Comparison

palilili vs SMSReader

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

Head to head
About

palilili

Features
Read full description

a task list should not become another task. most to-do lists keep everything forever. unfinished tasks pile up, yesterday follows you into today, and the list becomes another source of noise. palilili works differently. it keeps your active list small: what is done, what matters now, and what can wait until later. done, now & later swipe between three simple spaces as your priorities change: - done holds what you have completed. - now is for what matters today. - later is for what can wait. tomorrow starts clean unfinished tasks in now are deleted when the next day begins. tasks placed in later wait quietly and return to now tomorrow. quiet by design - works offline - no account or advertising - no analytics or tracking - no developer-operated cloud - local reminders and daily repeats - available on your phone and watch - optional phone and watch sync - manual ordering for what matters now no feeds. no streaks. no productivity scores. no pressure to keep an endless archive. just you and the things you choose to do. palilili means pali lili in toki pona: small, quiet things to do.

About

SMSReader

Features
Read full description

SMSReader is a reader for digital books and documents, built to be fast and comfortable. Even in a book of thousands of pages, the next page appears the moment you tap the edge, and holding the edge flips through pages at speed. BUILT FOR THE LATEST DEVICES • The most comfortable PDF viewer on iPhone Duo • Extensive accessibility support (VoiceOver and more) FAST PAGE TURNING • Tap the left or right edge to turn the page instantly, or choose a slide animation • Hold an edge to flip continuously (7 speeds, from 6 to 60 pages a second) • Flick, drag the slider, or type a page number to move • Pinch in to go straight to an overview of the pages EASY TO READ • Home View: remembers, for each book, the area you want to zoom into, and keeps that zoom as you read on one view at a time. Scanned books with wide margins and two-column pages become easy to read • Right to left (vertical Japanese), left to right, or top to bottom. Two-page spreads and a cover shown alone are set automatically from the PDF • Tall pages fit the width of the screen, handy for PDF screenshots of websites LISTEN AND SPEAK • Read Aloud: reads the text, leaving out running heads and page numbers, and follows the ruby in Japanese. The word being read is highlighted; start from any word, or move a paragraph back or forward • Turn Pages by Voice: say "next", "previous" or "page 12". Speech is recognized on the device • Siri and Shortcuts: "Continue reading in SMSReader", "Read aloud in SMSReader" and more SEARCH AND ANNOTATE • Search the text of a book or of your whole library, without missing words split across lines • Select text to copy, look up or share, including vertical text and text with ruby • Pages without text, such as scanned books, are read on the device and can be searched, selected, translated and read aloud • Annotate and highlight pages with Apple Pencil or your finger (iPadOS 26 or later). The PDF itself is never changed TRANSLATION AND SUMMARIES • Open the translation panel beside the page to see a translation of each paragraph. Tap a paragraph to match the original and the translation • For translation and summaries, use Apple Translate, Apple Intelligence (on device), or an online translation or AI service with your own API key BOOKSHELF • Organize your library in folders, and folders within folders • The folders are SMSReader's own folder as the Files app and Finder show it; drop a whole folder to import its PDFs • Password-protected PDFs open with their password • Shelves, one for each shelf tag, work across folders, and a folder can be filtered by shelf tag • Use any page or image as a cover. Books can also be hidden • Lock the whole app or single books with a passcode and Face ID PRIVACY • No ads, no account, no analytics • Books, bookmarks, annotations and settings all stay on your device • Text is sent to an outside service only when you have set your own API key, confirmed where it goes and agreed, and then run a translation or summary • Text selection and AI features such as translation and summaries are off for PDFs that forbid copying For iPad and iPhone (Duo), iPadOS / iOS 18 or later (some features need 26 or later). The app can be shown in Japanese or English.

Screenshots

palilili4 screens
SMSReader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: palilili at $1.99 against SMSReader's $9.99. SMSReader's advantage is update cadence (daily vs every 3 days). On ads, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Ā· Rating Ā· Positive reviews Ā· Number of ratings Ā· Update frequency Ā· Ads Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Monetization Ā· Best chart rank Ā· Devices Ā· Requires iOS

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

palilili costs $1.99 and SMSReader $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

palilili ships an update every 3 days, SMSReader daily. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Ā· 4 level
palilili versus SMSReader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterpalililiSMSReader
Price$1.99 — better$9.99
Update frequencyEvery 3 daysDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.618.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB10 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMikoriza Network LtdKotatsu RIN

In-app purchases

None

palilili

No in-app purchases

None

SMSReader

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is palilili free?
palilili costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is SMSReader free?
SMSReader costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do palilili or SMSReader have ads?
Neither palilili nor SMSReader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, palilili or SMSReader?
palilili ships an update every 3 days, and SMSReader daily. Most recently, palilili was updated on October 25, 2026 and SMSReader on October 26, 2026.

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