subscription billed once per year. It renews automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel it in your App Store account settings. Forever Access is a separate non-consumable, one-time purchase. Existing Metadata Info Lifetime purchases remain valid as Forever Access and can be restored. Apple processes purchases through StoreKit under Apple's terms and privacy practices. - Results contain only metadata that is present, readable, and supported by the system or the app. Encrypted, unreadable, unavailable, and unsupported values are omitted. ZIP-based formats are inspected locally with bounded archive, entry-count, and metadata-entry limits. Encrypted archives are not supported. Terms: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy: https://yumcut.com/mobile/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Metadata Viewer at Free against NetBuddy ForensicChef's $1.99. Metadata Viewer also leads on iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.0). NetBuddy ForensicChef's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS
Metadata Viewer is free to download; NetBuddy ForensicChef costs $1.99 up front. Metadata Viewer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. NetBuddy ForensicChef asks for nothing beyond the download.
| Parameter | NetBuddy ForensicChef | Metadata Viewer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 | Free β better |
| Update frequency | β | Every 6 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No β better | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad β better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 18.0 β better |
| Further details β not scored | ||
| Size | 1 MB | 5 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Rick Bodnar | Ihar Shaduryn |
In-app purchases
NetBuddy ForensicChef
No in-app purchases
Metadata Viewer
- Metadata Info Lifetime$3.99
Questions
Is NetBuddy ForensicChef free?
Is Metadata Viewer free?
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