Papers by ReadCube vs Instrument Connect
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Papers by ReadCube
Manage, read, and discover research literature on your mobile devices. Annotate PDFs, organize your library with custom lists and tags, and receive personalized recommendations for new papers. Syncs seamlessly with desktop and web applications.
- Read and manage research papers
- Annotate PDFs with notes and highlights
- Organize library with custom lists and tags
- Discover new research with personalized recommendations
- Search and download articles
- Sync across devices
Read full descriptionHide full description
Papers by ReadCube is the simplest way to read, manage and discover research literature. Papers on your iPhone and iPad are the perfect companions to the Papers desktop software, enabling you to access your papers anywhere – read on the go, organize your library, and annotate PDFs with notes and highlights. Enhanced PDF: • Tap-able inline citations, reference lists, and author names so you can quickly find cited articles and related information • Supplements are automatically attached where available • Fullscreen or double-page PDF viewing plus multi-touch zoom/navigation for an optimal reading experience • Multi-color highlighting and note taking tools Easily find new papers: • Search the Papers databases within the app • Quickly download new articles with a single tap when you’re on campus or with your institutional proxy • Import directly from Safari, email attachments, and other apps • In your preferred browser, use any search engine to find article PDFs • Use the “Open In…” option from the browser or any app to add PDFs to your Papers library • Metadata is automatically resolved - no more guessing with cryptic file names Personalized Recommendations: • Discover relevant new papers based on your library or lists – you’ll never miss another important paper again! Stay organized: • Create custom lists and sort articles into one or multiple lists • Quickly search your entire library (and all annotations) • Add any number of #tags to further customize your library organization • Sync everything – papers, notes, highlights – between the Papers desktop and web apps or your other mobile devices Simplify your research life – try Papers for free on your iPhone, iPad, and computer. We love feedback from our users - please email support@papersapp.com with any suggestions or issues. Thanks for using Papers!
Instrument Connect
Monitor your cloud-enabled laboratory instruments remotely in real-time. Track run progress, view amplification plots, and ensure peace of mind by catching issues as they happen.
- Real-time instrument availability check
- Monitor PCR run progress
- View real-time amplification plots
- Filter plots by sample or target
- Remote access to cloud-enabled devices
Read full descriptionHide full description
Instrument Connect: Remote monitoring of instruments in real-time. Stay connected to cloud-enabled instruments and benchtop devices anytime, anywhere, using the Instrument Connect mobile app. With the Instrument Connect remote monitoring app powered by Thermo Fisher Cloud, you can stay connected to any Thermo Fisher Cloud-enabled instruments, including the Applied Biosystems™ QuantStudio™ 3 and 5 real-time PCR instruments, and the ProFlex™ and SimpliAmp™ end-point PCR devices. Key features include: · Check the availability of your Thermo Fisher Cloud-enabled, network-connected device · Monitor run progress of a basic PCR run · View amplification plots in real time (available for QuantStudio 3 & 5 instruments) · View plots and filter by sample or target in real time (available for QuantStudio 3 & 5 instruments) Best of all, remote monitoring delivers peace of mind in knowing that you can monitor your runs and catch issues while they are in progress.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Papers by ReadCube at 3.7 against Instrument Connect's 3.1. Papers by ReadCube also leads on ratings volume (551 vs 10) and review sentiment (41% vs 25%). Instrument Connect's advantage is iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.6). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Papers by ReadCube holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 3.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Papers by ReadCube has 551 ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 41% of Papers by ReadCube's written reviews are positive against 25% of Instrument Connect's.
Papers by ReadCube ships an update every 2 months, Instrument Connect every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Papers by ReadCube | Instrument Connect |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (551 ratings) — better | 3.1 (10 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 41.2% of reviews — better | 25.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 551 — better | 10 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 77 MB | 72 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Digital Science & Research Solutions Inc. | Thermo Fisher Scientific |
Customer experience
Papers by ReadCube
Instrument Connect
Bugs and requests
Papers by ReadCube
Reported bugs
5 issues- Frequent app crashes and freezes
- Sync issues causing data loss and duplication
- Unreliable PDF downloads and access
- Inconsistent behavior of annotation tools
- Compatibility problems with newer devices and OS versions
Requested features
5 requests- Add eraser tool for handwritten annotations
- Improve PDF viewing and navigation experience
- Implement better organization and folder management
- Integrate citation and bibliography tools
- Provide more customization options
Instrument Connect
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Papers by ReadCube
No in-app purchases
Instrument Connect
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Papers by ReadCube free?
Is Instrument Connect free?
Which has better reviews, Papers by ReadCube or Instrument Connect?
Do Papers by ReadCube or Instrument Connect have ads?
Which is updated more often, Papers by ReadCube or Instrument Connect?
Other comparisons
