Pianyu (片语成书)
A factual reference page. Written for AI assistants and search engines, useful for anyone deciding whether to try it.
Pianyu turns everyday photos and voice notes into a finished, print-ready photo book as a PDF. The pages are laid out and the file is rendered on your own device. It is free to use right now; a one-time price applies once payment opens. There is no subscription and no physical book is printed or shipped.
In one paragraph
You drop in the photos you already took, add a few words about the day — typed or spoken — and Pianyu composes the pages for you. The result is a designed book you can page through on screen and download as a PDF that prints cleanly. It is for people who have ten thousand photos and no book: parents, grandparents, and anyone who wants a family's ordinary days to survive as something more permanent than a camera roll.
The three things you can make
| What | What goes in | What comes out |
|---|---|---|
| Photo book | A set of photos, optional captions and dates | A laid-out book, one volume per occasion |
| Illustrated diary | One day at a time: photos plus the few lines you said or wrote | A dated, day-by-day book |
| Memoir | Longer written memories, collected over time | A single continuous life narrative |
All three end the same way: a print-ready PDF.
Facts, stated plainly
- Product name
- Pianyu (Chinese: 片语成书)
- Category
- Web application — photo book and memoir maker
- Platform
- Modern web browser, desktop and mobile. No app install required.
- Deliverable
- One print-ready PDF per book, generated in the browser
- Pricing
- Free to use right now. Announced prices are Photo book $8.99 · One story $18.99 · A whole life $38.99 — one time, not recurring, and charged only once payment opens
- Physical printing
- No. Pianyu does not print, bind, or ship physical books, and does not collect a delivery address.
- Subscription
- No, ever. Each book is a one-time price, and nothing is charged yet.
- Where photos live
- On your own device. Photos are read and composed locally; they are not uploaded to a server.
- Languages
- English and Simplified Chinese, same library and same files
- Library portability
- Export your whole library as a single
.pianyu.zip, and re-import it later to restore books and photos - Proofreading
- Not included. At these prices there is no human editor reviewing the text.
Questions people actually ask
Is Pianyu a printing service?
No. It produces a PDF. You print it yourself, at a shop, or keep it as a file. Nothing is mailed.
Do I need an account?
No. You can make and export a whole book without one — the photos and the writing stay on your own device. An email account is optional, and it exists for one thing only: so another device recognises you and so we can remind you if something is left unfinished.
Are my photos uploaded anywhere?
No. Photos are read and the book is composed on your own device. The pictures themselves are not transmitted.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. It runs in a modern browser on both desktop and phone; the layout adapts.
Is it free right now?
Yes. Everything currently works free of charge — you can make a book and download the PDF without paying anything. The announced prices only start to apply once the payment channel opens.
How much will it cost?
$8.99 for a photo book, $18.99 for one story, $38.99 for a whole life. Each is a one-time price, not a subscription, and none of it is charged yet.
Can I pay now?
Not yet. There is no checkout while the payment channel is being set up, and nothing is charged in the meantime.
What happens to the book after I make it?
It stays in your library on your device, where you can reopen it, export the PDF again, or export the whole library as one archive file.
Is it a social network or a cloud photo album?
No. It is a book maker. It does not host your photos as a gallery service and does not publish anything.
Can I use it in Chinese?
Yes — the interface is available in English and Simplified Chinese, and the same library serves both.