Hi KevWind,
I think that review was pretty accurate at the time (June 2018). Izotope has continued to update the iOS app, offering more effect options and an enhanced SoundCheck that recognizes your input and balances accordingly. There is also an Enhance feature that is similar to iZotope's plug-in DAW products.
The streamline use of the Spire Studio allows me to do in an hour what would take me all afternoon with a ZoomH4n Pro. It certainly doesn't have all the features of a full DAW.
My music partner is a Logic Pro X user, but also uses a Spire Studio. He will often start a project with the Spire, then transfer it to the DAW as it grows beyond 8 tracks with multiple takes.
I am certainly one of those you didn't point a finger at (
) who finds Logic Pro X unnecessarily complicated. In the time it takes to get a level balanced and ready to record in Logic, I have completed recording a track with the Spire. The recording I do isn't at the professional level... after playing for 50 years, I thought it would be nice to have some record of that. I have also been doing a series of "Staying At Home" videos where I use a Shure MV88+ and an iPhone... like the Spire, it is a simple means to an end. And, for my use, it is enough.
If, in my enthusiasm, I suggested that the Spire Studio is the end-all, be-all for anyone interested in recording, I would like to go on record (pun intended) as saying: "It works for me." I try not to get into the "my guitar can beat up your guitar" discussions, regardless of the particular piece of equipment.
Your mileage may vary. Void where prohibited by law. Ask your recording specialist if Spire Studio may be right for you. No animals were harmed in the making of any of my recordings, and Rufus the cat quite likes the process (he is often at my feet while I am recording, and has been heard on a video or two).
I'm a retired guy. My wife thinks I am "accomplishing something" when I am recording and doesn't ask me to do other projects around the house. That in itself may be the best reason for it.
Virtual hugs (remember hugs?),
Jim