Comparison

Tentacle Timebar vs Blackmagic BlueConnect

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

Head to head
About

Tentacle Timebar

Monitor the timecode, frame rate, battery status, and signal strength of your Bluetooth Tentacle Sync E and Track E devices. This read-only app prevents accidental misconfiguration, offering a safe way to view device information. Copy the current timecode to your clipboard with a simple press.

Highlights
  • Monitor timecode
  • View frame rate
  • Check battery status
  • See signal strength
  • Read-only configuration
  • Copy timecode to clipboard
Features
Read full description

Use this app to monitor the timecode of your Bluetooth Tentacle Sync E and Tentacle Track E. For each device, the following information is available: ・timecode ・frame rate ・battery status ・signal strength In contrast to the regular "Tentacle Setup" app, this app does not allow for changing the configuration of your Tentacle devices on purpose. The app provides a "read-only" view of your setup, reducing the possibility of accidental misconfiguration. Pressing the timecode copies the current timecode to the clipboard. Tentacle Sync E and Tentacle Track E are available at https://shop.tentaclesync.com or from one of our resellers. Questions? Please visit: www.tentaclesync.com

About

Blackmagic BlueConnect

Control your Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera remotely from your iPhone or iPad. Adjust settings like color, exposure, focus, and frame rate, and trigger recording or stills.

Highlights
  • Remote camera control
  • Color correction tools
  • Exposure and frame rate adjustment
  • Focus control
  • Start/stop recording
  • Monitor overlays
Features
Read full description

BlueConnect is simple yet powerful app to control Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K, 6K or 6K Pro from iPhone or iPad. BlueConnect allows you to control all the features of camera that Blackmagic offers, including : - Colour Corrector : • Built-in colour correction tools that reflects in camera and HDMI Output • Davinci Resolve-like control • RGB Bars for Lift, Gamma, Gain and Offset • Pulling sliders for Contrast, Pivot, Saturation and Hue • Ability to reset to default camera colour correction settings • Similar settings that can be controlled from Atem Mini Pro switchers - Other devices support : • Control from Tilta Nucleus-N handwheel - Start / Stop recording • Control from Tilta Nucleus-M FIZ Unit - Start / Stop recording - General controls : • Trigger Start/Stop recording ( Ability to use Volume buttons ) • Trigger stills • Battery indicator • Active card indicator • Remaining recording time • Timecode • Settings indicators • Lock-while-recording mode - Playback control : • Switch from recording mode into playback and back ( displayed are only clips with same resolution ) • Play / Pause, navigate forward, navigate backward through clips - White Balance controls : • White Balance • Tint • WB Presets - Exposure and Frame rate controls : • Project frame rate • Frame rate • Off-speed frame rate toggle • Iris • Shutter speed / angle • ISO • Auto Exposure modes - Focus control • Slide-to-adjust control • Multiple focus points (Rack focus using focus sensitivity and duration) • Multiple focus points (Rack focus using focus-movement teaching) • Auto-focus toggle - Monitor overlays • Zebra Level • Frame guides • Safe Area • Grids • Exposure and focus tools (zebra, focus assist and false color toggles) - Codecs and Quality • Codec option • Bitrate option • Resolution - Audio controls • Channel 1 / 2 gain • Headphones volume • Speaker volume We continue to work on another exciting features to be released in the near future including but not limited to : - MultiCam mode with an option to trigger recording on multiple cameras - Control of TILTA products Requirements: - Minimum Camera Firmware version 6.2 - Bluetooth Enabled on your Camera - Bluetooth Enabled on your Phone - Location Enabled on your Phone Tested on: – BMPCC 4K – BMPCC 6K - BMPCC 6K Pro Getting started : https://bmblueconnect.com/getting-started Issues we know about : https://bmblueconnect.com/known-issues Troubleshooting : https://bmblueconnect.com/troubleshooting

Screenshots

Tentacle Timebar2 screens
Blackmagic BlueConnect4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Tentacle Timebar at Free against Blackmagic BlueConnect's $5.99. Tentacle Timebar also leads on rating (4.3 vs 3.7) and review sentiment (67% vs 50%). Blackmagic BlueConnect's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 months) and chart position (#189 vs unranked). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases 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

Tentacle Timebar is free to download; Blackmagic BlueConnect costs $5.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Tentacle Timebar holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 6 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of Tentacle Timebar's written reviews are positive against 50% of Blackmagic BlueConnect's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tentacle Timebar ships an update every 6 months, Blackmagic BlueConnect every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Tentacle Timebar versus Blackmagic BlueConnect: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTentacle TimebarBlackmagic BlueConnect
PriceFree — better$5.99
Rating4.3 (4 ratings) — better3.7 (6 ratings)
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings46 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#189 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.09.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB63 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTentacle Sync GmbHDean Lusk

Customer experience

Tentacle Timebar

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral11.1%
Negative22.2%

Blackmagic BlueConnect

All ratings6 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral33.3%
Negative16.7%

In-app purchases

None

Tentacle Timebar

No in-app purchases

None

Blackmagic BlueConnect

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Tentacle Timebar free?
Tentacle Timebar is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Blackmagic BlueConnect free?
Blackmagic BlueConnect costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Tentacle Timebar or Blackmagic BlueConnect?
Tentacle Timebar is rated higher. Tentacle Timebar averages 4.3 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Blackmagic BlueConnect averages 3.7 from 6 ratings.
Do Tentacle Timebar or Blackmagic BlueConnect have ads?
Neither Tentacle Timebar nor Blackmagic BlueConnect shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Tentacle Timebar or Blackmagic BlueConnect?
Tentacle Timebar ships an update every 6 months, and Blackmagic BlueConnect every 2 weeks. Most recently, Tentacle Timebar was updated on October 22, 2026 and Blackmagic BlueConnect on October 27, 2026.

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