Manga Reader vs Penguin
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Manga Reader
Instantly translate Japanese manga from websites, local files, and cloud storage. Learn Japanese naturally through real manga dialogue with side-by-side comparisons and AI explanations. Build your personal vocabulary with saved words and AI-generated example sentences.
- Instant website manga translation
- Local file and cloud storage import
- Seamless overlay translation
- Dialogue comparison for learning
- AI dialogue explanations
- Personal vocabulary builder
- AI example sentences
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Privacy-First Translation. Read manga from websites, local files, and cloud storage with confidence. Read Any Manga Site Instantly — In Your Language. • Supported Languages Arabic (العربية) Chinese (Simplified) (简体中文) Chinese (Traditional) (繁體中文) Danish (Dansk) Dutch (Nederlands) French (Français) German (Deutsch) Hindi (हिन्दी) Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia) Italian (Italiano) Japanese(日本語) Korean (한국어) Norwegian (Norsk) Polish (Polski) Portuguese (Brazil) (Português) Portuguese (Portugal) (Português) Russian (Русский) Spanish (Mexico) (Español) Spanish (Spain) (Español) Swedish (Svenska) Thai (ไทย) Turkish (Türkçe) Ukrainian (Українська) Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt) KEY FEATURES • One-Tap Instant Translation Detects speech bubbles on the page and translates them immediately into your language. • Seamless Overlay Mode Translated text appears directly over the original speech bubbles, preserving the artwork and reading flow. • Learn Japanese While Reading Manga Tap any translated speech bubble to open Dialogue Comparison. Compare the original Japanese dialogue with its translation side by side and gain a deeper understanding of how Japanese is actually used in manga. • AI Dialogue Explanations With Cloud Translation, AI can explain what a character is saying, including nuances, expressions, and context that are often difficult to understand through translation alone. • Story Guide Started reading in the middle of a series? AI summarizes previous events, introduces the main characters, and explains the story so far, making it easy to enjoy any chapter—even the latest one. • Local Library Support Not limited to websites. You can translate: – Scanned manga – ZIP archives – RAR archives – Image folders • iCloud Sharing Support Share ZIP files, RAR archives, or image folders via iCloud and translate safely across your devices. FLEXIBLE TRANSLATION MODES Choose the translation method that best fits your needs. On-Device Translation All processing happens entirely on your device. • Image analysis and translation are performed locally. • No reading content is sent to external servers. • We do not collect browsing history or manga content. Your manga stays private on your device. Cloud Translation For higher-quality AI translation and learning features, you can optionally use cloud-based translation. • AI dialogue explanations • Story Guide • Enhanced translation quality Only the text and data required for processing is sent securely to the server. • Translation data is not linked to personally identifiable information. • Translation content is not stored on our servers after processing. Break the language barrier, learn Japanese naturally, and return to the world of stories. Download Manga Reader: AI Translator today and unlock Japanese manga with a single tap. Terms of Use https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Penguin
This app allows you to read your own comic collection in various formats, with on-device translation for Japanese manga. It offers a customizable reading experience and a smart bookshelf, all while prioritizing user privacy and local data processing.
- On-device manga translation for Japanese comics
- Supports various file formats (CBZ, CBR, PDF, etc.)
- SMB and WebDAV network drive support
- OPDS catalog compatibility
- Smart bookshelf with automatic categorization
- Customizable reading gestures and scrolling
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A comic reader for the books you already own. CBZ, CBR, PDF and EPUB open straight from Files, your Mac, or your NAS — no unpacking, no account, no ads, and no internet needed once a book is on the device. Japanese pages you cannot read? Penguin Viewer translates the speech bubbles on your device and paints the English back into the balloon. ■ Manga and novels in one library - Drop in CBZ, CBR, CB7 (7z), ZIP, RAR, PDF or an image folder. TXT, MD and EPUB novels land on the same shelf. - Auto margin cropping fills the screen with books you scanned yourself. ■ A library in your own folders - Make folders like in Finder, nested at any depth, and drag books between them. - New imports land in the open folder, dozens at a time. Move or delete in bulk, or drag books into your own order. - The folder layout and book order follow you over iCloud. Files are not uploaded and use no iCloud storage. ■ Translation that ends on the device - A manga or webtoon bubble is read sentence by sentence, translated, and painted back where the original lettering was. Vertical Japanese is recognized too. - In novels, translate a sentence or page to read beside the original, or look up words. - Translate a book in advance and pages turn with no wait. Nothing is sent anywhere. ■ Read novels your way - Font, size, line spacing, margins and background change in Text and Layout, live. - Jump chapters from the contents. Position and bookmarks carry between devices. ■ Your NAS and server library - Connect over SMB (NAS), WebDAV or OPDS, compatible with Komga and Kavita. - OPDS-PSE streaming resumes at your page without downloading, so a huge library takes no storage. - Reading position syncs over iCloud, and server credentials stay in the device keychain. ■ Read it the way you want - Single Page, Two-Page, or Smart Two-Page picking by screen ratio, plus right-to-left binding. - Webtoons scroll vertically, or run 120Hz auto-scroll through a binge. Pan sideways while zoomed in. - Multi-gigabyte volumes turn without stutter, and pinch zoom works in spreads too. - A night theme blacks out the reader on your schedule, and Mac turns pages from the keyboard. ■ A library that sorts itself - Smart shelves file books as unread, reading or finished, and ComicInfo groups a scattered series. - Set grid columns and cover size, sort by recently opened, search by title, author or series. ■ A record that grows as you read - Reading statistics, streaks and milestones build the habit. - The reading calendar shows how much you read, iOS widgets show today's, and Face ID locks the app, hiding books from widgets and search. ■ Local AI Translation Benchmark - Measure how fast your iPhone, iPad or Mac translates a manga page. Run it from Translation in Settings. - The result is a single PVScore. A bigger number means a faster device. - The results screen is CRT arcade, scanlines and all. Beat your best and NEW RECORD appears. - Save and share the score as a PNG card, device name and chip included. - Enter a nickname (up to 12 characters) to see the worldwide PVScore top 500. ■ Honest pricing - Almost everything is free. The free library holds 30 books, and sharing the app opens 10 more. - The benchmark and leaderboard are free, with unlimited runs. - An unlimited library is one lifetime Pro purchase, not a subscription. No ads anywhere. ■ Privacy by default - Local first: files, translation, statistics and benchmark results stay on the device. - Leaderboard posts send nickname, score, run log and device info (model, chip, RAM, OS), all shown first. - Linking MyAnimeList sends it your title searches and volumes read. - No account, no sign-up, not a single tracking SDK. Open it and read. - Export your library and reading history, and restore it on a new device. ■ Good to know - Penguin Viewer supplies no manga or novels. It reads files you already own. - The interface comes in 17 languages. Requests left in reviews get built quickly. Novel reading came out of one.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Manga Reader at 5.0 against Penguin's 4.5. Penguin's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs weekly) and iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.4). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume 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
Both are free to download. Manga Reader sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $0.49 per 7 days and Penguin sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Manga Reader holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 2 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
Manga Reader ships an update weekly, Penguin every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Manga Reader | Penguin |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better | 4.5 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 2 |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 26.4 | 18.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 149 MB | 121 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hirotoshi MAKINO | HAEDUN KIM |
Customer experience
Manga Reader
Penguin
In-app purchases
Manga Reader
- Cloud Translation Weekly$0.497 Days
- Unlimited Translation 1Year$0.991 Year
- Unlimited Translation Monthly3 Days trial$0.991 Month
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- Cloud Translation Yearly$14.991 Year
- Cloud Translation 3-Day Pass$0.49
- Unlimited Translation Lifetime$2.99
Penguin
- Pro Lifetime — Buy Once$3.99








