Comparison

ShadowMagic vs TimeGlance

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

Head to head
About

ShadowMagic

A virtual lighting simulator for theatrical and stage design. Visualize lighting, color, shadows, and scenery with realistic fixtures and over 1600 gel colors. Save and share your designs.

Highlights
  • Virtual light lab and Black Box theatre
  • Realistic Source Four® Spotlight and Fresnel fixtures
  • Zoom and dimming capabilities with photometric accuracy
  • Over 1600 gel colors from major manufacturers
  • Precise fixture positioning and auto-focus
  • Save, organize, and share designs as PDF reports
Features
Read full description

A virtual light lab, or Black Box theatre for visualizing lighting, color, shadows, and scenery. The lab has a 40’ x 30’ stage and a 40' x 20' cyclorama. The theatre space is 80’ wide, 40’ high, and 80’ deep. Designers can choose up to eight fixtures to light a very basic scene. Two types of lights are available. The Source Four® Spotlight is available with 14°, 26°, 19°, 36°, 50° lens barrels. The The Source Four® 7” Fresnel may also be selected and zooms from full flood at 65° to spot focus with a beam angle of 20°. All of the beam spreads are photometrically correct. The lamp for both fixtures is a 750 W HPL, and when it is dimmed the color temperature decreases from 3200° K at full down to 2300° when the light is at 4%. Each light can be dimmed individually or the entire scene lowered using a grand master. Intensity has a resolution of 1%. A theatre lighting simulator would not be complete without gels and we have over 1600 colors to choose from the 4 major manufacturers. The gels can be assembled into a collection called a gel string and any color from the string can be applied to each light. Each of the lights may be positioned anywhere around the theatre to simulate booms, shinbusters, or the balcony rail. Resolution of the position is 0.1 feet. When focused on the actor, the lights are auto-focused so you can move the light’s position and see the resulting angle. Lights focused on the backdrop are focused manually by touching the cyc. When you move or rotate the actor, the lights will follow and stay focused right in the center of the body. Scenes may be saved and organized into projects. Both can be shared as a .pdf report with colleagues and friends to show off your ideas. While simple in concept and operation, ShadowMagic has subtleties such as reflections from a matte gray stage covering and the coloring of shadows from other light fixtures. From beginners to seasoned professionals, ShadowMagic makes visualizing and lighting a scene much quicker and easier and more fun.

About

TimeGlance

This app adds a digital time complication to any watch face, updating every minute with the correct time. It supports all complication types and watch faces, offering customization for time format, date display, and time zones. The app functions independently of your phone.

Highlights
  • Digital time complication for any watch face
  • Updates every minute
  • Supports all complication types
  • Standalone watch app
  • Customizable time formats (24h, 12h, military)
  • Multiple date formats or hide date
  • Time zone selection
Features
Read full description

If the app does not show on your Watch after purchase please go to App Store on your watch (not phone) - scroll to bottom - Account - Purchased - and download from here. This app provides a digital time complication for all complication types on any watch face. - Updates every minute, always showing correct time - All complications and watch faces supported - Standalone watch app, all features can be used without your phone - Choose between 24 hour, 12 hour (AM/PM), or military time - Choose from 8 date formats from simple short ones to full dates, or hide the date. - Actual date format and language is localized to the region and language settings of your device - Time zone selection. Any ±24h offset from UTC or local time. - Set text color of complication (only works for multicolor watch faces) - Switch lines of time and date

Screenshots

ShadowMagic4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: TimeGlance at $0.99 against ShadowMagic's $14.99. TimeGlance also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 months) and ratings volume (106 vs 2). ShadowMagic's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 3.7) and review sentiment (100% vs 63%). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

ShadowMagic costs $14.99 and TimeGlance $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ShadowMagic holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: TimeGlance has 106 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of ShadowMagic's written reviews are positive against 63% of TimeGlance's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ShadowMagic ships an update every 3 months, TimeGlance every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
ShadowMagic versus TimeGlance: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShadowMagicTimeGlance
Price$14.99$0.99 — better
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better3.7 (106 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better63.4% of reviews
Number of ratings2106 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPod, Apple Watch
Requires iOS15.614.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size114 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCrossroads Motorsport, LLCAndras Solyom

Customer experience

ShadowMagic

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

TimeGlance

All ratings106 ratings
Positive67.0%
Neutral5.7%
Negative27.4%
Written reviews134 reviews
Positive63.4%
Neutral6.7%
Negative29.9%

Bugs and requests

ShadowMagic

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

TimeGlance

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Time getting stuck or showing incorrect time
  • Complication disappearing after watch reset
  • Issues with reinstalling the app

Requested features

4 requests
  • Option to hide time and show only date
  • Ability to adjust font size
  • More color customization options
  • Support for multiple time zones

In-app purchases

None

ShadowMagic

No in-app purchases

None

TimeGlance

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ShadowMagic free?
ShadowMagic costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is TimeGlance free?
TimeGlance costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, ShadowMagic or TimeGlance?
ShadowMagic is rated higher. ShadowMagic averages 5.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while TimeGlance averages 3.7 from 106 ratings.
Do ShadowMagic or TimeGlance have ads?
Neither ShadowMagic nor TimeGlance shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ShadowMagic or TimeGlance?
ShadowMagic ships an update every 3 months, and TimeGlance every 2 days. Most recently, ShadowMagic was updated on October 6, 2026 and TimeGlance on October 10, 2026.

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