Bluristic vs MainframePunch
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bluristic
Create stunning long exposure photos with real-time object tracking. This app allows you to capture motion blur in the foreground and background by moving your device or tracking moving subjects after recording. It offers multiple capture modes and high-resolution export options.
- Real-time object tracking
- Post-capture object tracking
- Multiple capture modes (Blend, Additive, Negative)
- JPG and PNG export
- Capture images in 4K
- Exposure control
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Long & multi exposure photography with real-time tracking. Track moving or still objects with a real-time preview to create smooth background and foreground blur. You can also record first and apply tracking afterward, which is ideal for faster-moving objects. Combine multiple exposures and step back to remove the last one. Choose between four different capture modes: Blend – smooth, natural long exposure results Additive – bright light trails Negative - creative and experimental dark exposures Zebra - black & white pattern effect Additional features: + three tracking points available + Mirror Mode + long exposure up to 30 minutes + record video during live capture + capture images in 4K + and much more... No subscription. Pay once. Future updates included
MainframePunch
Transform your text into animated, retro punch-card videos with authentic hole patterns and sounds. Add custom captions, preview your creations, and share them instantly. All processing is done on your device for maximum privacy.
- Authentic 80-column punch card creation
- Live preview and video recording
- Customizable bottom caption
- Synchronized punch audio
- Automatic text flow across multiple cards
- Adjustable animation speed and card scale
- On-device processing for privacy
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MID-CENTURY MODERN MESSAGING Before emojis, before texting, before the screen — there was the punch card. MainframePunch turns whatever you type into an authentic keypunch card, punched column by column, with the clack of a real Hollerith machine. Send one to a friend and they hear the punches too. PUNCH CARDS RIGHT INSIDE MESSAGES — FREE Tap the MainframePunch icon in any conversation and punch a card without leaving the chat: Realistic Custom Card — classic manila stock, your words in real Hollerith code Mid-Century Color Card — the same encoding in period-correct pastels Ready-made cards — SEND COFFEE / ON MY WAY / SYNTAX ERROR / ABEND / CALL ME and more Every iMessage single card animates as it punches and carries genuine keypunch audio, so your recipient watches and hears the machine work. All of it is free. No account, no limits, no catch. THE OPERATOR'S CONSOLE Open the app for the full machine: Type or paste your message and watch the beam sweep across the card Stack up to seven cards into a single deck Export a Full Reel — a shareable video with synced punch audio Send along a Hollerith decoder card so anyone can read the holes (for education or to drive your friends crazy!) Adjust punch speed from deliberate to production line CORRECT DOWN TO THE HOLE Every character is encoded per ANSI X3.26 Hollerith — the same zone and digit punches an IBM 029 would have made in 1964. The sound is sampled from an actual keypunch machine, not a synthesized click. OPERATOR ACCESS Everything is unlimited for your first fourteen days. After that, punching cards in iMessage stay free, and an Operator subscription keeps the reel exporter running: Monthly — $2.99, with a 3-day free trial Annual — $19.99, with a 7-day free trial Already bought MainframePunch? Thank you. Your purchase carries over — you keep everything, permanently, at no charge. Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your App Store account settings. Privacy Policy: https://mainframepunch.com/privacypolicy Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: MainframePunch at Free against Bluristic's $4.99. MainframePunch also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.8). Bluristic's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 12 months) and ratings volume (27 vs 1). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
MainframePunch is free to download; Bluristic costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
MainframePunch holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Bluristic has 27 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Bluristic ships an update every 2 months, MainframePunch every 12 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Bluristic | MainframePunch |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 3.8 (27 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 74.4% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 27 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 12 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #48 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 17 MB | 58 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Johannes Pfahler | Thomas Gillan |
In-app purchases
Bluristic
No in-app purchases
MainframePunch
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Bluristic free?
Is MainframePunch free?
Which has better reviews, Bluristic or MainframePunch?
Do Bluristic or MainframePunch have ads?
Which is updated more often, Bluristic or MainframePunch?
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