Comparison

Halide Mark III vs Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)

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

Head to head
About

Halide Mark III

This professional camera app offers advanced manual controls and powerful tools for deliberate photography. Capture stunning RAW images, utilize Neural Macro for close-ups on any iPhone, and access features like focus peaking and histograms. Learn photography with included lessons and customize your shooting experience.

Highlights
  • Manual exposure and focus controls
  • Neural Macro for close-up shots
  • 14-bit RAW and ProRAW capture
  • Exposure tools: histograms, waveform, zebras
  • Focus peaking and loupe
  • Gesture-based interface
  • Included photography lessons
Features
Read full description

Halide unleashes your iPhone’s camera. Disable iPhone processing for natural photos, apply powerful film situations, access manual controls, and more. Halide has over 24,000 5-star ratings and is an App Store Editors’ Choice and Apple Design Award winner. Halide’s Looks are built into the camera itself, changing how your photo is captured and processed - not just a color filter applied after the fact. These are the best photos you can get out of an iPhone. Start with Process Zero for natural, film-like results, without any AI or computational photography. Explore our rich set of creative Looks developed with Hollywood colorist Cullen Kelly, and powered by sophisticated film simulation. For nine years, Halide has set the standard for professional iPhone camera control. Nail your manual focus with Focus Peaking and the Focus Loupe. Compose your shots with intention using sophisticated framing guides, from a basic grid and rule of thirds, to the golden ratio and rabatment of the rectangle. Get perfect macro shots with Halide's dedicated Macro Mode. Hate editing? Halide gives you amazing results straight out of the camera. But when you need to fine-tune, Photo Lab makes it fast and intuitive. Try dramatically different Looks, adjust framing and exposure, experiment with film simulation, or rescue details in highlights and shadows with Tone Fusion. You can even import and load RAWs from other apps, such as Apple’s own camera app, or standalone cameras by Canon, Nikon, Sony, Leica, Fujifilm, and Hasselblad. Specific formats are listed below. *Halide is a paid app. Try it free for 7 days with an annual membership, or buy it outright with a one-time purchase — no subscription required.* Features: - Shoot without Apple’s computational photography for stronger contrast and more natural results. - Photographic Looks developed in collaboration with esteemed Hollywood colorist Cullen Kelly. - Rescue details in shadows and highlights with a Tone Fusion slider inspired by darkroom dodging and burning. - Try any Look on existing ProRAW files - including photos shot in Apple’s camera app. - Become a better photographer by signing up for our 10-day tutorial directly from the app. - Full manual exposure controls including shutter speed, ISO and white balance. - Technical Readout to view all details of your iPhone camera hardware. - Also runs on iPad, for an amazing Photo Lab experience. RAW File Support: - DNG (iPhone, Leica) - CR2 (Canon) - CR3 (Canon) - NEF (Nikon) - RAF (Fujifilm) - ARW (Sony) - FFF (Hasselblad) Terms of Use can be found here: https://halide.cam/terms Privacy: https://www.lux.camera/privacy/

About

Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)

This app enhances mobile photography with AI and computational imaging, offering extreme HDR, advanced denoising, and high-resolution capture. It provides manual controls, style presets, and a powerful editor for professional-level results in challenging lighting.

Highlights
  • AI-powered computational photography
  • Extreme HDR capture (> 20-stop)
  • Detail-enhancing denoising
  • Up to 110-megapixel resolution
  • Manual camera controls
  • High-fidelity photo editor
  • Multiple output file formats
Features
Read full description

Hydra is a camera app for iPhone & iPad with innovative capture technology that lets you take gorgeous and unique pictures even in challenging lighting conditions. Making use of the latest advances in artificial intelligence & image processing, Hydra’s independent computational core offers to overcome the physical limits of small sensors, with features such as over 20-stop extreme HDR, detail-enhancing denoising, macro shooting, crisp 6/8x zooming, and a whopping 110-megapixel resolution. But there's more. Hydra now features a new highly capable manual mode for photo enthusiasts, an improved faster shooting for reduced artifacts, and the addition of a new normal capture mode for everyday photos. It also comes with a number of presets to define your own style as well as a completely new high-fidelity photo editor. Last but not least, Hydra’s constantly evolving photo capabilities are your best asset to continue enjoying picture quality improvements after device purchase and to obtain state-of-the-art camera innovations all through its lifetime. “The Hydra app […] is one of the more interesting iOS camera apps we have seen in the recent past.” — Lars Rehm (DPReview) “Hydra is for people who enjoy iPhone photography at a higher and more rewarding level.” — David Robinson (iPhonographer) “The user interface is particularly well made […] If Apple were to purchase this app, they wouldn't have to change anything in its design.” — Florian Innocente (Mac Génération) “Hydra […] is a well thought out and terrific performing photo app with solid features that will improve your images in challenging lighting conditions.” — Mel Martin (Engadget) KEY FEATURES • Refined camera experience for iPhone & iPad. • Computational photography with artificial intelligence (AI). Neural processing & fusion of RAW sensor data. • Unique capabilities: extreme HDR (> 20-stop range) to accommodate lighting conditions, superior detail-enhancement and denoising for low-light & macro, up-to-6/8x zooming, and a whopping 110-megapixel resolution. New normal camera mode. • Versatile viewfinder: approachable ergonomics, tactile input & sensory feedback (1-stop vibrations). “Zebra” exposure previewing. • Manual mode for precise camera control: focus, ISO, shutter speed, white balance. • Rich capture options: Apple Watch remote, timer, flash & selfie, geotagging, grid overlay… • Photo style presets (tonal intent, color rendition…). • Powerful photo editor for 32-bit non-degrading edits, including tone mapping, detail boosting, precise colorimetry, and Apple ProRAW editing. • Side-by-side pixel-level comparison with unprocessed RAW input. • Exhaustive output options with varied file formats, including pro options (JPEG, HEIC, TIFF, TIFF-32, OpenEXR, Radiance, DNG, Apple ProRAW, and next-gen JPEG XL) & color spaces (sRGB, Display P3, ROMM ProPhoto). • Aftershot: saving to HyperRAW for deferred photo development, including Bracket and Fusion containers. • Improved saving to Files (iCloud & 3rd-party apps) including shared folders for professional use cases, and folder management. • Redesigned photo gallery. • Lock screen and home screen widgets. • Optimized for latest iOS, Metal, CoreML, and Apple Neural Engine (ANE) for high-speed AI computations on Apple Silicon. • Privacy first: full on-device processing, privacy filter for social sharing. PRICING The free app offers unrestricted shooting in normal mode (auto & manual), including RAW, HyperRAW & Apple ProRAW (compatible devices only). Other capture modes & restrictions can be unlocked either with the Pro Pack 3 one-time purchase, or with the Pro Plan subscription. Upgrade pricing is available within the app for previous version owners. MORE INFO Website: https://creaceed.com/ihydra Privacy Policy: https://creaceed.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://creaceed.com/terms Feedback: hydra@creaceed.com

Screenshots

Halide Mark III4 screens
Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Halide Mark III at 4.4 against Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)'s 3.4. Halide Mark III also leads on ratings volume (14K vs 251) and update cadence (every 11 days vs every 2 months). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Halide Mark III sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Halide Mark III holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Halide Mark III has 14K ratings behind it against 251, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 41% of Halide Mark III's written reviews are positive against 29% of Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Halide Mark III ships an update every 11 days, Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Halide Mark III versus Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI): the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHalide Mark IIIHydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (14K ratings) — better3.4 (251 ratings)
Positive reviews41.3% of reviews — better29.3% of reviews
Number of ratings14K — better251
Update frequencyEvery 11 days — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#169 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS18.018.0
Further details — not scored
Size87 MB101 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLux Optics IncorporatedCreaceed SRL

Customer experience

Halide Mark III

All ratings13,589 ratings
Positive86.4%
Neutral2.5%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews881 reviews
Positive41.3%
Neutral8.1%
Negative50.6%

Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)

All ratings251 ratings
Positive55.4%
Neutral13.5%
Negative31.1%
Written reviews280 reviews
Positive29.3%
Neutral14.6%
Negative56.1%

User reviews

Halide Mark III

From 14K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Powerful manual controls
  • 👍 Intuitive and clean interface
  • 🔍 Excellent RAW capture and editing
  • 📷 Macro and depth features
  • 🎨 Great image quality and color

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
  • 🔍 Depth/portrait mode limitations
  • 🕰️ Slow performance on older devices
  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🔒 Lack of free trial or demo

Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)

From 251 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Powerful features
  • 👍 Great photo quality
  • 💡 Innovative AI-powered processing
  • 🚀 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 👍 Excellent HDR and low-light performance

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
  • 🔋 Slow processing times
  • 👎 Watermark on free version photos
  • 👎 Worse quality than native camera app in some cases
  • 👎 Forced subscription model

Bugs and requests

Halide Mark III

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Photos not saving properly
  • Zoom functionality issues
  • Landscape mode UI problems

Requested features

5 requests
  • Shutter speed adjustment
  • Live depth/bokeh preview
  • Custom white balance
  • Time-lapse and video recording
  • Ability to save settings/presets

Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes when taking 110MP photos
  • Unable to save RAW/HEIC files
  • Inconsistent behavior in different lighting conditions
  • Zoom and macro features not working as expected

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add ultra-wide lens support
  • Allow editing of photos after capture
  • Improve low-light and macro performance
  • Optimize for latest iPhone hardware
  • Provide better value for paid version

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Halide Mark III

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Camera, Editor, and Lessons$9.991 Month
  • Pro Camera, Editor, and Lessons7 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • One Time Purchase$69.99
6 purchases

Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Plan (Monthly)7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Pro Plan (Yearly)7 Days trial$9.991 Year
One-time4
  • Pro Pack 3 (Upgrade)$7.99
  • Pro Pack (Upgrade)$15.99
  • Pro Pack 3$23.99
Show 1 more
  • Pro Pack$23.99

Questions

Is Halide Mark III free?
Halide Mark III is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) free?
Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Halide Mark III or Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)?
Halide Mark III is rated higher. Halide Mark III averages 4.4 out of 5 from 14K ratings, while Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) averages 3.4 from 251 ratings.
Do Halide Mark III or Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) have ads?
Neither Halide Mark III nor Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Halide Mark III or Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI)?
Halide Mark III ships an update every 11 days, and Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) every 2 months. Most recently, Halide Mark III was updated on October 20, 2026 and Hydra › Pro Camera (RAW + AI) on October 15, 2026.

Other comparisons