# Hardcover OG vs Ancient Light

The clearest difference is price: Hardcover OG at Free against Ancient Light's $0.99. Hardcover OG also leads on rating (3.4 vs 2.5) and review sentiment (78% vs 50%). Ancient Light's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and update cadence (weekly vs every 7 months). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Hardcover OG is free to download; Ancient Light costs $0.99 up front. Hardcover OG sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Ancient Light asks for nothing beyond the download.

Hardcover OG holds the better App Store score, 3.4 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hardcover OG has 19 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 78% of Hardcover OG's written reviews are positive against 50% of Ancient Light's.

Hardcover OG ships an update every 7 months, Ancient Light weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Hardcover OG | Ancient Light |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $0.99 |
| Rating | **[3.4 (19 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hardcover-og/id942858776/reviews)** | [2.5 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ancient-light/id6760305033/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **19** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | **77.8% of reviews** | 50.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Paid |
| Size | 78 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Peta Vision](https://appshunter.io/developer/401432180) | [Greg Anderson](https://appshunter.io/developer/345127565) |

## What reviewers say

### Hardcover OG

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hardcover-og/id942858776)

Securely store and admire your photos with a private album app. Upload from various sources, customize with beautiful themes and transitions, and protect your memories with Face ID or PIN.

**Highlights:** Face ID/Touch ID Access, Multiple Accounts, Upload from Cloud Services, Customizable Album Skins, 37 Slideshow Transitions, PIN Protection

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Purchase 1500 coins | $0.99 | one-time |
| Purchase 4000 coins | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlock all features | $3.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🔒 Strong privacy and security features with password protection
- 👍 Clean, intuitive, and beautiful user interface design
- 📁 Easy photo organization and album management
- 💰 Free version available with daily coin rewards
- 👆 Touch ID/fingerprint authentication support

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💸 Expensive in-app purchases and coin system
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- ⚠️ Photos mysteriously disappearing or getting lost
- 🎥 Video playback issues (no sound, no rotation)
- 📤 Export/backup functionality unreliable

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on startup or password entry
- Videos won't play or display with sound
- Photos disappear after import or sync
- Export to camera roll fails silently
- Import from photo library causes app crash

**Requested features**

- Daily earn points system for free album creation
- Password confirmation before deleting albums
- Encrypted photo storage
- Backup and restore functionality
- Cross-device synchronization


### Ancient Light

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ancient-light/id6760305033)

This app transforms your iPhone into a 19th-century camera, simulating twelve authentic historic photographic processes. Apply these unique effects to new photos or import existing ones from your library.

**Highlights:** Simulates 12 historic photographic processes, Apply effects to new or imported photos, Supports ultrawide, wide, 2x, and telephoto lenses, Save multiple historic versions of a photo, ProRAW DNG output on iPhone Pro, Customizable effects for Daguerreotype and Tintype

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Hardcover OG free?

Hardcover OG is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Ancient Light free?

Ancient Light costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Hardcover OG or Ancient Light?

Hardcover OG is rated higher. Hardcover OG averages 3.4 out of 5 from 19 ratings, while Ancient Light averages 2.5 from 2 ratings.

### Do Hardcover OG or Ancient Light have ads?

Neither Hardcover OG nor Ancient Light shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Hardcover OG or Ancient Light?

Hardcover OG ships an update every 7 months, and Ancient Light weekly. Most recently, Hardcover OG was updated on October 22, 2026 and Ancient Light on October 25, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*