Comparison

Zone Meter vs Blur Background

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

Head to head
About

Zone Meter

Features
Read full description

Zone Meter is a professional light meter for photographers who shoot manual - on film, with legacy lenses, or in the studio. Point your iPhone at a scene and Zone Meter instantly reads the light from the camera sensor, calculating exposure values in real time. Scroll the drum wheels to set your aperture, shutter speed, or ISO, and Zone Meter works out the third value for you. LIGHT METER - Live EV reading from the iPhone camera sensor - Four metering modes: Aperture Priority (Av), Shutter Priority (Tv), ISO Priority, and Manual (M) - Classic drum-roller wheel pickers for aperture, shutter speed, and ISO - Tap anywhere on the live preview to spot-meter a specific area of the scene - Switch between lenses (0.5x, 1x, 2x, 5x) to meter a distant subject with the telephoto - Live colour temperature reading with descriptive label (Tungsten, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade) - EV condition display from Very Dark to Very Bright HISTOGRAM - Live luminance histogram overlaid on the camera preview - tap the chart icon to show or hide - Shadows on the left, highlights on the right - just like every other histogram you know - Colour-coded bars: blue for shadows, white for midtones, amber for highlights - Clip indicators warn when shadows or highlights are being lost - In Manual mode, the histogram shifts left or right to predict how your chosen settings will affect the tonal distribution MANUAL MODE - Set aperture, shutter speed, and ISO independently - nothing is computed or locked - Exposure delta bar shows how far your settings deviate from the metered value - Bar shifts left for underexposure, right for overexposure - consistent with the histogram - Contextual label: Correct exposure, Overexposed by 1.3 stops, Underexposed by 2 stops - Use with the histogram to dial in exposure before you shoot ND FILTER CALCULATOR - Calculates long-exposure shutter speed for any ND filter - Presets for all standard filters: ND2 through ND32000, Little Stopper, Big Stopper, Super Stopper - Custom stop input - Uses the live meter reading or a manually chosen base shutter speed - Warns when exposure exceeds 30 seconds (Bulb mode required) DEPTH OF FIELD CALCULATOR - Hyperfocal distance calculator for any lens and sensor format - 8 sensor formats: Full Frame, APS-C (Canon and Nikon/Sony), Micro 4/3, 1-inch, Medium Format, 4x5, 8x10 - 18 focal length presets from 14mm to 600mm - Shows near focus limit, far focus limit, and total depth of field - Visual range bar showing subject position relative to hyperfocal distance - Contextual advice: tells you exactly how far to refocus to bring infinity sharp STROBE CALCULATOR - Guide number calculator for flash and studio strobes - Presets for speedlights and studio heads from 100Ws to 1200Ws - 8 power settings from Full to 1/128 - Solve for aperture (given distance) or distance (given aperture) - ISO-aware: guide numbers automatically adjust for any ISO - Fill light ratio calculator: instantly shows the aperture difference for 1:1 through 16:1 ratios READING HISTORY - Save and name any meter or strobe reading - Add notes to any saved reading - Share individual readings or export the full history - Organised by name, date, light condition, and exposure values DESIGNED FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS - Clean dark interface designed for use in any light - Metric or imperial measurements (set in Help) - Available in English, Japanese, German, French, Spanish, Italian, and Korean - Full help documentation built in: explains EV, hyperfocal distance, guide numbers, and more - No ads. No subscription. No account required. Zone Meter is the meter you always have with you.

About

Blur Background

Transform your recording space into a professional studio with real-time background blur, virtual backgrounds, and customizable overlays. Create polished videos quickly without complex editing, and utilize tools like teleprompters and content idea generation.

Highlights
  • Real-time background blur
  • Virtual and animated backgrounds
  • Customizable creator overlays
  • Movable teleprompter
  • AI-powered content idea generation
  • Flexible export options
Features
Read full description

Turn any room into a creator-ready studio with StudioBlur. Record polished videos using real-time background blur, virtual backgrounds, animated scenes and customizable creator overlays. Everything is prepared before you press record, helping you create faster without complicated editing. Create your perfect scene: • Apply Cinema, Strong or Extreme background blur • Replace your background with photos or videos • Choose solid colors and custom color combinations • Explore built-in animated studio backgrounds • Adjust subject framing, position and size • Add fun face props • Record in portrait, square or landscape formats • Use the front camera, back camera or Dual Cam Create confidently: • Display a movable teleprompter while recording • Navigate scripts paragraph by paragraph • Adjust teleprompter position and font size • Add Header Panels for questions, hooks and titles • Create Info Panels for bios, announcements and calls to action • Customize panel fonts, colors, backgrounds and animations • Add your brand logo • Present a photo set while recording • Connect another device using Demo Sync • Choose your preferred recording microphone StudioBlur Pro + AI helps you go from idea to camera-ready: • Generate personalized content ideas from your Creator Profile • Create hooks and viewer questions • Build short teleprompter notes • Simplify or expand scripts • Improve Header Panel and Info Panel text • Save and reuse your best ideas Flexible exports let you review your original recording, background version, enhanced result and silence-clipped version. You can also adjust playback speed and save the version that works best for your content. StudioBlur is made for creators, educators, sellers, coaches, founders, professionals and anyone who wants better-looking videos with less setup. Start with StudioBlur Basic or unlock StudioBlur Pro + AI through a lifetime purchase or flexible weekly access. https://qnsub.com/studioblur/privacy https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Zone Meter4 screens
Blur Background4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Zone Meter at Free against Blur Background's $1.99. Blur Background's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). On ads, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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

Zone Meter is free to download; Blur Background costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Zone Meter ships an update every 2 months, Blur Background weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 19, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Zone Meter versus Blur Background: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterZone MeterBlur Background
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB191 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGreg AndersonOna Pacholo Asis

In-app purchases

None

Zone Meter

No in-app purchases

None

Blur Background

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Zone Meter free?
Zone Meter is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Blur Background free?
Blur Background costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Zone Meter or Blur Background have ads?
Neither Zone Meter nor Blur Background shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Zone Meter or Blur Background?
Zone Meter ships an update every 2 months, and Blur Background weekly. Most recently, Zone Meter was updated on September 19, 2026 and Blur Background on October 10, 2026.

Other comparisons