Comparison

Lens vs Diff

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

Head to head
About

Lens

Features
Read full description

Lens lets you shoot photos and videos with real-time visual effects directly inside the camera. Choose a look, see it instantly, and capture the final result without moving to a separate editor. Lens is built for creators, visual experimenters, and anyone who wants a more expressive camera on iPhone. Fully free to use All camera effects, photo and video capture features are currently available without subscriptions or paywalls. Create, record, and share without limitations. What you can do with Lens: • Shoot with real-time visual effects • Record video with effects applied during capture • Take photos with the active look • Preview the result immediately after shooting • Save or instantly share your content to Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Telegram and other social platforms Built for social sharing Share in seconds without extra editing. Live effects while you shoot Lens applies visual effects in real time instead of adding them later in post-production. This makes the creative process faster, more direct, and more fun. Depth-based effects on supported devices On compatible devices, Lens uses scene depth to power spatial visual effects. Selected looks react to foreground and background separation for more dimensional results. Built with a fast rendering pipeline Lens is designed for smooth real-time performance, responsive controls, and fast switching between styles while shooting photos and videos. Designed for creative capture Use Lens for: • Short-form videos • Social content • Stylized portraits • Experimental clips • Visual studies and artistic shooting Fast camera workflow 1. Open Lens 2. Choose an effect 3. Shoot photo or video 4. Preview the result 5. Save or share instantly Key features • Real-time camera effects • Photo and video capture • Instant preview after shooting • Effect intensity control • Smooth zoom workflow • Depth-based effects on supported devices • Fast save and share flow Device support Some features may vary depending on your device. Depth-based effects require supported hardware. Privacy Lens uses camera, microphone, photo library, and speech recognition permissions only for app functionality.

About

Diff

Transform everyday motion into dynamic visual art by simply pointing your camera and recording. Explore various scenes and adjust settings to create unique, live visual effects.

Highlights
  • Motion to visual art conversion
  • Live visual effects
  • Camera recording
  • Scene selection
  • Adjustable settings
Features
Read full description

Diff turns motion into live visual art — point the camera at anything moving and tap record. Try different scenes and the Settings sliders.

Screenshots

Lens4 screens
Diff2 screens

Verdict

The call

Lens and Diff are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters — price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Lens versus Diff: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLensDiff
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyFortnightly—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB1 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVladislav PoliakovKarsten Englander

In-app purchases

None

Lens

No in-app purchases

None

Diff

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Lens free?
Lens is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Diff free?
Diff is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Lens or Diff have ads?
Neither Lens nor Diff shows ads.

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