Comparison

Astro Pics vs Desktop Astro Clock

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Astro Pics

Explore stunning daily images of space with a beautiful photo viewer and automatic syncing across Apple devices. View breathtaking astronomy pictures on your iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch.

Highlights
  • Daily astronomy pictures
  • Favorites syncing
  • Apple Watch app
  • New photo viewer
  • Cross-device support
Read full description

*** Rated #1 Astronomy Picture of the Day app for iOS *** Meet the all new Astro Pics! Featuring a breathtaking new photo viewer and a redesigned Apple Watch app, powerful yet simple and delightful interactions, and automatic favorites syncing across your suite of iOS devices—the way it should be. Astro Pics is the best way to view Astronomy Picture of the Day on your iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch. Experience a new, breathtaking photo of our universe each day. ** FAVORITES SYNCING ** Experience your favorite Astronomy Picture by adding them to your favorites. And now you can enjoy your favorites across your suite of Apple devices featuring the all new automatic favorites sync. The way it should be. ** WATCH APP ** Explore Astro Pics on your Apple Watch and view the latest astronomy pictures on the go. Stay tuned for more updates! Astronomy Picture of the Day is a service of ASD at NASA/GSFC and Michigan Technological University

About

Desktop Astro Clock

This utility app displays time in various formats, including Julian, Sidereal, and GMT. It offers always-on display options, moon and meteor shower information, and customizable clock configurations. Widgets and a watchOS app are also supported for enhanced functionality.

Highlights
  • Multiple time formats (Julian, Sidereal, GMT)
  • Always-on display with battery threshold
  • Moon phase and meteor shower information
  • Customizable display configurations
  • Widget support
  • WatchOS app with specialized displays
Features
Read full description

Desktop Astro Clock (formally known as: yabc - Yet Another Bedside Clock). This is a clock app that is designed to be run at the desktop, bedside or near a star map. It will display the time without turning off until the battery percentage drops below a user specified value. There are ten predefined, and one user defined display configurations. A single tap of the moon and star icon will bring up a red tinted clock showing the local sidereal time. In settings, you can add a moon display, meteor showers display, change colors, and configure the user defined clock display. Widgets are now supported and can be configured via Widget editing. A watchOS app is now included that displays a red tinted Modified Julian date, GMT Sidereal time, Moon, Moon name, and moon age in days. No ads, ever. Lock screen widgets include rectangular (two clock values look good here) and circular (for the current moon) Features: - Time display in various fixed formats - Time display in a user defined format + color - Always on display until a user specified battery level is reached (iOS) - Moon display with moon transit details and full moon names *(4)* - Meteor Shower information (when visible) with star chart locator - Blue moons are known by the tag [blue moon] added to the full moon name and a blue tint to the full moon image - Super moons are known by the tag [super] added to the full moon name Clock Times: - GMT - Greenwich Mean Time - GMST - Greenwich Mean Sidereal Time - Julian Date - Seconds since noon 1st January 4713 B.C. - LMST - Local Mean Sidereal Time *(3)* - Modified Julian Date - Julian Date - 2400000.5 Predefined displays: - Desk Clock - Day, Time, Date - ISO 8901 - yyyy-mm-ssThh:mm:ss+tz - ISO 8901 GMT - yyyy-mm-ssThh:mm:ssZ - Greenwich Mean Sidereal Time - 'HH'h 'mm's 'ss' - Julian - day.time in seconds since noon 1st January 4713 B.C. - Local Mean Sidereal Time - 'HH'h 'mm'h *(3)* - System Default - based on your iOS settings - Time HH:MM:SS, Month, Day - Time HH:MM - Time HH:MM:SS, Day, Month, Year - User Defined - you pick the format! Widgets (One or more): - Meteor Showers *(1)* - Moon - Moon with details - Moon Names *(4)* - Julian Date *(2)* - Sidereal Date *(2)* - User Defined Clock *(2)* WatchOS App: - Black background, Red tint, brightness adjustable with crown, shows Mofidied Julian Date, GMT Sideral Time, Moon face, Moon name, and Moon age *(3)* *(4)* - Corner complication shows Moon, Modified Julian and Local Sidereal time Lock screen Widgets: - Rectangular for clock values (i.e.: Julian date and Sidereal time) - Circular for the current moon *(1) If no Meteor shower is in progress, just an image is shown* *(2) Widgets do not support real time non-system clocks well. Updates will typically be between 15-60 minutes* *(3) If you select Local Sidereal Mean Time display, you'll also need to enable the setting to allow access to your location information (only needs your longitude for the calculations). Default will be Greenwich England* *(4) If you select Moon names, you'll also need to enable the settings to allow access to your location information (only need to check latitude > 0 for Northeren/Southeren hemishpere). Default will be at the equator*

Screenshots

Astro Pics4 screens
Desktop Astro Clock4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Astro Pics at 4.4 against Desktop Astro Clock's 3.7. Astro Pics also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 9 months) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). Desktop Astro Clock's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On price, ratings volume, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Astro Pics sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Desktop Astro Clock asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Astro Pics holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7 and 3 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Astro Pics ships an update every 5 weeks, Desktop Astro Clock every 9 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Astro Pics versus Desktop Astro Clock: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAstro PicsDesktop Astro Clock
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (7 ratings) — better3.7 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews83.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings7 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 9 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB416 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperType440 LLCBEHR Consulting International

Customer experience

Astro Pics

All ratings7 ratings
Positive85.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative14.3%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative16.7%

Desktop Astro Clock

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Astro Pics

One-time1
  • AstroPics Premium$2.99
None

Desktop Astro Clock

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Astro Pics free?
Astro Pics is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Desktop Astro Clock free?
Desktop Astro Clock is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Astro Pics or Desktop Astro Clock?
Astro Pics is rated higher. Astro Pics averages 4.4 out of 5 from 7 ratings, while Desktop Astro Clock averages 3.7 from 3 ratings.
Do Astro Pics or Desktop Astro Clock have ads?
Neither Astro Pics nor Desktop Astro Clock shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Astro Pics or Desktop Astro Clock?
Astro Pics ships an update every 5 weeks, and Desktop Astro Clock every 9 months. Most recently, Astro Pics was updated on October 24, 2026 and Desktop Astro Clock on October 6, 2026.

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