Comparison

Develop! Film Timer vs Lightme

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

Head to head
About

Develop! Film Timer

This app provides a flexible and intuitive timer for film and darkroom development. Create custom development recipes with multiple steps and intervals, and utilize a special darkroom mode for low-light conditions. Easily share your recipes and import them from FilmDev.org.

Highlights
  • Customizable development recipes
  • Multiple steps and intervals per recipe
  • Darkroom Mode (red-on-black theme)
  • Integrated interval timer
  • Import recipes from FilmDev.org
  • Share recipes via social media
Features
Read full description

Develop your film with a smile! Develop! is a flexible, elegant timer for developing film and working in the darkroom. Build your own development recipes in a few taps: as many steps as you need, each with its own agitation intervals. It's entirely up to you; you're in full control. Notable features: - Voice Control: Hands wet? Just say "NEXT" to move on to the next step. Recognition runs on your iPhone, no internet connection needed. - Keeps time in the background: Leave the app or lock your phone and the timer keeps running. You'll get a notification when a step ends and at every agitation. - Intervals: A built-in interval timer handles things like "beep after the first minute, then every 30 seconds." You'll see at a glance how long until your next inversion. - Darkroom Mode: A strict red-on-black theme for darkroom use. - Flexible: As many recipes and steps as you like, steps of up to 90 minutes, named your way, with notes for every recipe. - Easy to read: A large timer you can see across the room, styled after a classic camera body, right down to the vulcanite. - Import: Bring in recipes straight from FilmDev.org. - Share: Send a recipe as a file with Mail, Messages, AirDrop or anything else on the share sheet. No more losing track of time or forgetting to agitate every 30 seconds. Concentrate on being the best photographer and alchemist you can be, and leave the timing to Develop! Now go out there and shoot a roll of film. Good luck! 100% free. Always.

About

Lightme

This app provides a powerful yet simple light metering tool for photographers. It offers advanced features like spot metering, zone system implementation, and reciprocity failure compensation, alongside a clean interface for easy one-handed use. It supports a wide range of films and camera setups, making it suitable for both beginners and experienced users.

Highlights
  • Multiple aperture/shutterspeed combinations
  • Spot metering with variable zoom
  • Automatic reciprocity failure compensation
  • Pinhole mode with timer
  • Incident light metering with calibration
  • Black and white preview
  • Film stock selection
Features
Read full description

Lightme - Lightmeter is a clean, simple to use yet very powerful lightmeter. It is optimised for an easy one-handed use, both for left-handed and right-handed users, with the main controls within your thumb's reach, without the fatiguing juggling of your precious smartphone. A core distinguishing feature of Lightme - Lightmeter is that - differently from most of the other apps - it can show multiple combinations of valid settings for aperture and shutterspeed at the same time by working like a - stretched out - old needle and wheel lightmeter. This allows the user to quickly pick the desired settings without having to scroll on a tiny wheel picker. The app is designed to be welcoming to people who are just starting out, with a simple one-button use. But it offers many useful and advanced features for the more experienced shooters/users: Continuous metering (by pressing and holding or double tapping the measure button) Spot metering with a variable zoom (for more precision) which also supports average metering, and a very intuitive implementation of the zone system Automatic reciprocity failure compensation (for 25+ films, if you see exposure times in red, they are being compensated) A dedicated pinhole mode with precise exposure times for user defined apertures (multiple apertures at a time), with the possibility of setting a timer (through a shortcut) Incident light metering with calibration when using the front facing camera And more ... It also includes some other features that are enjoyable by any kind of user: Black and white preview The ability to use any of the cameras on your smartphone (swipe left/right on the preview) Multiple presets for your different camera/film/lens setups Framelines for previewing your shot, before setting up your tripod etc. A searchable list of useful tips to make better use of the application's potential A searchable list of more than 70 films to choose from with the possibility of selecting a few favourites Dark mode support and a useful level of customisation You can find even more info in the tips inside the app or you can have a look at full user manual by tapping on manual (in the settings) The app is free in all its many functionalities, but it offers In-App-Purchases in order to support the project. The only minor perk you can enable only via certain IAPs is the replacement of the Ad button with a label containing the name of your current preset, check under settings -> coffee for more info. Don't panic though, even if there's an Ad button it doesn't mean I'm going to show you ads. In fact unless you decide to tap on that button I'm never going to show you any. But if you have a few minutes to spare, watching a few of them sure helps keeping this project alive :) Try it, and, if you like it, share it with your friends and consider writing a (mini) review ;) Have a nice day, and good light!

Screenshots

Develop! Film Timer4 screens
Lightme4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Develop! Film Timer at none against Lightme's 4. Lightme's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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

Both are free to download. Lightme sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Develop! Film Timer asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Develop! Film Timer against 4.8 for Lightme. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 416 and 961 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 89% of Develop! Film Timer's written reviews are positive against 91% of Lightme's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Develop! Film Timer ships an update every 4 weeks, Lightme every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on November 13, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Develop! Film Timer versus Lightme: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDevelop! Film TimerLightme
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (416 ratings)4.8 (961 ratings) — better
Positive reviews88.7% of reviews90.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings416961 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeksEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB10 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTodd BreslowGiuseppe Bertolini

Customer experience

Develop! Film Timer

All ratings374 ratings
Positive95.2%
Neutral1.9%
Negative2.9%
Written reviews115 reviews
Positive88.7%
Neutral6.1%
Negative5.2%

Lightme

All ratings944 ratings
Positive96.6%
Neutral1.3%
Negative2.1%
Written reviews215 reviews
Positive90.7%
Neutral1.9%
Negative7.4%

User reviews

Develop! Film Timer

From 416 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Straightforward and useful
  • 👍 Customizable timers and recipes
  • 👍 Helpful voice prompts
  • 👍 Simple and easy to use
  • 👍 Excellent for film development

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
  • 🔋 Cannot run in background
  • 👎 Quiet chime/alarm volume
  • 👎 Difficult to add/edit tasks
  • 👎 No darkroom mode or red light option

Lightme

From 961 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Accurate metering
  • 👍 Intuitive and clean interface
  • 💡 Comprehensive features (spot metering, zone system, film stock selection, etc.)
  • 🚀 Consistently accurate exposures
  • 👍 Thoughtful design with user's needs in mind

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or freezes
  • 👎 Confusing or cluttered interface for some users
  • 👎 Tedious film selection process
  • 🐛 Inaccurate metering in certain lighting conditions

Bugs and requests

Develop! Film Timer

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on startup for some users
  • Timer stops when switching apps or locking phone
  • Issues with saving and editing recipes

Requested features

7 requests
  • Ability to pause and resume timers
  • Option to clone/duplicate existing recipes
  • Integration with development charts or databases
  • More detailed task descriptions and notes
  • Ability to skip optional steps
Show 2 more
  • Larger font size for better visibility
  • Background music playback without interruption

Lightme

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes on iOS 16
  • Metering issues with certain camera/lens combinations

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add shutter angle adjustment for cinematography
  • Implement ISO lock feature
  • Add more film stock profiles
  • Improve film selection process (e.g. search, categories)
  • Provide more customization options (e.g. interface themes)

In-app purchases

None

Develop! Film Timer

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Lightme

One-time4
  • Guanciale$9.99
  • Parmigiano$16.99
  • Pizza for two$29.99
Show 1 more
  • Do this full-time$59.99

Questions

Is Develop! Film Timer free?
Develop! Film Timer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Lightme free?
Lightme is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Develop! Film Timer or Lightme?
Lightme is rated higher. Develop! Film Timer averages 4.8 out of 5 from 416 ratings, while Lightme averages 4.8 from 961 ratings.
Do Develop! Film Timer or Lightme have ads?
Neither Develop! Film Timer nor Lightme shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Develop! Film Timer or Lightme?
Develop! Film Timer ships an update every 4 weeks, and Lightme every 3 weeks. Most recently, Develop! Film Timer was updated on November 13, 2026 and Lightme on November 13, 2026.

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