Device care
Understand your storage. Clean with confidence.
Heirst Clean helps you review duplicates, similar photos, large and old files, and storage usage—without asking for internet access or pretending Android allows unrestricted cleaning.
Status: Public beta · Version 0.5.0
Heirst CleanDuplicate photos
Group of 3 · one is always kept
- IMG_2041.jpgKept
- IMG_2041 (1).jpgExact duplicate
- IMG_2042.jpgSimilar, check yourself
Review before removing
See the difference between exact and similar
- Exact duplicate files have matching content, confirmed through a staged hashing process.
- Similar photos are grouped by perceptual comparison and labelled by how alike they are.
- Similar does not mean safe to delete. Inspect the group before you remove anything.
- Blurry or dark photos are review candidates, not automatic deletion recommendations.
Exact duplicates
Finds exact duplicate files by comparing size, then a quick fingerprint, then a full SHA-256 hash.
Similar photos, honestly labelled
Groups similar photos with honest labels — “practically identical” or “similar, check yourself” — and never calls them duplicates.
Burst shots
Groups burst shots only when four conditions match: taken within 2 seconds, same folder, same dimensions, close fingerprint.
Blurry and dark photos
Marks blurry or dark photos for review, not for deletion.
Analysis on your phone
Image analysis runs on the device with the app’s own code — no computer-vision library, no model, no image sent anywhere.
See before you decide
Every photo and video finding shows a thumbnail. Tap it for a large preview that steps through the group, or open the file in your gallery.
You choose the copy to keep
The app suggests which copy of a duplicate group to keep — highest resolution, largest file or oldest copy — and you can move that choice to any other copy.
Your photos, and the folders you choose
Photos, videos and audio are read from your media library with the media permission you grant. On Android 14 and later you can share only selected photos; the app then says that the rest is not visible.
Other files are checked only in folders you pick through Android’s folder picker.
Heirst Clean does not request all-files access and cannot reach other apps’ private folders (Android/data). It never presents a whole-phone scan.
Folders you pick
Checks only the folders you pick for stale temporary files, abandoned downloads, large old logs, thumbnail caches, leftovers of uninstalled apps, empty folders, outdated APKs and large untouched files. Every rule needs two conditions, never a file extension alone.
Outdated APKs
Compares APKs in your folders with the version actually installed. Older ones are marked outdated; APKs for apps you don’t have installed are marked “archive” and are never pre-selected.
Understand app storage
App, data and cache sizes are shown separately and never added together, because cache is already part of the data figure.
Three separate size numbers
Shows each app’s size as three separate numbers — app, data, cache — and never adds them together.
Honest usage labels
Labels apps whose usage history isn’t available as “last used unknown”, not “never used”.
Cache, cleared by you
Takes you to the right Android settings page to clear another app’s cache. You press the button; no accessibility service presses it for you.
Safe by default
The part of a cleaner that deserves trust is the part that refuses to delete.
Nothing pre-selected
Nothing is selected when results open, and there is no “select all”. The only shortcut selects files the system recreates by itself.
A protection layer that always wins
A protection layer runs before anything is removed and overrides every scanner rule. It holds back password vaults, signing keys, crypto wallets, app databases, WhatsApp chat backups and files that changed very recently — and shows what it held back and why.
One copy always stays
Every duplicate group keeps one member, which cannot be selected. If every copy was also ticked through another list, such as large files, the last one is still held back.
Every finding explains itself
Every finding explains itself: name, size, location, time and a one-sentence reason.
A way back
Media goes to Android’s Trash. Other files go to a vault folder inside the folder you granted, with a quota and retention period you set. Permanent deletion is only possible from the Trash screen, never from a scan.
Honest about space
Files in the vault still take up space until they are permanently removed — and the app tells you so.
No automatic mode
No automatic mode, no scheduled deletion, no “clean” widget.
Measured, not estimated
The only number reported as freed space is the measured difference in free space before and after.
What Heirst Clean will not do
- It does not promise to boost RAM or magically accelerate Android.
- It does not claim to clear every app’s cache with one tap.
- It does not request Android’s internet permission.
- It does not claim to inspect private directories that Android keeps inaccessible to ordinary apps.
- It does not automatically delete files on a schedule.
- It does not guarantee that every flagged item is disposable or that a specific amount of storage will be freed.
The app explains this itself: its “Straight talk” screen goes through, one by one, why these promises are impossible on modern Android.
More ways it helps
Duplicate documents and downloads
Finds exact duplicates among non-photo files in folders you grant.
Large and untouched media
Lists large and long-untouched media; the list can be switched off.
Where your space goes
Maps folder sizes inside the folders you granted, counting nested grants once.
Storage summary
Shows total, used and free space per volume, without any permission.
Storage by type
With Usage access, breaks shared storage down into images, video, audio, app files and an “other” share that cannot be itemised.
Search and sort
Search by name and folder, with four sort orders; duplicate groups are never split by a search, and the app says how many results a search is hiding.
Estimate next to reality
Keeps a history of what you selected next to the free space actually measured afterwards. Anything that can’t be measured is recorded as “not measurable”.
Settings that matter
Light/dark mode, five colour palettes, your own protected paths, vault size and retention, and a switch for the large/old-files list.
English and Indonesian
In English and Indonesian; on Android 13+ the language can be chosen for the app alone.
Straight talk
A full in-app screen, “Straight talk”, explains what typical cleaner apps promise and what Android actually allows.
How it works
Choose what to check
Start from the storage summary, your media library or a folder you pick.
Review the findings
Each finding shows its name, size, location, time and the reason it was flagged.
Inspect before selecting
Preview items and choose them yourself; nothing is selected for you.
Choose a reversible action
Media goes to Android’s Trash; other files go to a vault with retention you set.
Compare with reality
See the free space actually gained next to what you selected, where it can be measured.
Permissions, in plain language
Every permission the current build requests, and why.
| Permission | Why the app asks for it | Android name |
|---|---|---|
| Photos, videos and audio | Read the media library to find duplicate, similar, blurry and large media. | READ_MEDIA_IMAGES · READ_MEDIA_VIDEO · READ_MEDIA_AUDIO |
| Selected photos only (Android 14+) | Lets you share only some photos; results then say the rest is not visible. | READ_MEDIA_VISUAL_USER_SELECTED |
| Storage (older Android versions) | Storage access on older Android versions only. | READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE · WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE |
| Uninstall request | Opens Android’s own uninstall dialog, one app per confirmation. | REQUEST_DELETE_PACKAGES |
| Usage access (granted in Settings) | App sizes, when apps were last used, and the storage breakdown by type. Without it, app statistics run in a limited mode. | PACKAGE_USAGE_STATS |
| Media management (optional, Android 12+) | Avoids repeated confirmations when moving media to Trash. Never required. | MANAGE_MEDIA |
| Notifications and foreground service | Keeps a long scan running with a visible notification. Asked for when the first scan starts. | POST_NOTIFICATIONS · FOREGROUND_SERVICE · FOREGROUND_SERVICE_DATA_SYNC |
Deliberately not requested
- Internet (INTERNET)
- All-files access (MANAGE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE)
- The full list of installed apps (QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES)
- Clearing other apps’ cache (CLEAR_APP_CACHE)
- Killing background processes (KILL_BACKGROUND_PROCESSES)
- Accessibility services
- Photo location (ACCESS_MEDIA_LOCATION)
Important limitations
Other apps stay out of reach
Android does not let ordinary apps clear other apps’ cache, and keeps other apps’ private folders (Android/data) closed.
Similar is not duplicate
A similar photo is a review signal, not a duplicate. Check the group before removing anything.
Trash is not free space
Moving a file to Trash or the vault does not free space yet.
No promised savings
No amount of freed space is guaranteed.
Verification status
These parts exist in the current build but have not been proven on real devices yet. Do not rely on them as tested features.
This beta on real devices
An earlier version was run on an Android 13 phone. The features new in the current beta — thumbnails, the large preview, choosing the copy to keep and the storage breakdown by type — have not yet been run on a device.
Background scan service
Long scans are designed to keep running in a foreground service with a notification. That service has not yet been run on a real device; if Android refuses it, the scan continues inside the app. The app never works in the background without an on-screen indication.
Phone brands and very large libraries
Behaviour on specific phone brands (MIUI, One UI, HyperOS settings pages) and scan time on very large photo libraries have not been measured.
Requires Android 8.0 or later (current build).
Download the beta
Heirst Clean 0.5.0 is a public beta, offered here as a signed APK file. It is not in an app store yet: you install it yourself, and Android asks for your permission first.
About this file
- Version
- 0.5.0
- Released
- 15 October 2026
- Size
- 1.7 MB
- Requires
- Android 8.0 or later
- File name
- heirst-clean-0.5.0.apk
Free to use. The source code is not published. Installing or using the app means you accept the Heirst End-User License Agreement. Read the license agreement
How to install
- Open this page on your Android phone and download the APK.
- Open the downloaded file. Android asks you to allow installs from the app you used, such as your browser or file manager. Allow it for that app only, then go back.
- Tap Install. Play Protect may offer to scan the app or show a warning, because it does not know this developer yet. Read the message before you continue.
- After installing, you can switch the permission to install unknown apps off again.
Check the file
Before installing, you can compare the file’s SHA-256 checksum with the value below, for example with sha256sum on a computer. Every version is signed with the same certificate, whose fingerprint is shown as well.
- SHA-256 of the file
- b2c50ea0540dec66e045c8d49de62ddff8e729a588527a46acae5708ce7e2d5f
- SHA-256 of the signing certificate
- 6005e9e0ecbbfbf050b85fcf8660eb7874cd63ece998219dbe4ea8a18ed8d891
Updates
The app does not update itself or check for updates. New versions are published on this page and signed with the same certificate, so installing one over the old version keeps your data.
This is a beta. Some parts have not yet been verified on a real device, so read the verification status and the limitations on this page before you rely on it. Verification status · Important limitations
Questions about Heirst Clean
The current builds of both apps require Android 8.0 or later.
No. It does not promise RAM boosting, speed or battery improvements. Since Android 14, the commands that “RAM boosters” rely on have no effect on other apps.
No. Android has no public way for an ordinary app to clear other apps’ caches. Heirst Clean takes you to the right Settings page so you can clear an app’s cache yourself.
No. It reads your media library with the permission you grant, and other files only in folders you pick. Android keeps other apps’ private folders closed to ordinary apps.
No. Similarity is a review signal. A similar photo may be the only good shot of a moment, so check the group before removing anything.
No. Files in Trash or the vault still take up space until they are permanently removed, and the app tells you so.
No. Nothing is selected when results open, there is no automatic mode or scheduled cleaning, and permanent deletion is only possible from the Trash screen.
No. Heirst Clean does not request Android’s internet permission, so it cannot send data anywhere. Heirst Secure has no server and makes no HTTP calls; its only network traffic is the optional DNS shield forwarding lookups to your device’s own DNS server.
To show app sizes, when apps were last used, and how shared storage is divided by type. You grant it in Android Settings; without it, app statistics run in a limited mode.
Files moved to Trash or the vault still take up space until they are permanently removed, and the system recreates some files by itself. Heirst Clean’s history shows what you selected next to the space that was actually freed.
The apps are not in an app store yet, so you install the APK file yourself. Android asks you to allow installs from the browser or file manager you used, and Play Protect may offer to scan the app because it does not know the developer yet. Install only files from this website, and check that the SHA-256 checksum matches the one on the product page.
Compare before you choose
See how Heirst Clean and Heirst Secure differ, or read how each app handles your data.