Timer Machine vs Rostrum
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Timer Machine
Manage your time effectively with three customizable timers. Set personalized alert sounds to suit your workflow for work, study, or personal projects. This app offers an intuitive interface for a more organized approach to your day.
- Three personalized timers
- Customizable alert sounds
- User-friendly interface
- Time management for work and study
- Intuitive design
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Discover the ease of time management with Timer Machine, an app offering three personalized timers in a user-friendly and intuitive interface. Customize each timer to fit your unique needs, complete with your preferred alert sounds. Ideal for efficiently tracking various activities, Timer Machine simplifies your daily routine, whether it's for work, study, or personal projects. Embrace a more organized approach to your time with this elegantly designed app. Download Timer Machine now and experience the simplicity of personalized timing!
Rostrum
This app provides a silent, visual countdown timer for speakers, with customizable color cues to indicate time remaining. It offers intuitive gesture controls for adjustments and can mirror the display to a larger screen.
- Silent visual countdown
- Customizable color stages
- Gesture-based editing
- External display mirroring
- Never dims screen
- Remembers settings
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Rostrum shows a speaker how much time is left, as a clock large enough to read from the back of the room — or from a phone propped on the podium. The background changes color at times you choose. Green while there's plenty left, amber when it's time to move on, red when it isn't. You decide how many stages there are and exactly when each one starts — most timers give you three fixed colors and no say in the matter. SILENT BY DESIGN No chimes. No alerts. No notifications. Not "sounds turned off by default" — Rostrum contains no code that can make a sound. Your audience never knows the timer is there. THE CLOCK IS THE CONTROL No buttons over your countdown. Tap to start or pause. Pause it and the clock becomes the editor: swipe with one finger to adjust seconds, two fingers for minutes, three for hours. A running clock refuses those swipes on purpose — a hand steadying the phone should not be able to rewrite a talk in progress. Pinch in to leave. A one-time overlay teaches the gestures, and a quiet line along the bottom of the clock keeps the key ones in view whenever the clock is stopped. Mid-talk, nothing but the time. BUILT FOR WHOEVER IS RUNNING THE ROOM Changing a talk length takes one tap. Set your common slot lengths once — 5, 15, 30, 45 minutes, whatever your event uses — and switch between speakers instantly. ON A BIG SCREEN WHEN YOU NEED IT Connect a display with AirPlay or USB-C and the clock fills it while your phone becomes the remote: start, pause, and adjust from your hand while the speaker watches the screen. WHEN TIME RUNS OUT The screen turns red and flashes briefly, then counts upward so a speaker can see exactly how far over they are. Impossible to miss, impossible to mistake for anything else. DETAILS THAT MATTER ON STAGE • The screen never dims while the clock is up • A phone call or a lock screen never stops the countdown — the full time is there when you come back • Digits never jitter or shift as the numbers change • Text color adapts automatically so it stays readable on any background • Remembers your setup between launches Also on the Mac App Store — one free app, both platforms. Free, with no purchases, no accounts, and no data collection of any kind. Rostrum has no network code — there is nowhere for your information to go.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Rostrum at 100% against Timer Machine's 50%. Rostrum also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.8) and update cadence (daily vs every 5 months). Timer Machine's advantage is ratings volume (20 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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.
Rostrum holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Timer Machine has 20 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Timer Machine's written reviews are positive against 100% of Rostrum's.
Timer Machine ships an update every 5 months, Rostrum daily. Both last shipped on September 23, 2026.
| Parameter | Timer Machine | Rostrum |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.8 (20 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 20 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Daily — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 14 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Montage App, Inc. | Scott GREER |
Customer experience
Timer Machine
Rostrum
In-app purchases
Timer Machine
No in-app purchases
Rostrum
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Timer Machine free?
Is Rostrum free?
Which has better reviews, Timer Machine or Rostrum?
Do Timer Machine or Rostrum have ads?
Which is updated more often, Timer Machine or Rostrum?
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