Comiglot: AI Comic Translator

The moment the app launches, you are presented with a clean library view and a prominent "Import" button. No tutorial pops up. No account creation screen appears. The app does not ask for your email or push you toward a subscription plan. Instead, it simply waits for you to point it at a comic file. This is a deliberate design choice. Comiglot positions itself as a tool, not a platform. You import your own CBR, CBZ, or PDF files, and the app processes them locally. The initial import screen is straightforward: you browse your device storage, select a file, and the app begins analyzing it. The analysis progress bar moves steadily, and within a minute or two for a standard volume, the comic appears in your library with a translated overlay ready to go.

The app does not require an internet connection for reading after the initial translation processing. Once a comic is translated, the entire result is stored locally. This means you can read your translated comics on a plane, in a subway, or anywhere without network access. The library view organizes your comics with cover thumbnails, and you can sort them by title, date, or series. The interface is minimal, with a dark theme that reduces eye strain during long reading sessions. There is no clutter, no banner ads interrupting your reading, and no pop-ups urging you to rate the app. The focus is entirely on the reading experience.

The OpenRouter Integration — How It Changes What You Can Translate

Comiglot offers two AI translation paths: Google Gemini and OpenRouter. The Gemini option is the default, providing high-quality translations with context awareness. However, the OpenRouter integration is where the app becomes genuinely different. OpenRouter allows you to connect your own API key and access a wide range of AI models, including those without content filters. This means you can translate adult, 18+, or otherwise restricted content that Gemini might block. The app explicitly markets this as a feature: "Perfect for uncensored adult, 18+ content translation, no safety filters." For users who read mature manga or manhwa, this is a significant advantage over other translation tools that enforce strict content policies. The OpenRouter integration also gives you control over which model you use — you can choose faster models for quick translations or more sophisticated ones for complex dialogue. The app does not charge you for OpenRouter usage; you pay the model provider directly through your own API key.

There is a practical trade-off here. Using OpenRouter requires you to have an API key and understand how to manage usage costs. Gemini, on the other hand, is billed through the app's own token system, which is simpler for casual users. The app includes a "GEEK PASS" subscription that provides tokens for Gemini usage, and a free tier with limited tokens is also available. The two-route system means the app can serve both casual readers who want a plug-and-play experience and power users who want complete control over the translation engine.

How the .cmgt Portable Format Works — A Closer Look

One of the more unusual features in Comiglot is the portable translation format, which uses a .cmgt file extension. When you translate a comic, the app does not modify your original file. Instead, it creates a separate .cmgt file that contains the translation data, reading progress, and bookmarks. This file is small — typically a few megabytes — and can be exported, shared, or backed up. If you open the same .cmgt file on another device, the app recreates the translated comic exactly as you left it, including your reading position. This is a clever solution to a common problem: how to preserve translations without modifying original files or relying on cloud sync. The .cmgt format also works across platforms. You can export a translation on Android and import it on the iOS version of the app, which is useful for users who switch between devices. The format is proprietary, but the developer has indicated it is designed for cross-platform compatibility.

The practical limitation of the .cmgt format is that it does not include the original comic file. You still need to have the original CBR, CBZ, or PDF on each device. The .cmgt file only contains the translation overlay data. If you lose the original file, the translation is useless. This is a deliberate trade-off to keep file sizes small and avoid copyright issues. The app does not store or transmit your comics; it only processes them locally. This privacy-first approach is consistent with the app's overall design philosophy.

Comparing Comiglot to BallonsTranslator — A Different Approach

BallonsTranslator is an open-source desktop tool for comic translation that uses deep learning. It is popular among scanlation groups and power users who want fine-grained control over the translation process. Comiglot takes a fundamentally different approach. BallonsTranslator is a desktop application that requires manual intervention at each step — you detect text bubbles, run OCR, translate, and then edit the results. It is powerful but time-consuming. Comiglot is designed for mobile and automates the entire process. You import a file, and the app handles detection, translation, and overlay in one go. The result is not editable in the same way, but it is much faster. For a casual reader who wants to read a manga chapter immediately, Comiglot is the better choice. For a scanlator who needs to produce a polished release, BallonsTranslator offers more control. The two tools serve different audiences, and Comiglot's strength is its speed and simplicity.

Another key difference is the translation quality. BallonsTranslator relies on generic machine translation models unless you configure it to use a specific API. Comiglot uses Gemini and OpenRouter, which are state-of-the-art large language models. The context awareness — the ability to understand story arcs and character relationships — is something that generic translation tools do not offer. Users have reported that Comiglot handles complex dialogue and slang better than other tools. This is not surprising given that Gemini is designed for nuanced language understanding.

Real-World Performance — What Actually Happens When You Use It

The translation process is the core of the app, and it works as advertised. Importing a 200-page manga volume takes about two to three minutes on a mid-range Android device with a stable internet connection. The app displays a progress bar and a preview of the pages being processed. Once complete, the comic appears in your library with a "translated" badge. You can open it and read it in the original language with tap-to-translate overlays, or switch to full translation mode where all bubbles are replaced. The overlay is clean and preserves the original artwork. The inpainting — the process of removing the original text and filling the background — is not perfect. In some panels, especially those with complex backgrounds or gradients, you can see slight artifacts. However, for most pages, the result is convincing enough that you do not notice the replacement.

The app's performance is generally smooth. Page turns are instant, and the gesture controls — pinch to zoom, double-tap to fit, swipe to navigate — are responsive. The app does not stutter or lag even with large files. However, there are occasional bugs. The RuStore review mentions "a number of bugs that really spoil the picture" when importing new comics into the library. The changelog for version 2.0.7 addresses some of these issues, including fixes for scattered speech bubbles and placeholder text. The developer appears to be actively maintaining the app, with frequent updates that address user-reported problems. The XDA forum thread shows that the developer is responsive to feedback and provides promo codes for the community.

One limitation that becomes apparent after extended use is the token system. The free tier provides a limited number of translation tokens, and once they are exhausted, you need to wait or purchase more. The GEEK PASS subscription offers 50,000 tokens per month, which is enough for several volumes, but casual users may find the free tier restrictive. The app does not clearly communicate how many tokens each page consumes, which can lead to surprises. The OpenRouter option bypasses this limitation but requires technical setup.

The app also includes a smart recap feature that generates a summary of the plot up to your current reading position. This is useful if you have not read a series for a while and need a refresher. The recap is generated by the AI and is context-aware, meaning it considers the characters and events specific to the series. It is not a generic summary; it pulls from the actual content of the comic. This feature is unique among comic readers and adds significant value for users who read multiple series simultaneously.

The Android XR support is another standout feature. Comiglot is one of the first comic readers to offer native support for Android XR, which is Google's extended reality platform. This means you can read comics in a virtual environment, with the pages displayed as if they are in front of you. The feature is currently in early stages, but it points to the app's forward-looking design. For users with XR devices, this could be a compelling reason to choose Comiglot over other readers.

The app's permission model is extensive. It requires internet access, network state, Wi-Fi state, foreground service, billing, notifications, boot completion, vibration, and advertising ID. This is typical for an app that uses cloud-based AI services and includes in-app purchases. However, the number of permissions may be a concern for privacy-conscious users. The app does not require location, camera, or contacts, which is a positive.

The developer, Ilia Kalugin, is based in Italy, and the app is published under Caluga Studios. The developer is active on XDA and responds to user feedback. The app has a Discord community for support and feature requests. This level of engagement is a good sign for long-term maintenance.

The app does not include a built-in file manager or a way to organize comics into series beyond folders. You rely on your file system structure. This is consistent with the app's philosophy of being a lightweight tool rather than a full library manager. For users with large collections, the lack of advanced organization features may be a drawback.