Photon vs Blackout Next (Legacy)
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Photon
Control DMX lighting wirelessly for events, clubs, and theaters. Create sequences, synchronize lights to music with beat tracking, and manage fixtures with a user-friendly interface. Offers advanced features via in-app purchase.
- Wireless Art-Net/sACN DMX control
- Multi-touch interface optimized for iPad
- Light group management
- Scene and animation creation
- Beat tracker for music synchronization
- Fixture database and creator
- Sequencer with timeline editing
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Photon, the next generation of professional user friendly DMX lighting console perfect for nightclubs, musicians, live events, filmmakers, theaters... Wireless (Art-Net or sACN through WIFI) and easy to use, Photon reinvents the way to control DMX devices with its single interface for all your lights. Indeed, combine multiple presets to a sequence and synchronize your lights to music. Our beat tracker listens and animates your devices to the rhythm of the music. Live events will have no more secret for you. Features of the free version: - Multi-touch interface designed and optimized for the iPad. ⁃ Light group management. Associate multiple lights together to perform similar controls (colors, positions, brightness ...). - Classic DMX console for sophisticated controls (gobos/fog/focus...) ⁃ Managing scenes. Create and play animations/effects on your lights. ⁃ Smart color manager. ⁃ Art-Net /sACN / DMX output channel analyzer. ⁃ Complete control of an Art-Net universe with 512 channels. ⁃ Art-Net in multicast or unicast. ⁃ sACN in multicast or unicast. ⁃ Database with hundreds of pre-configured devices (fixtures). - Fixture creator to configure your custom devices. Features of the in-app purchase: ⁃ Sound analyzer : sync your lights to music. ⁃ Multi scene / multi group sequencer. Combine multiple cues to a sequence and animate it. ⁃ Edit your sequences as in a video editor with the timeline. ⁃ Automatic, manual or semi-automatic beat control for the sequencer. - Ableton Link support : Sync lights animations with your favorite DJ app or musical instrument. Link is a technology that keeps devices in time over a local network for a perfect synchronization between lights and music. ⁃ Management of the animation curve in/out. - Background mode * Requires an Art-Net (or sACN) Bridge to DMX. Photon is based on the open lighting architecture (open lighting project). ** Purchase of the "Sequencer" with the in-app purchase
Blackout Next (Legacy)
This professional lighting console app offers an intuitive interface for controlling DMX, Art-Net, and sACN lighting systems. It features a vast cloud fixture database, custom fixture creation, and a robust multi-cuelist platform for organizing lighting looks.
- Cloud Fixture Database
- Custom Fixture Creation
- Intuitive Fixture Controls
- Multi-Cuelist Platform
- Dynamic Effects Engine
- MIDI Support
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Blackout is a revolutionary professional Art-Net/sACN DMX Lighting Console app for the iPad. Redefine your lighting with our incredibly intuitive interface and powerful effects engine. Features: - Cloud Fixture Database: Access over 44,000 fixture profiles licensed from Carallon, the leader in fixture profile services. - Create Custom Fixtures: Utilize our Fixture Creation Wizard to design your own profiles, perfectly matching your specific lighting needs. - Fixture Patching Made Simple: Effortlessly categorize and label LED fixtures with a streamlined Patch interface, ideal for batch management. - Intuitive Fixture Controls: Adjust parameters with ease in Fixture Controls and experience our NEW multi-dimensional color picker. - Robust Multi-Cuelist Platform: Organize and save lighting looks within Sequences, complete with customizable fade times, delays, and links. - Presets for Quick Access: Save and recall fixture parameters instantly, streamlining batch changes across multiple fixtures through our Favorites. - Dynamic Effects Engine: Explore limitless creative possibilities with our advanced Effects Engine, featuring intensity chases, color loops, and more. - Macro Functionality: Simplify complex lighting tasks into single-button actions for maximum efficiency. - Enhanced Data Visibility: Experience our reworked UI with new view states for displaying data in various formats, aiding quicker analysis and decision-making. - Advanced MIDI Support (Input & Output): Gain tactile control over your lighting with MIDI compatibility, suitable for both wired and wireless controllers.
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Blackout Next (Legacy) at 100% against Photon's 42%. Blackout Next (Legacy) also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.4) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 weeks). Photon's advantage is iOS requirement (10 vs 18.0). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Photon sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Blackout Next (Legacy) sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Blackout Next (Legacy) holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 27 and 21 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 42% of Photon's written reviews are positive against 100% of Blackout Next (Legacy)'s.
Photon ships an update every 6 weeks, Blackout Next (Legacy) fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 4, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Photon | Blackout Next (Legacy) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (27 ratings) | 5.0 (21 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 41.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 27 — better | 21 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPad | iPad |
| Requires iOS | 10 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 36 MB | 359 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Photon Studio | Blackout Lighting Console Inc. |
Customer experience
Photon
Blackout Next (Legacy)
In-app purchases
Photon
- Light Sequencer$24.99
Blackout Next (Legacy)
- Basic Plan$799.99





