Comparison

Onehand Booknotes vs PDF Compact

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

Head to head
About

Onehand Booknotes

Features
Read full description

It quickly summarizes from books and captures paper notes via barcode registration or OCR. Its quiet UI preserves mental space, transforming daily insights into tangible assets by capturing fleeting thoughts and flashes of inspiration. “Recommended for” - Businesspeople who want to quickly digitize documents - Working professionals and students who want to take reading notes efficiently - Creators seeking inspiration for ideas - Students preparing for exams who want to manage study notes on their smartphones “Features” - High-Precision OCR Recognition - Automatically detects Japanese vertical/horizontal writing - High-accuracy text conversion using cutting-edge character recognition technology - Supports a wide range of materials: books, magazines, even handwritten notes Organization Features - Automatically retrieve book information via barcode scanning - Freely categorize notes using categories and tags - Manage web pages together by saving URLs - Supports multiple images (attach multiple photos to one note) iCloud Backup (Premium) - Safely back up all data - Share data across multiple devices - Export/import in JSON format

About

PDF Compact

Features
Read full description

PDF Compact is the fast and easy solution to reduce the size of large PDF files directly on your iPhone or iPad – and now it also converts images into PDFs that you can compress instantly. Whether for email, cloud uploads, government portals, or archiving: PDF Compact reliably reduces the file size of your documents with just a few taps. New Features Import images & convert them to PDF Select a photo from your gallery – PDF Compact instantly creates a PDF that you can compress right away. ** Features ** - Select & view PDFs or images Open PDFs directly from Files, iCloud, or other apps – or import an image from your photo library. - Efficient PDF compression Choose between different compression levels such as Small or Medium – optimized for sending or storing. - Preview before saving Check the result immediately before saving or sharing it. - Smart file naming Compressed PDFs are automatically saved with a suffix like “_small” or “_medium”. - Share & send Share your compressed PDFs via email, messenger apps, or AirDrop. - Privacy‑friendly Your documents are used only for processing – no permanent storage without your consent. Perfect for Emails with size limits Uploads to portals & authorities School, work & office Quick sharing on the go PDF Compact makes large PDFs small – now even from images. Simple, fast, and reliable.

Screenshots

Onehand Booknotes4 screens
PDF Compact4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: PDF Compact at none against Onehand Booknotes's 2. PDF Compact also leads on ads (none vs shown). Onehand Booknotes's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 5 months) and iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.0). On price and device support 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. Onehand Booknotes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. PDF Compact asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Onehand Booknotes ships an update weekly, PDF Compact every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and September 28, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 2 level
Onehand Booknotes versus PDF Compact: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOnehand BooknotesPDF Compact
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 5 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS17.6 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB22 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNaoto SatoGerhard Lentschik

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Onehand Booknotes

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly_Premium$3.991 Month
  • Yearly_Premium$29.991 Year
None

PDF Compact

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Onehand Booknotes free?
Onehand Booknotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PDF Compact free?
PDF Compact is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Onehand Booknotes or PDF Compact have ads?
Onehand Booknotes shows ads; PDF Compact does not.
Which is updated more often, Onehand Booknotes or PDF Compact?
Onehand Booknotes ships an update weekly, and PDF Compact every 5 months. Most recently, Onehand Booknotes was updated on October 8, 2026 and PDF Compact on September 28, 2026.

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