Comparison

Dot Art vs tone+

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

Head to head
About

Dot Art

Features
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Turn any photo into bold halftone art with Dot Art β€” the simplest way to create pop-art prints, posters, framed pieces, and gifts straight from your camera roll. WHAT IT DOES Pick a photo, choose a color palette, and watch it transform into a halftone-dot rendering you can export at high resolution and print on anything: t-shirts, posters, postcards, framed prints, social posts, or just your lock screen. FEATURES β€’ 30+ curated color palettes β€” Duotone, Black & White, vivid pop-art combos, and the unique Color In palette that renders outlined hollow rings perfect for hand-coloring printed sheets β€’ Real-time slider tuning β€” drag density, contrast, and dot size to dial in the exact look in milliseconds β€’ High-resolution PNG export at 2520Γ—2520 (Pro) or 1260Γ—1260 (free) β€’ Live, on-device preview β€” no waiting, no upload, no compression artifacts β€’ In-app Gallery for saving and reloading projects with your exact settings β€’ Auto-save mode that quietly archives every export so you can revisit later HOW IT WORKS 1. Pick a photo from your library 2. Tune palette, density, and contrast with live sliders 3. Save to Photos at high resolution, or save the project for later PRIVACY-FIRST Your photos never leave your device. Dot Art renders everything locally using on-device graphics β€” no upload, no cloud, no account required. DOT ART PRO ($4.99, one-time) Unlock unlimited exports, all 30+ palettes, high-resolution downloads, and early access to upcoming filter modes. One-time purchase, no subscription, lifetime access. GREAT FOR Designers, photographers, art teachers, parents printing coloring sheets for kids, gift-givers, social-media creators, and anyone making birthday cards, posters, or t-shirt designs. Made under the StayBoba brand. Run and managed by Register Inc., Cary, North Carolina USA. Support: arul@stayboba.com Privacy: https://stayboba.com/privacy-dotart Terms: https://stayboba.com/terms-dotart

About

tone+

Features
Read full description

Separate. Press. Print. Zero ads. 100% free. tone+ is an app that genuinely reprints your photos as Risograph art. It doesn't just slap a color filter over your image; it mathematically simulates the physical phenomenon of analog printing. β–  The Printing Process We break your photo down into separate color plates, convert them into halftones, and print them layer by layer. The app perfectly replicates the beautiful, unpredictable imperfections of a real printing press: β€’ Misregistration ― Plates shift slightly, creating vibrant, off-register edges. β€’ Dot Gain ― Ink bleeds into the paper, fattening the halftone dots. β€’ Ink Unevenness ― Imperfect roller pressure creates authentic texture variations. β€’ Paper Grain ― Paper fibers absorb ink differently, altering the visual texture. β€’ Overprinting ― Where two inks overlap, a rich third color is naturally born. That’s why when you zoom in, you see actual halftone dots. Change the paper stock, and you change how the ink sinks in. Print with just two inks, and watch a third magically appear in the overlap. β–  Inks & Papers Choose from 14 classic Risograph inks: Fluorescent Pink, Blue, Bright Red, Black, Green, Medium Blue, Orange, Sunflower, Cornflower, Yellow, Aqua, Teal, Purple, and Burgundy. Want something specific? You can dial in your own custom colors. Print on 5 paper stocks: White, Natural, Cream, Gray, and Kraft. Just like real life, the paper dictates how the final ink looks. β–  Simple UI, Deep Controls When you open tone+, you just see your photo and a dice. Tap the dice to roll a completely random, beautiful print. Not quite right? Just swipe left or right to seamlessly browse your print history and undo/redo. Ready to get technical? Pull up the bottom bar to reveal a fully equipped darkroom: β€’ Tones ― Adjust your ink selections, brightness, contrast, and saturation. β€’ Textures ― Choose your paper, toggle between Halftone and Grain, set the line frequency (12–110 LPI), dot shape (Round, Ellipse, Square, Line, Cross), screen angles (Same, Offset, Rosette), ink density/opacity, misregistration, and ink unevenness. β€’ Framing ― Aspect ratios (Original, 1:1, 4:5, 3:4, 2:3, 16:9), orientation, margins, rounded corners, deckled (rough-cut) edges, scale, and position. Need total control? Open "Details" to adjust the LPI and screen angle for each individual color plate. β–  Presets & Sharing tone+ comes loaded with 13 built-in presets to get you started, and you can easily save your own custom configurations. When you're done, you can share your final print along with its "recipe." You can even generate a custom linkβ€”when someone taps it, your exact print settings are instantly loaded into their app. β–  The Fine Print (The Good Kind) β€’ No account or sign-up required. β€’ Works 100% offline. Every feature works flawlessly in Airplane Mode. β€’ Zero data collection. Your photos and data stay on your device. β€’ Fully unlocked from day one. No in-app purchases, ever. β€’ Fully optimized for both iPhone and iPad.

Screenshots

Dot Art4 screens
tone+4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: tone+ at none against Dot Art's 1. Dot Art's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, update cadence, 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

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Dot Art sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. tone+ asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 4, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Β· 4 level
Dot Art versus tone+: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDot Arttone+
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 daysEvery 2 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo β€” better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod β€” betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 β€” better17.0
Further details β€” not scored
Size54 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperArul PrakashEmotionFlow LLC

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Dot Art

One-time1
  • Dot Art Pro$4.99
None

tone+

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Dot Art free?
Dot Art is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is tone+ free?
tone+ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Dot Art or tone+ have ads?
Neither Dot Art nor tone+ shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dot Art or tone+?
Dot Art ships an update every 2 days, and tone+ every 2 days. Most recently, Dot Art was updated on October 4, 2026 and tone+ on October 6, 2026.

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