Binary O'Clock vs BuiltNotBought
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side ā with what reviewers say about each.
Binary O'Clock
Read full descriptionHide full description
There are only 10 types of people in this world: those who understand binary and those who don't. Binary O'Clock is a glowing binary clock for your iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. Six columns of LEDs show the time as hours, minutes and seconds, ticking away in ones and zeros. HOW TO READ IT Each column is one digit of the time: HH MM SS. Read each column from the bottom up. The LEDs are worth 1, 2, 4 and 8, so add up the ones that are lit to get the digit. For example, a column with the 2 and 4 LEDs lit shows 6. FEATURES ⢠Full-screen 24-hour clock with hours, minutes and seconds ⢠Widgets for the Home Screen, Lock Screen and StandBy ⢠An Apple Watch app, and complications for your watch face ⢠Keeps the screen on while the clock is showing ⢠No ads, no accounts, no data collected BINARY O'CLOCK PRO Tap the clock to open Settings, and try any of it first: a live preview shows your clock before you buy. A one-time purchase unlocks, on Apple TV, Mac, iPad, iPhone and Apple Watch alike: ⢠Themes: White, Aviation green, and Dust, with dark dots on sand ⢠Round LEDs ⢠Learning mode: shows what each LED is worth and the number in each column ⢠12-hour time ⢠A speaking clock: touch and hold the clock to hear "14:32 and 20 seconds", then a beep exactly on the second No subscription. The classic blue clock stays free, widgets and complications included. Also on Apple TV and Mac. Perfect on the nightstand in StandBy, on your wrist, or as a daily brain teaser for anyone learning binary.
BuiltNotBought
Read full descriptionHide full description
Built Not Bought is the maintenance logbook for the things you wrench on yourself. Whether you're keeping a daily driver tidy, building out an overland rig, or restoring a project, your build's history lives here ā not on the back of a receipt that got soaked in oil six months ago. What you can do: ⢠Log every job with title, date, mileage, category, notes, cost, part model, quantity, where you bought it, and who turned the wrench. ⢠Track multiple vehicles ā each with its own photo, profile, and history. ⢠Use the eleven built-in categories (oil change, brakes, tires, suspension, electrical, drivetrain, fluids, filters, armor, wheels, other) or create your own with a custom icon and color. ⢠Browse by date, mileage, or cost. Search anything. Records group by month so you can see how each year of ownership shook out. ⢠A Summary tab with totals, an interactive donut of where your money went by category, and a 1M / 6M / 1Y / All time-range filter. ⢠Export to CSV any time ā your data, your file. ⢠Sync across iPhone and iPad via iCloud. No accounts, no servers, no ads, no analytics. If you enjoy the app, there's a tip jar in About. No nags, no paywalls ā pay once for the app, keep it forever.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: BuiltNotBought at none against Binary O'Clock's 1. BuiltNotBought also leads on iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.0). Binary O'Clock's advantage is device support (5 vs 1). On price, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price Ā· Rating Ā· Positive reviews Ā· Number of ratings Ā· Update frequency Ā· Ads Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Monetization Ā· Best chart rank Ā· Devices Ā· Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Binary O'Clock sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. BuiltNotBought asks for nothing beyond the download.
Binary O'Clock ships an update every 3 weeks, BuiltNotBought monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Binary O'Clock | BuiltNotBought |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks ā better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No ā better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, Apple Watch ā better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 17.6 ā better |
| Further details ā not scored | ||
| Size | 8 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Backslashed | SHYAM PATEL |
In-app purchases
Binary O'Clock
- Binary O'Clock Pro$2.99
BuiltNotBought
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Binary O'Clock free?
Is BuiltNotBought free?
Do Binary O'Clock or BuiltNotBought have ads?
Which is updated more often, Binary O'Clock or BuiltNotBought?
Other comparisons















