Read the billing period
This is the part worth checking before anything else. Gallery's headline plans are weekly, sold with a three-day trial, listed between $4.99 and $8.99 per week.
A weekly price reads as a small number, and that is why the model works. At $5.99 a week it is more than $300 a year; at $8.99 it is over $460. Whether that is worth it is your call, but it should be a decision made with the annual figure in view rather than the weekly one.
Vaultine Pro is $1.99 a month, $14.99 a year, or $39.99 once for lifetime access. The free tier already includes the same AES-256-GCM encryption as Pro, so paying adds capacity and the Decoy and Duress vaults rather than better cryptography.
What is actually encrypted
Gallery's listing does say it encrypts your images and videos, which puts it ahead of the many apps that only claim to hide. It does not name a cipher, so there is nothing published to compare on how it is done.
Vaultine names it: AES-256-GCM, applied per file, on the device, before anything is written. The stored data is split and randomised so nothing on disk resembles the original, and the key is derived from your 5x5 pattern or six-digit PIN and never stored. We hold no keys, so we cannot decrypt your files.
Ads
Ad removal is sold as a separate $3.99 purchase, which tells you the free tier is ad-supported, and ads are the most common theme in its recent negative reviews.
Vaultine has no ads on any tier and no ad SDKs in the app.
When you are made to unlock it
Vaultine's Decoy Vault opens on a second code and shows a vault you stocked in advance with harmless files. The Duress Vault opens on a third code, shows an empty vault, and wipes your real vaults as it does. Both are Pro features and both are set up deliberately by you — and because unrecognised codes are rejected, the vaults on your device are only the ones you created.
One vault, four platforms
Gallery is an iPhone app. Vaultine runs on Windows, macOS, iOS and Android, so the same encrypted vault covers your laptop as well as your phone.
