App Showcase: Scanner

What it does

Scanner is a mobile app that transforms your phone into a powerful document scanner. Users can capture documents using their camera or import existing photos, which are then converted into clean, readable files. The app provides a suite of editing tools to sign, crop, highlight, or even erase parts of the document. Its optical character recognition (OCR) feature can extract text from images, making information easy to copy and reuse.

Where it shines

The app's strength lies in its comprehensive post-scan editing toolkit. After importing a document (00:43), the user has a full suite of options. The erase tool at 01:27 is surprisingly effective, cleanly removing an entire signature. The app also makes adding a new signature simple and intuitive (01:29). Another highlight is the one-tap text recognition at 01:56, which quickly converts the document image into editable text, showcasing the app's most powerful Pro feature efficiently.

UX highlights

• Direct Editing Access: Key editing tools like erase, sign, and highlight are immediately accessible from a bottom toolbar, avoiding nested menus.
• Fluid Cropping: The manual crop tool (01:35) includes a helpful magnifying glass on the corners for precise adjustments.
• Clear File Management: The main screen displays scanned documents as large thumbnails. The app supports folder creation (03:15) and simple document moving (03:24).
• Format Toggle: When sharing, users can easily switch between PDF and JPG formats with a simple toggle (02:15), a common but critical need.
• In-app Rating Prompt: After a successful action (sharing), the app uses a non-intrusive, two-step prompt to ask for a rating (02:21).

Monetization & growth

The app uses a hard paywall during onboarding. Users cannot access any features without first committing to a 3-day free trial that converts to a monthly subscription (00:06). This strategy filters for users with high intent. The paywall itself clearly lists the premium features, such as OCR and watermark removal, to justify the subscription. The user is prompted to rate the app after successfully completing a core task, which is a good tactic for encouraging positive reviews.

Who it’s for

This app is for students, professionals, or anyone who frequently needs to digitize, edit, and share physical documents. Its robust editing features, particularly e-signatures and OCR, make it suitable for users who need more than just a simple scan-to-PDF utility. It's designed for someone who values convenience and is willing to pay for a tool that saves them time on administrative tasks.

Notes & opportunities

The initial onboarding is extremely fast, which is great for high-intent users but might churn those who want to "try before they buy." The app requests multiple system permissions (tracking, notifications, camera, photo library) in quick succession right after the subscription is confirmed (00:23 - 00:38). Spacing these requests out or providing more context could improve the user experience and permission grant rates. For example, asking for camera access only when the user first taps the scan button.