DipSwitch vs FireAlarmGuy
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
DipSwitch
This app helps lighting technicians quickly configure fixture settings using a digital interface. It calculates dip switch configurations, allows for easy addressing and offsetting, and helps determine fixture capacity within a universe. Streamline your patching process with this intuitive tool.
- Calculate dip switch configurations
- Enter address and see dip switch settings
- Apply offset values for quick addressing
- Determine fixture capacity per universe
- Generate addresses for sequential fixtures
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Set a DMX address on a dip-switch block without doing binary in your head, in the dark, up a ladder. Type the address, read the switches. DipSwitch draws the block the way it looks on the back of the fixture, so you can hold your phone next to the real thing and compare it switch for switch. It has been doing this job since 2008. ON THE FIXTURE • Enter an address and see the switch pattern immediately • The block is drawn to match real hardware, with the ON marking and channel weights • Set the number of switches to match your fixture, from 1 to 16 • Swap and mirror for blocks that are printed the other way round PLANNING A RIG • Set the offset to your fixture's channel footprint and step the whole rig one button at a time • See how many fixtures fit a 512-channel universe, and the last address you can use • Save fixtures you use often as profiles, so the channel count is one tap away • Know two addresses and need the rest? Enter both and the spacing does the work • Tick off fixtures as you patch them, and share the finished list as a PDF ON APPLE WATCH • The whole calculator on your wrist, for when one hand is holding the fixture • Turn the Digital Crown to step the address by your offset • A complication puts the current address on your watch face • Address, offset and fixture profiles stay in sync with your iPhone English, German and French. Free, no in-app purchases. Built in Luxembourg by a lighting technician who got tired of counting bits.
FireAlarmGuy
This utility app provides two essential tools for fire alarm technicians. It features a calculator for determining DMX dip switch settings and a decoder for understanding battery manufacturing date codes, streamlining fieldwork.
- DMX Dip Switch Calculator
- Battery Date Code Decoder
- Device addressing assistance
- Battery production date lookup
- Fieldwork simplification
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FireAlarmGuy is the ultimate tool for fire alarm technicians, combining two essential features in one app: DMX Dip Switch Calculator – Instantly find the correct dip switch positions for device addressing. Just enter the address, and get the right settings in seconds. Battery Date Code Decoder – Quickly decode manufacturing date codes for sealed lead-acid (SLA) batteries. Enter the code to determine the production date. Built by a fire alarm tech, for fire alarm techs, FireAlarmGuy makes fieldwork faster and easier. Download now and simplify your job!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: FireAlarmGuy at every 2 weeks against DipSwitch's every 13 months. FireAlarmGuy also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 86%) and iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.5). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for DipSwitch against 5.0 for FireAlarmGuy. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 2 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 86% of DipSwitch's written reviews are positive against 100% of FireAlarmGuy's.
DipSwitch ships an update every 13 months, FireAlarmGuy every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | DipSwitch | FireAlarmGuy |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 86.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 13 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 17.5 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 3 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Bazinga sarl | Jack Dalton |
Customer experience
DipSwitch
FireAlarmGuy
Bugs and requests
DipSwitch
Reported bugs
4 issues- Crashes after iOS 10 update
- Does not calculate dip switches after iOS 10 update
- Does not work under OS 3
- Does not work for some users
Requested features
6 requests- Apple Watch app
- Manual or tutorial
- Option to have OFF as 1 and ON as 0 for specific devices
- User definable options (e.g., number of dip switches, all off=001)
- Notepad feature to track set switches
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- Dark mode option
FireAlarmGuy
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
DipSwitch
No in-app purchases
FireAlarmGuy
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is DipSwitch free?
Is FireAlarmGuy free?
Which has better reviews, DipSwitch or FireAlarmGuy?
Do DipSwitch or FireAlarmGuy have ads?
Which is updated more often, DipSwitch or FireAlarmGuy?
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