Comparison

Picbook vs Rowa

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

Head to head
About

Picbook

Features
Read full description

Picbook turns any web page into a clean image & video gallery — browse once, then enjoy everything in a distraction-free reader mode. ■ Built for you if · You're tired of tapping images one by one in long web posts · You want to scroll web content like a photo gallery · You want to bookmark and keep what you love ■ Key Features · Reader Mode: automatically extracts images & videos from any web page · Two viewers: continuous vertical scroll or page-turn, with tap-zone navigation · Video playback: play in-article videos (mp4 and more) right in the viewer · Bookmarks & history: save works and revisit them anytime · Library storage: save images & videos on-device for offline viewing · Orientation lock, Korean/English switch, and fine-grained viewer settings · Fast grid: pre-loaded thumbnails for smooth browsing ■ How to use 1. Open any web page in the built-in browser 2. Tap Reader Mode to extract the image & video list 3. Enjoy in the viewer; bookmark or save your favorites ■ Picbook Pro Free up to 250 media views. Go Pro with a monthly subscription or Lifetime Access for unlimited viewing. Subscriptions auto-renew and can be managed or cancelled anytime in iOS Settings. ■ Notes · Content shown comes from the websites you visit; Picbook never stores content on servers · Copyright belongs to the original rights holders — for personal viewing only · Recommended for ages 17+ Terms & Privacy: https://x-ti.org/picbook Contact: manager@x-ti.org

About

Rowa

Features
Read full description

Rowa is an independent app. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by OpenWrt, AdGuard Home, Tailscale, GL.iNet or Telegram. Rowa turns your own router into something you can actually see and steer, from your phone. WHAT YOU CAN DO • See every device on the network, grouped by how it connects and under the name it announces for itself — what it is, and how much it is pulling right now. • Cut the internet for one device with a tap, and give it back the same way. • Deny a device the router altogether when cutting the internet is not enough: nothing forwarded, no address handed out. • Schedule those cuts by day and hour. Useful for a child's tablet at bedtime. • Block websites for one device only, with rules pinned to its hardware address. • See how much data went out today, or over 7, 30, 90 or 365 days, counted on the router itself. • Measure the line itself: three seconds each way against the nearest speed test server. • Change Wi-Fi names and passwords, quickly or in full detail, and read every change before it is applied. • Watch the mobile link on a router with a SIM: signal graded on RSRP, SINR and RSRQ, band, carrier, data used — and read or send SIM messages. • Set up a new router’s connection in a few steps; see every uplink at once, including one ready but not in use; switch an Ethernet port between WAN and LAN. • Get told when the router drops off the network or loses mains power, when the battery runs low, when an unknown device joins, when a text arrives or when the public address changes — in a Telegram bot of your own that also answers questions and can reboot the router, and, if you unlock it, on your phone with Rowa closed, which also covers a router gone quiet. • Block ads for the whole house through AdGuard Home, if your router has it. • Combine several uplinks — balance traffic across fibre, mobile and Wi-Fi repeater, reorder their priority, or fail over between them. • Restart the router on a schedule. • See real CPU use on every core and which processes are eating it — named in plain language — and end one from the app. • Set the fan on a router that has one: quiet, medium, maximum, or left to the kernel. • Reach the router from anywhere over Tailscale, with no Tailscale app to install. FREE, AND STAYING FREE Router status, the device list, cutting and restoring internet by hand, data usage, the process list, fan control, Wi-Fi, alerts while the app is open, Telegram alerts, SIM messages and the diagnostics report cost nothing, now or later. Seven advanced features are free for 30 days, then a single purchase unlocks them for good — no subscription, nothing to renew: • Scheduled cuts by the hour • Ad blocking (needs AdGuard Home) • Per-device website blocking • Multi-WAN load balancing • Automatic cache trimming • Scheduled router reboots • Alerts with the app closed WHAT YOU NEED • A router running OpenWrt 22.03 or newer (or GL.iNet firmware 4.x) that you administer; 21.02 works once nftables is installed. It can route for the whole house, or just serve Wi-Fi as an access point. • The first pairing has to happen on the same Wi-Fi as the router: Rowa shows you the router's certificate fingerprint and trusts only that one afterwards. • Rowa installs a small helper on the router the first time, with your permission and your own SSH password. There is a button to remove it again. PRIVACY Your router password and SSH key never leave your phone — they live in the Keychain and go only to your own router. There are no ads, no analytics, and no account to create. The diagnostics report is never sent anywhere on its own: you see all of it first and choose who gets it. Rowa works with routers running OpenWrt (openwrt.org), and with the optional packages AdGuard Home (adguard.com) and Tailscale (tailscale.com) where they are installed. Telegram (telegram.org) is a service the router sends alerts to, not a package on it. Those are separate projects and services; Rowa is not one of them.

Screenshots

Picbook3 screens
Rowa4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Rowa at every 2 days against Picbook's every 11 days. Rowa also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 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. Picbook sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Rowa sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Picbook ships an update every 11 days, Rowa every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
Picbook versus Rowa: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPicbookRowa
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 11 daysEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB48 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperXTI Co.,Ltd.Long Hoang Tuan

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Picbook

Subscriptions1
  • Picbook Pro Monthly$1.991 Month
One-time1
  • Picbook Pro$9.99
1 purchases

Rowa

One-time1
  • Rowa Full Unlock$9.99

Questions

Is Picbook free?
Picbook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Rowa free?
Rowa is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Picbook or Rowa have ads?
Neither Picbook nor Rowa shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Picbook or Rowa?
Picbook ships an update every 11 days, and Rowa every 2 days. Most recently, Picbook was updated on October 9, 2026 and Rowa on October 19, 2026.

Other comparisons