Argus vs SpyGuard
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Argus
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Argus checks an unfamiliar room for hidden cameras with four scans that all run on your iPhone: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a lens-reflection camera finder and a magnetometer. The camera finder is free, with no scan limit and no account. Hotel rooms, Airbnbs and holiday rentals, changing rooms, gym lockers, bathrooms, rental cars. No single method finds every camera: one in a smoke detector might sit on the room's Wi-Fi, or record to a memory card and touch no network at all. WI-FI SCANNER Finds the devices on the network you joined that answer a scan. Argus Pro lists each one with how fast it answered, which known camera and DVR ports are open and, when a port answers, what the service says about itself โ often the firmware. Blind spot: hotel guest Wi-Fi often isolates devices from each other, so an empty result there does not mean the room is clean. BLUETOOTH SCANNER Finds nearby Bluetooth LE devices that are advertising โ trackers and battery-powered gadgets โ and needs no network. Argus Pro lists each one with its signal strength. Blind spot: a device that is paired and silent does not advertise. CAMERA FINDER โ LENS REFLECTION Turns the camera into a lens finder: it watches for the tight bright glint a lens returns when light hits it. Lights off, torch on, then sweep smoke detectors, clocks, chargers, vents, the TV and mirrors slowly and close. This is the scan most people mean by a hidden camera detector. Blind spot: it needs a dark room by design, and any shiny point can glint โ a flag means look closer. MAGNET SCANNER Reads the magnetometer for the change in magnetic field that electronics and magnets hidden inside everyday objects cause โ the check for something with no radio at all. Blind spot: plumbing, screws and structural metal move the needle too โ a reading means look closer. A FIVE-MINUTE SWEEP Join the room's Wi-Fi and scan it. Run Bluetooth from the bed, then the bathroom. Lights off, torch on, sweep everything facing the bed with the camera finder. Pass the magnet scanner over whatever stood out. One signal is a question; if two checks point at the same object, inspect it closely. HONEST ABOUT THE LIMITS No app can guarantee every hidden device is found. A phone has no thermal camera and no RF detector, so a camera that is off, records locally or uses its own SIM is the hard case โ which is exactly why Argus runs four scans instead of one. PRIVACY No account, no ads. What a scan finds โ device names, addresses, readings โ stays on your iPhone. Camera frames and magnetometer readings are never recorded; only Wi-Fi and Bluetooth scans are saved, on your phone, where you can delete them. Apple and RevenueCat handle subscriptions; crash reports and usage analytics (screens, scans, purchases) are not linked to you. No advertising identifier, no tracking across apps. FREE, AND ARGUS PRO Free, in full: the Camera Finder, with no scan limit. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth also run free and report how many devices answered and how many of them are unidentified. Argus Pro adds: the full device list with addresses and names where a device sends one; for Bluetooth, signal and safety score; for Wi-Fi, response time, open ports and the service reply; and the Magnet Scanner. Requires iOS 16 or later. Scanner-by-scanner limits and a step-by-step hotel sweep: https://tatrom.github.io/ Argus Pro is a weekly or yearly auto-renewable subscription. The price is shown in the app before you subscribe. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. It renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. You can manage or cancel it in your Apple Account settings after purchase. Terms of Use: https://tatrom.github.io/privacy-terms/terms-of-use.html Privacy Policy: https://tatrom.github.io/privacy-terms/privacy-policy.html Questions or feedback? Write to us, we read every message.
SpyGuard
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Hidden camera detector for hotels, Airbnbs and rentals. Somebody hid a camera in the room you paid for. It happens โ and you can check for it in two minutes, with the sensors already in your phone. SpyGuard is a hidden camera detector and spy cam finder that gives you four independent ways to sweep a space: lens detection, infrared, Wi-Fi and magnetic. No app can prove a room is clean, and SpyGuard doesn't claim to. No account. No ads. Nothing leaves your phone. FOUR TOOLS โข Camera Finder โ the flash blinks while the camera watches. A lens sends light straight back where it came from, so a real lens lights up with every flash and vanishes in between. A screen, a lamp or a window reflection doesn't. That difference is what SpyGuard measures โ and it's why this finds lenses that a steady flashlight misses. โข Infrared Finder โ night-vision cameras light a room with infrared you can't see, but your front camera can. Turn the lights off and sweep the room. โข Network Scanner โ lists every device on the Wi-Fi you're connected to, asks each one whether it speaks ONVIF (the protocol security cameras use), and flags what identifies itself as a camera. A device answering that query isn't a guess โ it's the device's own statement. โข Magnetic Sensor โ measures your phone's magnetometer against a baseline taken in that room, so it reacts to what's behind the wall instead of to the Earth's own field. WHAT IT CANNOT DO No app can prove a room is clean, and SpyGuard doesn't claim to. It makes your search far better than looking with your eyes alone โ and it tells you where each method stops: โข Lens detection needs a dark room and a direct line of sight. Glass, screw heads and shiny plastic reflect too, which is why a hit reads "possible", not "found". โข Infrared detection finds 850 nm emitters. The 940 nm "no-glow" kind is invisible to most phone cameras. โข Network scanning only sees the network you're on. Guest networks often isolate devices from each other, and a hidden camera may run its own Wi-Fi. โข Magnetic readings react to ordinary electronics too. Use them together, and finish with your own eyes. YOUR PRIVACY โข No account. No email, no name, no password. โข Camera frames are analysed on your device and discarded. Nothing is recorded, nothing is uploaded. โข Scan reports, IP and MAC addresses and magnetic readings stay on your phone. โข SpyGuard never asks for location, contacts, photos or the microphone. A MANUAL GUIDE, TOO Smoke detectors, alarm clocks, wall outlets, mirrors, vents, air purifiers โ where cameras actually get hidden, what to look for, and the two-way mirror fingernail test. Plus what to do if you find one: don't unplug it, cover the lens, photograph it in place, contact the platform and the police. FREE AND PAID The Network Scanner, Infrared Finder, Magnetic Sensor and Quick Scan are free, with no daily limit. Camera Finder โ the flash-modulated lens detection โ is the paid feature, unlocked with a weekly subscription or a one-time lifetime purchase. WHERE TO CHECK Hotel rooms and hostels. Airbnb and short-term rentals. Changing rooms and fitting rooms. Locker rooms and public bathrooms. Meeting rooms and offices. Rental cars. Anywhere you undress, sleep or speak freely โ a two-minute sweep costs you nothing. Cameras get hidden in smoke detectors, alarm clocks, USB chargers, power outlets, air purifiers, TV boxes, picture frames, mirrors and air vents. SpyGuard tells you where to look and what a real lens looks like when the flash hits it. Available in 14 languages. Privacy Policy: https://hdklabs.app/spyguard/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://hdklabs.app/spyguard/terms.html
Screenshots
Verdict
Argus and SpyGuard are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters โ price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them โ neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Argus sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per 7 days and SpyGuard sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Argus ships an update fortnightly, SpyGuard every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Argus | SpyGuard |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Every 2 weeks โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPod โ better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 15.0 โ better |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 35 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Roman Hadiiev | Harun Demirkaya |
In-app purchases
Argus
- Weekly$7.997 Days
- Yearly3 Days trial$49.991 Year
SpyGuard
- Camera Finder Weekly$4.997 Days
- Camera Finder Lifetime$19.99









