Mars Book vs microbitBLE
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Mars Book
Read full descriptionHide full description
The Mars Book is an app that is dedicated for observing Mars which will make close approach in summer 2020. Mars will come close to Earth from September 2020 through October 2020. Closest approach will take place on October 6, 2020. Mars Book is a highly useful Mars observing app which will indicate the location of Mars visible in the sky. It shows you why Mars Close Approach will take place, and it is explained readily using animated illustrations and star charts at a viewpoint from outer Space. Mars Close Approaches taking place 23 times from the year 2003 through 2050 will be displayed and apparent retrograde motion of Mars will be displayed. Enjoy Mars Close Approach this summer with the Mars Book app!
microbitBLE
Connect your smartphone to a micro:bit device via Bluetooth. Send text from your keyboard to display on the micro:bit's LED, and receive messages sent from the micro:bit. Ideal for interactive coding projects and learning.
- Bluetooth UART connection
- Send text to micro:bit LED
- Receive messages from micro:bit
- Button press triggers messages
- Interactive coding projects
Read full descriptionHide full description
It is an application that allows you to connect the micro:bit Bluetooth UART. When you hit the keyboard of your smartphone, characters will be displayed on the LED of the micro:bit. Displays the characters sent from the micro:bit. In the sample, when the A button is pressed, Hello is sent and displayed on the smartphone. Usage 1. program the micro:bit 2. The micro:bit start and wait for Bluetooth connection (in the sample, a square mark is displayed) 3. Press the "connect to micro:bit" button in the app 4. When the connection is complete, the square display in the middle (transmission character display) will turn black and a check mark will appear on the micro:bit. 5. Hit the keyboard and the character will be displayed on the micro:bit 6. When you press the A button on the micro:bit, "Hello" is displayed in the "received message" part of the app 7. Press the "disconnect from micro:bit" button to disconnect Bluetooth and display a cross mark on the micro:bit
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: microbitBLE at every 2 months against Mars Book's every 13 months. Mars Book's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 15.5). On price, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Mars Book ships an update every 13 months, microbitBLE every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 10, 2026 and June 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Mars Book | microbitBLE |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 2.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Number of ratings | — | 1 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 13 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 15.5 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 14 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Vixen Co.,Ltd. | Atsushi Yamada |
In-app purchases
Mars Book
No in-app purchases
microbitBLE
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Mars Book free?
Is microbitBLE free?
Do Mars Book or microbitBLE have ads?
Which is updated more often, Mars Book or microbitBLE?
Other comparisons
