# Back in Time — Universe and World History > Interactive exploration of universe, Earth, life, and civilization history. (iPhone/iPad app by Landka.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/back-in-time/id450345693 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Landka](https://appshunter.io/developer/450345696) - Category: Education, Books - Price: $7.99 - Rating: 4.60/5 from 25 App Store ratings · 43 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 16.0 · 836 MB - Languages: American English, French (France), German (Germany), Japanese, European Portuguese, Chinese (Simplified, China), European Spanish - Released: 2011-09-22 - Data updated: 2026-06-09 - Monetization: paid - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/back-in-time/id450345693/reviews.md ## What is Back in Time? • "The coolest history textbook you’ll find on the iPad" - The New York Times • Winner of the WSA Mobile Award • Top1 iPad Book in US, UK, FR, ES, China… and 34 more Countries • Featured by The New York Times (Top10 iPad Apps of the year) • Featured by the American Photo Magazine (Top 10 Photo eBooks of the year) For iPhone/iPod touch download - Back in Time for iPhone Back in Time will take you on a stunning exploration of the history of our Universe, Earth, Life and Civilization. A journey through time where each event is documented with social and historical context, several images, an illustrative timeline and little-known interesting facts. Custom made animations bring those events to life, creating an interesting, immersive learning experience. An imaginary clock will guide you through this quest, proposing a simple analogy: the entire Universe started 24 hours ago. The Big Bang, the source of time and space, is the first event in our journey – the clock reads 0:00 hours. Today, 13.7 billion years later, the clock reads midnight. In between is a sequence of key events that has brought us to where we are today. Explore them, place them in perspective, see how they relate and understand the connections. We invite you to take a step back and see the whole picture. :::: REVIEWS :::: “...a beautifully executed lesson on the history of the universe and the evolution of life on earth. Great for high school students or parents who’d like to tutor younger children and enjoy a first-rate experience of their own...” - Bob Tedeschi, The New York Times “The iPad could use more apps like this one.” - The Daily “...the best iPad apps are those that combine coffee table-styled books with the fluid nature of the iPad’s interface. Back in Time is just that, it’s the story of the entire history of our universe made interactive on the iPad.” - Casey Chan, Gizmodo (App of the Day) “Back in Time is utterly gorgeous in its presentation. (...) The app is so easy to navigate that it is a delight to explore. Landka could scarcely have done a better job in putting everything together.” - Gwen Phua, Appmodo :::: FEATURES :::: Designed for iPad; 47 chapters; Over 350 remarkable images; 60+ amazing animations and videos; 40+ illustrated timelines; More than 200 little-known interesting facts; Music by the composer Rodrigo Leão; Developed in 7 different languages (English, Spanish, German, French, Portuguese, Japanese and Chinese); No internet connection required. ## Key features - Interactive timeline of events - Custom animations and videos - Over 350 remarkable images - Little-known interesting facts - Offline access - Multilingual support ## Recent user reviews (10 of 43) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/back-in-time/id450345693/reviews.md ### 4/5 — Great reference for deep time; human history lopsided. *2021-03-05, version 2.1.7* So far I have browsed through most of the presentations on the history of the universe, the solar system, and early life on Earth, and this part is quite nice as a refresher on both the important details and the scale of time that we are able to glimpse in our brief lives. Human history, though, is already heavily Eurocentric: I have only gotten as far as the Neolithic Revolution in the Fertile Crescent, and already the app is only covering that portion of hominids whose history will lead directly to European History. We get to know Neanderthals, but not the Denisovans; likewise, we only see one Neolithic Revolution in one single “Cradle of Civilization” rather than the several separate but parallel Neolithic developments in East Asia or what came to be called the Americas. None of this is controversial. It is simply ignored. It is much too late even in Western narratives to make these kinds of omissions: this app is sold world-wide, is it not? At least it is useful for reviewing major deep time events, and I may keep it for that alone. But human history is not synonymous with European History. Quite a lost opportunity here, and extremely annoying. ### 5/5 — Great reference *2021-01-20, version 2.1.7* Brilliant and informative ### 2/5 — Unable to play video *2021-01-09, version 2.1.7* Please resolve the video, I am unable to play any of the video, ### 5/5 — A Most Wonderful Trip! *2020-12-12, version 2.1.7* Very enjoyable. A great introduction to the history of the world! Will peak your interest to get you looking at life in a new, deep historical manner.Just buy it. ### 5/5 — Great app *2018-10-19, version 2.1.5* One of my favourite apps. Fascinating and a great way to spend a bit of time, very interesting and easy to use Don’t worry about the cost, it’s worth it ### 5/5 — Beautiful App. Makes you wonder. *2016-07-05, version 2.1.3* Awesome way of how to communicate and visualize time as it relates to life from the birth of the universe to today. Check out the last second and ponder. ### 5/5 — Excellent *2016-06-11, version 2.1.3* I have had this app since about 2011 and it's still one of the few original apps that are still on my iPad. It's just been updated to include the French Revolution....probably this app is much underestimated, a definite 5 stars! One of the other reviewers of the earlier version criticised the clock saying they preferred the look of the old one, a small point but I agree. ### 3/5 — Amazing but needs more historical content *2014-11-19, version 2.0* As a tech lead at our school we were going to purchase this for our 250 ipads because the earth history and time line tools were excellent. However, after trying it out for two weeks we decided to hold off for now. The primary reason is that the historical dates are simply too far apart. Entire civilizations are missing and there are huge jumps between entries. For example it skips from the age of discovery to the industrial revolution and then world war 1. Despite the price this would be a slam dunk if you were to take a hard look at a global history course and fill in some gaps. ### 3/5 — What have you done! *2013-12-19, version 2.0* I think the latest update is really good but the intro looks cheap.I used to love that clock face but now there is nothing to it.In my opinion I feel you have ruined a great app. ### 5/5 — Extremely Cool and Educational Too! *2013-10-08, version 1.6* I absolutely love this app! Visually stunning, and intellectually stimulating! This is a great app for anyone who wants to understand the history of our universe according to current scientific knowledge. If you have ever read Stephen Hawking's "A Brief History of Time" you will be familiar with the content of this app, as well as the quality. But this app is so much more than that excellent book (and not directly related in anyway, as far as I know) but it takes that type of information and presents it in a beautiful interface that is fun to use and with its most excellent background music, surprisingly soothing! Give to this app as a gift to anyone who appreciates history, science or just wants to learn! Perfect gift for students of probably sixth grade on up through college too! ## Frequently asked questions about Back in Time ### What does the Back in Time app do? Back in Time offers a stunning exploration of the history of our Universe, Earth, Life, and Civilization. It presents events with social and historical context, images, timelines, and interesting facts, enhanced by custom animations for an immersive learning experience. ### What are the key features of Back in Time? Key features include 47 chapters, over 350 images, 60+ animations and videos, 40+ illustrated timelines, and more than 200 interesting facts. It also offers offline access and is available in 7 languages. ### How much does Back in Time cost? The app is a paid application, meaning you purchase it once to access all its content and features. There are no in-app purchases or advertisements mentioned. ### Is Back in Time available on iPhone? The description specifically mentions that this version is designed for iPad. It notes that a separate app, 'Back in Time for iPhone,' is available for iPhone and iPod touch users. ### What is the analogy used to explain history in the app? The app uses an analogy where the entire Universe started 24 hours ago, with the Big Bang at 0:00 hours. Today, 13.7 billion years later, represents midnight, with key events placed within this timeline to help users understand their perspective and connections. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 2.3.3 — 2025-04-09 Minor corrections; ### 2.3.2 — 2023-07-14 Minor corrections; ### 2.3.1 — 2022-06-26 Minor corrections; ### 2.3 — 2021-05-13 Bug fixed that prevented videos from running in some iOS14 devices; All social media SDKs removed to ensure privacy. ### 2.1.7 — 2020-06-13 Bug fix (captions now properly displayed in all iOS13 iPads); ## Apps similar to Back in Time | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Today in History: Factorium](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/today-in-history-factorium/id6447638380) | 4.7 (194) | Free | Education | | [History Explorer - Time Travel](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/history-explorer-time-travel/id6465697787) | 1.0 (1) | Free | Education | | [TimePod Adventures: STEM Game](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/timepod-adventures-stem-game/id1580919771) | 5.0 (6) | Free | Education | | [ClickWorld Atlas](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/clickworld-atlas/id919384926) | 3.1 (15) | Free | Education | | [OldMapsOnline - History & Maps](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/oldmapsonline-history-and-maps/id1017609581) | 3.3 (8) | Free | Education | | [Explorer: The World](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/explorer-the-world/id6742863288) | — | Free | Education | ## More apps by Landka - [Back in Time for iPhone](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/back-in-time-for-iphone/id483148811) - [Kiwaka](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kiwaka/id632759992) - [Kiwaka Story](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kiwaka-story/id875149504) - [Overpaint](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/overpaint/id888697127) - [Art Legacy](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/art-legacy/id966967777) All apps by Landka: https://appshunter.io/developer/450345696 --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-09.*