a vs SSL Time
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
a
Run a full Unix-like terminal environment on your iOS device. Execute a wide range of commands, edit files, and even program using included interpreters and compilers. Supports multitasking and integration with Shortcuts.
- Local Unix terminal emulator
- SSH client
- File transfer (scp, curl)
- Text editing (vim, ed)
- Scripting languages (Python, Lua, Perl, JS)
- C/C++ compiler
- TeX distribution
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a-Shell is a complete local terminal emulator, allowing to run most Unix commands on your iOS device. You can transfer files using scp and curl, edit them with vim and ed, process them using grep, awk and sed. You can work with git repositories using lg2. Most commands are compiled for iOS native Arm64 format, making them fast and well integrated with the BSD Unix that powers iOS/iPadOS. a-Shell includes Python, Lua, Perl, JavaScript, C, C++ for programming and TeX (texlive 2025, with Tikz and LuaTeX) for text processing. There are also multiple network utilities: nslookup, ping, whois, ifconfig... Type help for help, help -l to get the full list of commands. a-Shell can be controlled from Shortcuts: run commands in order, process files in a-Shell, get the results as text or files, transfer files to other apps... a-shell uses iOS 13+ “multiple windows” ability, so you can run multiple shells at the same time, with different commands, in different directories. You can edit a file in one window with vim and process it in the other with python. Compile your C or C++ programs to webAssembly using clang or clang++, and execute the resulting binary. A complete webAssembly SDK is included (WASI-libc). a-Shell is the complete version. If you need a smaller app, and you don't need a C compiler, a TeX engine, or numpy and matplotlib, there is a-Shell mini.
SSL Time
This app helps you monitor SSL certificate expiration dates for your websites, providing timely notifications before they expire. It offers visual status indicators and detailed certificate information, ensuring your website security remains intact.
- SSL certificate expiration monitoring
- Timely expiration notifications (30, 14, 7, 3, 1 day)
- Visual status indicators (valid, approaching, expired)
- Website performance monitoring via ping checks
- Detailed certificate information
- Customizable notification settings
- Dark mode support
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Never miss an SSL certificate renewal again with SSL Time – your trusted companion for monitoring website security on iOS and iPad. Features: - Certificate Monitoring: Keep track of SSL certificate expiration dates for your websites. - Timely Notifications: Receive alerts 30, 14, 7, 3, and 1 day before expiration. All notifications delivered after 9:00 AM local time. - Visual Status Indicators: ( Green: Certificate is valid, Orange: Expiration is approaching, Red: Certificate has expired) - Website Performance Monitoring via active ICMP or HTTP ping checks while the app is open. - Customizable ping thresholds and frequency in settings - Detailed Certificate Information: View comprehensive details with a simple tap. - Flexible Notification Settings: Enable or disable notifications for individual sites. - Dark Mode Support: Protect your eyes during late-night monitoring sessions. - Customizable Background: Personalize your app experience. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://justshare.me/ssltime/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: a at none against SSL Time's 2. a also leads on ratings volume (553 vs 1) and update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months). SSL Time's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.6). On price, ads 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. SSL Time sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. a asks for nothing beyond the download.
SSL Time holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: a has 553 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
a ships an update monthly, SSL Time every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | a | SSL Time |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (553 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 78.3% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 553 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | #18 — better | #195 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 17 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 1.9 GB | 10 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nicolas Holzschuch | Erfan Reed |
Customer experience
a
SSL Time
Bugs and requests
a
Reported bugs
3 issues- Toolbar buttons not accessible in portrait mode on some devices
- Pasting from clipboard can insert unexpected characters
- Sourcing certain script files causes crashes
Requested features
5 requests- Add support for package managers like Homebrew or APT
- Implement more advanced shell features like job control and better tab completion
- Integrate Git for version control
- Allow installing additional packages and libraries
- Improve clipboard and file management integration
SSL Time
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
a
No in-app purchases
SSL Time
- SSL Time - Monthly7 Days trial$0.991 Month
- SSL Time - Yearly7 Days trial$9.991 Year
