So my IbisPaint just got updated and I have a few things I have to say. Straight off the back, I feel like more and more things are becoming prime features, despite the app costing money to be bought, which I has never been a problem until the Vector Layers have been added. It’s buggy whenever I make a normal breaststroke on a normal layer. It automatically turns into a vector layer, which wouldn’t be an issue in itself is it wasn’t for the fact that vector layers do not have access to the special tool, the smudge tool, and the lasso tool requires prime, as well as an extra added feature that also requires prime. This is really annoying because once again you pay for the app there is ibisPaint X, but even that is starting to become a bit unreasonable with the constant ads every few moments I am begging you to put a feature to disable all prime options so that we don’t have to see or interact with it unless we have prime, like there’s no reason for it to be there taking up space and causing glitches like this just make it something that only appears if you have prime or put an option to disable it please. This app really is amazing but all these additional prime features on an app that all cost money is all right offputting but it’s also starting to become frustrating because some of them just are glitchy and makes the overall experience upsetting and frustrating.

I love this app for how simple it is to use and can get amazing pieces out of it with easy but versatile tools. The smudge and blur tools are one of the best ones Ive seen on iOS, doesn’t discolor or pixelate like other apps I’ve used. I use this app for my work as a comic artist, it’s easy to create nice line art even for someone with shaky hands (me).

On a bad note however, my goodness do I have to scroll so much just to find a specific piece I need to edit among other art such as personal and work related drawings. If there was a folder system this would be an app I’d recommend to nearly anyone. But there is little way to sort and you have to pay monthly for it, which tbh is kind of a waste considering the other features aren’t too helpful and the filters could be found in other apps with a one time fee. I often use procreate to keep my pieces together that need touch ups and further editing (without blurring bc the tool on that app is not good at all, Ibis Paint honestly has one of the nicest blending tools and I know that’s a turning point for a lot of people.)

In general, I love this app for its stabilizing and tools but find myself struggling to want to go to it after awhile due to the sorting and that small but very draining problem once you hit over 100 pieces in your gallery. Right now something like google drive or folders on your phone will be a life line to keep things neat.

So I absolutely love ibispaint. It’s easy to use and it’s pretty capable overall, however, over the course of 4 years I’ve come to find an issue or two with it. My biggest issue by far is a simple, yet horribly painful bug. Whether it’s just my phone or the program I have no idea, but sometimes when I zoom in, my phone will completely lock up. Power buttons do nothing, home button does nothing, I can’t even shut it off, the screen dims but doesn’t turn off when I try to do so. I usually have to wait 3-5 minutes for it to eventually reboot and fix itself, but when you’re trying to doodle in class it gets really annoying, especially when I’m low on time. I don’t have an old phone either. I got this phone brand new last year, it’s an iPhone SE2, so it’s not a lack of processing power that’s causing it to lock up. Thankfully, I don’t lose any progress in these crashes, autosave has saved so many of my drawings.

This app is totally worth it, don’t let my (probably obscure) crashing sway you from downloading. It’s completely worth getting the full version for all the brushes, having this level of customization is incredibly useful, I still give it a 5* purely because of its features and usability, my issue probably isn’t common anyways, maybe my phone just doesn’t like artists…