Aves is an open-source "gallery and metadata explorer" that reads formats most galleries don't, multi-page TIFFs, SVGs, old AVIs, GeoTIFF, and flows "from albums to photos to tags to maps", with no ads and internet access only for the map. Piktures is a free gallery with a few ads that reaches beyond the phone: OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, Nextcloud, WebDAV and NAS photos as albums next to the phone's, with no account and a Secret Space behind a PIN. Facts checked on 15 October 2026; tell us if an app changed.
What is the difference between Piktures and Aves?
What each app explores. Aves, by Thibault Deckers, "can handle all sorts of images and videos, including your typical JPEGs and MP4s, but also more exotic things like multi-page TIFFs, SVGs, old AVIs and more", scans the collection "to identify motion photos, panoramas (aka photo spheres), 360° videos, as well as GeoTIFF files", and integrates with Android "from KitKat to Android 14, including Android TV", with widgets, app shortcuts, a screen saver and global search. Its README lists internet access for one purpose, "Map view, reverse geocoding", and biometric permissions for a "Vault lock". Neither the README nor the listings mention a cloud account or a server.
Piktures explores places rather than formats. It opens Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, Koofr, Yandex Disk, Nextcloud, any WebDAV server over HTTPS and SMB network drives as albums next to the phone's, with no account to create; it plays motion photos and animated GIFs, searches by text, album, type, year, month, place, camera and tag, shows a map in each photo's details, and adds a photo editor, a video editor, a QR code scanner and the Secret Space. It is closed-source, free with a few Google ads that a one-time purchase removes, and sends usage statistics and crash reports through Firebase.
Which clouds and servers does each app open?
| Piktures | Aves | |
|---|---|---|
| Phone and SD card | Yes | Yes |
| USB drive | With Premium or Prime, FAT32 | Not mentioned |
| Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox | Yes, as albums | Not mentioned |
| Koofr, Yandex Disk, Nextcloud, WebDAV | Yes, as albums | Not mentioned |
| NAS or computer on the home network (SMB) | Yes | Not mentioned |
| Internet access | For the clouds and drives you connect, ads, statistics and the map | "Map view, reverse geocoding" |
| Account needed | None | None mentioned |
"Not mentioned" means Aves' README and listings name no such feature; see Sources. Piktures' facts: How to add a cloud and the guides.
How does each app handle formats and metadata?
Aves is built for this: beyond JPEG and MP4, it reads multi-page TIFFs, SVGs, old AVIs and GeoTIFF files, detects motion photos, panoramas and 360° videos, and navigates by tags and maps. Its listing calls it a "metadata explorer".
Piktures shows each photo's details, extracts text from a photo, plays motion photos and animated GIFs in its viewer, and reads EXIF for its filters by date, place and camera. Personal tags are written inside JPEG photos, with Premium or Prime. The help center does not list the formats Piktures reads beyond those. See Viewing a photo or video, Video player and Tags.
How does each app hide private photos?
Aves has a vault: its README's permissions list the phone's biometric unlock for the "Vault lock". The listings we read say no more about how the vault stores files.
Piktures has the Secret Space, behind a 4-digit PIN of its own, or the phone's biometric unlock. Files are renamed and scrambled so other apps can't open them: deliberately light protection, not encryption. It is stored only on the phone, never backed up online, and erased when the app is uninstalled; you export it to a PikBackup folder to keep a copy. See Hide photos behind a PIN.
What does each app cost, and what does it send?
Aves is free and open source under the BSD-3-Clause license, on Google Play, F-Droid as Aves Libre, IzzyOnDroid and GitHub. Its Play listing carried no "Contains ads" and no "In-app purchases" label when we checked; its data safety section says "No data shared with third parties" and that the app "may collect" app activity and app info and performance. The README requests internet access only for the map and reverse geocoding.
Piktures is free with a few Google ads in its Basic plan; No ads is a one-time purchase that removes them, Premium a one-time purchase and Prime a monthly subscription that also unlock more clouds and drives, automatic backup, USB drives, tags and the Secret Space's extra options. The app sends usage statistics and crash reports through Firebase Analytics and Crashlytics. See In-app purchases and An Android gallery with no account and no server.
Piktures vs Aves: the facts
| Piktures | Aves | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher | Diune | Thibault Deckers | Play listing |
| Source code | Closed | Open, BSD-3-Clause | GitHub |
| Price | Free with a few ads; No ads, Premium (one-time), Prime (monthly) | Free, no ads | Play listing |
| Last update | Google Play 8 October 2026; F-Droid 1.15.5 on 4 October 2026 | Play listing, F-Droid | |
| Android | 11 or later | 7.0 or later on F-Droid; the listing says "from KitKat to Android 14, including Android TV" | F-Droid, Play listing |
| Clouds and servers | Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, Koofr, Yandex Disk, Nextcloud, WebDAV, SMB | Not mentioned | README, listings |
| Formats | Photos, videos, motion photos, animated GIFs; the list isn't published | JPEG, MP4, multi-page TIFF, SVG, old AVI, GeoTIFF, motion photos, panoramas, 360° videos | Play listing |
| Private photos | Secret Space: own PIN, scrambled files, phone only | Vault with biometric lock | README |
| Editing | Photo editor and video editor | Not mentioned | |
| Map | A map in each photo's details | Map view and reverse geocoding | README |
| Android TV | Not mentioned | Yes | Play listing |
| What the app sends | Usage statistics and crash reports (Firebase); ads in the free plan | App activity, app info and performance, per the data safety section; nothing shared with third parties | Play listing |
| On F-Droid | No | Yes, as Aves Libre | F-Droid |
| Play rating when checked | 4.2, 500K+ downloads | Play listing |
Piktures' facts come from its help center: Welcome to Piktures, Our product principles, Viewing a photo or video, Video player, The Secret Space, In-app purchases, Why is Piktures not open-source?.
Which should you choose?
Choose Aves if your collection holds unusual formats, panoramas or GeoTIFFs, you want to explore metadata and maps, and you want an open-source app with no ads that only goes online for the map. Choose Piktures if your photos also live on OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, Nextcloud or a NAS and you want them in one gallery with the phone's, with a photo and video editor and the Secret Space; the price is a closed app, a few ads in the free plan, and Firebase statistics.
Questions
Does Aves show OneDrive, Nextcloud or NAS photos?
Its README and listings describe the phone's media and mention no cloud account or server. Piktures is built for that: see the guides on OneDrive, Nextcloud and WebDAV and a NAS.
Does Piktures read TIFF, SVG or GeoTIFF files?
The help center doesn't publish the list of formats Piktures reads. It does say that motion photos and animated GIFs play in the viewer. If a format matters to you, Aves documents its support.
Is Piktures open source?
No. See Why is Piktures not open-source?.
Does Piktures have ads?
In the free Basic plan, a few, after the first 3 days. The one-time No ads purchase removes them for good.
Sources
All read on 15 October 2026.
- Play listing: Aves Gallery on Google Play, by Thibault Deckers, updated 8 October 2026, rated 4.2 with 500K+ downloads, no "Contains ads" or "In-app purchases" label; the description quoted above; data safety: "No data shared with third parties", may collect app activity and app info and performance.
- GitHub: deckerst/aves, BSD-3-Clause; the README's permissions table: INTERNET for "Map view, reverse geocoding", USE_BIOMETRIC and USE_FINGERPRINT for "Vault lock"; no privacy statement, and no PRIVACY.md in the repository's develop branch.
- F-Droid: Aves Libre, version 1.15.5 added 4 October 2026, BSD 3-Clause, Android 7.0 or newer, no anti-features listed.