Comparison

SideNotes Mobile vs Galactic

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

Head to head
About

SideNotes Mobile

Capture thoughts and to-dos on the go with this mobile note-taking app. It offers iCloud sync, Markdown formatting, and customizable themes for a personalized experience. Easily access notes from other applications.

Highlights
  • iCloud Synchronization
  • Markdown Formatting
  • Task Management
  • Customizable Themes
  • Note and Folder URLs
  • Note Colors
Features
Read full description

SideNotes Mobile is a fast notes app for iPhone and iPad. Capture notes, tasks, links, and snippets in seconds, then access them across devices with iCloud sync. Version 1.2 brings a major upgrade: - A new editor with hidden Markdown markup - the same as in SideNotes for macOS - Refreshed iOS 26-style interface (Liquid Glass look) - Note folding - Note & Folder pinning - Simple drag-and-drop reordering - New contextual menu - New formatting options - Add Note action for the iPhone Action Button - New translations: Chinese (Simplified), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, and Spanish - UI polish, bug fixes, and quality improvements Core features: - iCloud sync across iPhone, iPad, and Mac - Themes and note colors for personalization - Tasks and checklists for daily work - Folder organization and quick search - Note and folder URLs for fast access from other apps - Text settings for comfortable writing and reading - One-time purchase (paid per major version). No subscription. Note: SideNotes Mobile is a companion app to SideNotes for macOS. SideNotes for macOS is sold separately.

About

Galactic

Explore the web and get quick answers directly from your wrist. This app offers a streamlined browsing experience on Apple Watch, with options to mirror content to your TV. It supports multiple search engines and provides fast, high-quality results.

Highlights
  • Browse websites on Apple Watch
  • Mirror sites to Apple TV
  • Multiple search engine support
  • Fast, high-quality results
  • Bookmark websites
  • Customizable themes and content size
Features
Read full description

+ Charted #1 for paid apps across the world. + 19K+ downloads since June 2023. + Beware of copies. An original piece of work by David Mazzeo. Get quick answers, check up on your favourite sites, and more right from your wrist; with Galactic – the new way to explore the web on Apple Watch. You can also use Galactic for iOS to control Galactic for Apple TV (or other external displays) while browsing websites. Scan a QR code found in Galactic for Apple TV, or type in your own URL and see the web in widescreen on your big screen via a custom AirPlay-based experience. # Features: + Launch and explore websites right on your Watch, with the detail you would expect on your iPhone. + Switch on the fly between three ways to load websites to ensure maximum compatibility across the web. + Get instant, high-quality results in a style that suits your Watch with Galactic's five supported search engines, each with a powerful purpose on the web: Google: A general search engine for the entire web. Wikipedia: Read and explore millions of articles. Dictionary: Define new words. DuckDuckGo: Quick info for any keyword. Pexels: A gallery of millions of pictures shot by expert photographers. + Store your recent search history on-device. + Bookmark websites for quick access from the search screen. + Complications for almost every watch face. + Three themes to make it yours. + Change the size of content to suit your needs. + Heaps more! + Use Galactic for iOS to mirror sites to Apple TV & external displays. Scan a QR code found in Galactic for Apple TV, or type in your own URL and see the web in widescreen on your big screen via a custom AirPlay-based experience. Still not convinced? Galactic takes the web further than its competitors in the ways highlighted below. # Why choose Galactic? Galactic offers a browsing experience unmatched on Apple Watch, with headlining features including: + An unrivalled design made for Apple Watch.  Galactic's design has been meticulously refined for the Watch. While competitors take you to a search engine's website to squint at tiny text, Galactic displays results in-line with a native look and clear text. + Faster performance. Because Galactic doesn't need to load an entire webpage for every search query, you can get the results you're looking for much faster than on most competitors. + High-quality results. Galactic partners directly with search engines that are used by millions of people each day for their detailed and accurate results. + The best web compatibility on the market. Galactic offers enhanced compatibility with the web, with multiple web renderers for when one can't load your content. + Seamless integration with your iPhone.  Receive a notification on your phone when you send a result to it, and jump right in with a single tap. + Comes with Galactic for Apple TV. Your purchase of Galactic for Apple Watch also comes with Galactic for Apple TV – the best way to search the web on the big screen. # More Information: Galactic is privacy conscious. I, the developer, do not collect or access your data, including your search history. However, by using the third-party search engines it ships with, you are subject to their privacy policies: hence for honesty and clarity, the app's privacy label reflects these engines. You can opt out of this by bookmarking a search engine of your choice. Due to hardware limitations, certain websites may not behave correctly on such a small device – though this is a rare occurrence. Additionally, Galactic also cannot store cookies. For questions or concerns, reach out on david@mazzeoapps.com. # Credits: The night sky images used in Galactic and App Store screenshots were captured by Miriam Espacio on Pexels: bit.ly/3SBHBe6 bit.ly/3LUf6EJ The Golden Gate Bridge image in the watchOS Wikipedia screenshot was captured by Rich Niewiroski Jr.: bit.ly/3SYjuqj

Screenshots

SideNotes Mobile4 screens
Galactic4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: SideNotes Mobile at 88% against Galactic's 5%. Galactic's advantage is price ($1.99 vs $9.99) and update cadence (fortnightly vs monthly). On 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

SideNotes Mobile costs $9.99 and Galactic $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SideNotes Mobile ships an update monthly, Galactic fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
SideNotes Mobile versus Galactic: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSideNotes MobileGalactic
Price$9.99$1.99 — better
Rating4.2 (29 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews88.4% of reviews — better4.9% of reviews
Number of ratings29 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank—#183 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS1715.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB13 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperApptoriumLuigi Mazzeo

Customer experience

SideNotes Mobile

All ratings28 ratings
Positive82.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative17.9%
Written reviews43 reviews
Positive88.4%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.6%

Galactic

Written reviews81 reviews
Positive4.9%
Neutral1.2%
Negative93.8%

Bugs and requests

SideNotes Mobile

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Galactic

Reported bugs

18 issues
  • App not working
  • Keeps crashing
  • QR code not galactic
  • QR code not working
  • App not able to read QR code
Show 13 more
  • iPhone / TV codes don't match
  • Screen goes black on TV
  • Video plays only on iPhone
  • DuckDuckGo API is broken
  • Cannot open anything
  • Web pages don't load
  • Buggy as hell
  • Cannot search google
  • Cannot stream directly on Apple TV
  • Cannot click links to visit websites
  • Trailers don't play on TV
  • Cannot choose any link
  • Cannot browse to any results page or link

Requested features

6 requests
  • Allow direct browsing on Apple TV
  • Make app functional without mirroring
  • Improve UI
  • Fix DuckDuckGo API
  • Allow refunds for this app
Show 1 more
  • Remove "Browser" from app name

In-app purchases

None

SideNotes Mobile

No in-app purchases

None

Galactic

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SideNotes Mobile free?
SideNotes Mobile costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Galactic free?
Galactic costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do SideNotes Mobile or Galactic have ads?
Neither SideNotes Mobile nor Galactic shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SideNotes Mobile or Galactic?
SideNotes Mobile ships an update monthly, and Galactic fortnightly. Most recently, SideNotes Mobile was updated on October 20, 2026 and Galactic on October 19, 2026.

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