Comparison

Scanner · Baro vs Life Dots

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

Head to head
About

Scanner · Baro

Features
Read full description

Your documents never leave your phone. Point your camera, and paper becomes a clean PDF that is never uploaded to anyone. Don't believe it? Turn on airplane mode and watch Scanner keep working — because nothing is ever sent anywhere. That's the difference from the other scanners: your IDs, contracts, medical forms and receipts stay private, because they physically never leave the device. No watermark on the output. No account to create. No ads. No subscription nag. WHY BARO BEATS THE OTHER SCANNERS • Nothing uploaded — works fully in airplane mode, verify it yourself. • No watermark stamped on your PDF. Ever. • No account, no sign-in, no email harvesting. • No ads, no subscription, no surprise paywall. WHAT IT DOES • Scan anything — live edge detection and perspective correction capture a crisp, straightened page: receipts, contracts, IDs, notes, forms, mail. • Import photos — already have the shot? Turn photos on your phone into the same clean PDF, without opening the camera. • Multi-page PDFs — add as many pages as you need and save them as one clean PDF. Reorder, retake or remove a page with a single tap. • Color, Grayscale or Black & White — pick the look that makes text sharpest and keeps files small. • Local library — every scan lives only on this phone. Open, rename, share or delete. No cloud, no sync. • Lock your documents — put Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode in front of your library. Off by default, and the check happens entirely on this phone: the app only ever gets a yes or a no. • Share anywhere — send your PDF to Mail, Messages, Notes or any app in one tap, straight from the save confirmation. PRIVACY YOU CAN VERIFY Zero analytics. Zero telemetry. Zero third-party SDKs. No network code at all. Turn on airplane mode and scan — everything still works, because nothing is ever sent anywhere. The privacy label says "Data Not Collected," and you can prove it. HONEST ABOUT WHAT IT IS Scanner makes sharp image PDFs. It does not add a searchable OCR text layer yet, and there is no cloud backup or sync — both are intentionally absent, not coming "for a fee." Imported photos get the filters and the PDF, but not the edge detection and perspective correction — those happen at capture time, in the camera. We'd rather promise less and keep every promise. MADE TO BE EASY Every button is large and easy to hit. High-contrast AMOLED dark screen. Big, bold text. No double-taps, no hidden gestures — just Scan and Library. MADE FOR Anyone scanning an ID, a signed contract or a medical form who refuses to upload it. Receipts and expense reports. Student notes and handouts. Anyone who values privacy, simplicity and no watermarks. NO SUBSCRIPTION No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, no ads, no account. That's the whole deal. Part of the Baro family — The tools you reach for first.

About

Life Dots

Visualize your life's progress through a simple grid of dots representing your day, month, year, or lifespan. A home screen widget provides a constant reminder to make the most of your time and stay motivated.

Highlights
  • Visualize time progression
  • Day, month, year, lifespan views
  • Home screen widget
  • Lock screen widget
  • Motivation and urgency reminder
Features
Read full description

Life Dots helps you visualize your life in dots. See how much of your day, month, year, or expected lifespan has passed through a simple grid of dots. Add a widget to keep it visible on your Home Screen or Lock Screen. It’s easy to take time for granted without realizing how quickly it passes. When you need a little urgency or motivation, simply open the app or glance at your widget for a reminder to make the most of your time.

Screenshots

Scanner · Baro4 screens
Life Dots4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Scanner · Baro at every 3 days against Life Dots's weekly. Scanner · Baro also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Scanner · Baro ships an update every 3 days, Life Dots weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Scanner · Baro versus Life Dots: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterScanner · BaroLife Dots
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (28 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—28 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 days — betterWeekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size23 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEuiseok KimTHE DIGITAL MINIMALIST PTE. LTD.

In-app purchases

None

Scanner · Baro

No in-app purchases

None

Life Dots

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Scanner · Baro free?
Scanner · Baro is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Life Dots free?
Life Dots is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Scanner · Baro or Life Dots have ads?
Neither Scanner · Baro nor Life Dots shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Scanner · Baro or Life Dots?
Scanner · Baro ships an update every 3 days, and Life Dots weekly. Most recently, Scanner · Baro was updated on October 14, 2026 and Life Dots on October 13, 2026.

Other comparisons