Image Models Still Can't Do Text, and It's the Tell
Ideogram cracked readable words. Everyone else still gibbers. Watch the signage in any AI image.
I judge image models by the text in the picture, because that's where most of them fail.
Ideogram actually renders words on a poster. Midjourney and friends still produce alphabet soup.
It sounds minor until you need a logo or a label in the frame. Then it's everything.
For anything with type, I go straight to the model that handles it and skip the pretty-but-broken ones.
Readability is the boring feature that separates a usable asset from a demo.
Updated October 28, 2026: the text test below remains the quickest quality check.
Frequently asked questions:
Q: How do you quickly judge an image model?
A: Look at the text in the picture. Ideogram actually renders words on a poster; most others still produce alphabet soup.
Q: Why does text rendering matter?
A: It sounds minor until you need a logo or a label in the frame - then readability is the difference between a usable asset and a demo.
Q: Which model handles text best?
A: For anything with type, go straight to the model that handles it and skip the pretty-but-broken ones.