Merge Grabber

My Experience with Merge Grabber

I downloaded Merge Grabber about five weeks ago because my Pixel 7 contact list was a complete disaster. I had tons of duplicates from switching phones, old work contacts mixed with personal ones, and just general clutter. The app store rating looked solid so I gave it a shot. Honestly, it worked better than I expected for the main task. I sat down on a Wednesday evening after dinner and within maybe 15 minutes I’d merged about 40 duplicate contacts. The interface is pretty basic but functional. I did run into one annoying thing though — the app froze up twice when scanning my full contact list. I had to force close it and restart. That was frustrating. I contacted support about it and they did get back to me, but it took like three days. Their response was actually helpful and they acknowledged the bug, said they were working on a fix. So that’s something. But waiting that long when you’re in the middle of organizing is not ideal. Overall I’ve used it a handful of times since then and it’s been stable, but that first hiccup stuck with me.

Features Worth Noting

The merge feature itself is the star here. It scans your contacts and finds duplicates based on name, phone number, or email. You get to preview each group before merging, which I appreciated because I didn’t want it accidentally smashing together two different people with the same name. The backup and restore function is nice too. I backed up my contacts before doing any merges, just in case. That gave me some peace of mind. The smart filters work okay for finding specific contacts fast — I used the name filter to pull up my brother’s number and it worked fine. You can also create groups, like “Work” or “Family,” which I set up for my freelance clients. That’s helpful. But I wish there was a way to bulk add contacts to a group instead of doing it one by one. That got tedious quick. Cross-platform compatibility is real — I tested it on my wife’s old iPhone and it worked the same way. So props for that. The interface is simple, maybe too simple for some people, but I prefer that over bloated menus.

What Needs Work

Okay, so the bugs. That freeze I mentioned happened again on a smaller scan last week. Not great. Also, the app asked for permission to access my call logs and send notifications during the initial setup. That made me pause. Why does a contact merger need my call log? I denied that and it still worked, so I’m not sure why they even request it. That feels like sloppy permission design. Another thing — the free version is extremely limited. You can only merge like five contacts before hitting a paywall. I get that developers need to make money but it felt aggressive. Also, the app doesn’t show you how many total duplicates it found before you start merging. You just have to go through the list and guess. I ended up buying the pro version because I had so many duplicates, but I wish I could’ve seen a count first. And the occasional glitch where the app randomly logs you out? That happened to me twice and I had to re-grant contact access. Annoying.

Pricing

The free version is basically a demo. You get to merge a handful of contacts and that’s it. The full feature unlock is via a one-time purchase, not a subscription, which I respect. I think I paid around $4.99? Honestly I don’t remember the exact price but it wasn’t ridiculous. That said, for what the app does, I think the price is fair. You’re paying for convenience. I just wish the free trial was a little more generous so you could really test it before committing. I’ve seen other contact apps that charge $2.99 for similar features, so it’s mid-range. No hidden fees after that though, which is good.

Developer Notes

VOODOO is the developer. I looked them up after downloading because the name seemed familiar. They make a bunch of utility apps. The support person I talked to was polite and knowledgeable, but the three-day response time is rough. They did suggest a workaround for the freezing issue (clearing the app cache) which actually helped. So they’re not just sending canned replies. The app seems to be updated semi-regularly — I got an update about two weeks ago that fixed a minor crash. I’d like to see better communication about what’s being fixed. No changelog in the update notes is a pet peeve of mine.

Security & Privacy

This is the big one for me. I read the privacy policy before using the app. It says they collect device information, usage data, and potentially contact data for “service improvement.” It also mentions third-party analytics services. That made me uncomfortable. I don’t love the idea of my contact list being analyzed or sent anywhere, even if it’s anonymized. The call log permission request is a red flag in my book. I denied it and the app still functions, so why ask for it? That feels like they’re casting a wide net for data collection. I’d feel better if they were more upfront about exactly what data leaves my phone and why. For now, I use the app with the bare minimum permissions granted, and I back up my contacts manually first. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone who’s super paranoid about privacy without doing their own research on the privacy policy.