Comparison

ACM XRDS vs SCOTUSWatch

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

Head to head
About

ACM XRDS

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Established in 1994 and published quarterly, XRDS is the official ACM magazine for student members. Each issue features a theme, such as "CS in Service of Democracy" or "Big Data," and XRDS delivers exciting research trends, interviews, student chapter highlights, and career advice relevant to computer science students. The publication also lists major conferences, calls for papers, grants and fellowships, and other useful information to help students make the most of their educational careers. This application is powered by GTxcel, a leader in digital publishing technology, provider of hundreds of online digital publications and mobile magazine apps.

About

SCOTUSWatch

This app provides instant push notifications for new Supreme Court documents, including AI-generated summaries and the ability to track specific cases. It offers a reader mode for opinions, audio playback with distinct voices for each Justice, and sharing options for audio clips. Designed for legal professionals, journalists, and engaged citizens.

Highlights
  • Push notifications for new documents
  • AI-generated plain-language summaries
  • Watched case tracking
  • Opinion reader mode
  • Slip opinion audio playback
  • 30-second audio clip sharing
Features
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The Supreme Court doesn't always announce when it publishes. SCOTUSWatch does. SCOTUSWatch monitors the Supreme Court's website and sends you a push notification the moment new documents appear — slip opinions, order lists, shadow docket rulings, miscellaneous orders, and more. No refreshing. Just alerts when the Court acts. WHAT YOU GET • Push notifications for every new Supreme Court document • AI-generated plain-language summaries of opinions and orders, with topic tags for quick identification (optional) • Watched Cases — track specific cases and choose how you're notified: everything, Order List activity only, or muted. Get alerted when new docket entries are filed, when the Court issues an order affecting a case, or when a case considered at conference is missing from the Order List. Sort by case number or recent activity, view the full docket, and read filings in the built-in PDF viewer • Opinion Day Live Activities — on decision days, follow slip-opinion releases in real time from your Lock Screen and Dynamic Island • Reader — read opinions in a clean, reflowable view with your own font, text size, margins, spacing, and light/sepia/dark theme • Listen — hear slip opinions read aloud with a distinct voice for each Justice, with background play, speed control, chapter navigation by author, and offline downloads • Audio Clips — share a passage of up to 30 seconds as a video, straight from the player • Full document type coverage: Slip Opinions, Order Lists, Opinions Relating to Orders, Miscellaneous Orders, and In-Chambers Opinions • Full Term overview — searchable and sortable by document type, month, and Slip Opinion author READ, LISTEN, AND SHARE Every opinion can be read the way you like it. Switch from the raw PDF to Reader for clean, reflowable text tuned to your own typography and theme. Prefer to listen? SCOTUSWatch reads slip opinions aloud with a distinct voice per Justice — play in the background, adjust the speed, skip ahead, and jump between authors by chapter, online or off. When a passage stands out, clip up to 30 seconds and share it. FOR LAWYERS, JOURNALISTS, AND COURT WATCHERS Whether you're a litigator tracking cert grants, a reporter covering the Court, a law student following a landmark case, or just a curious citizen — SCOTUSWatch puts you in the front row, no matter where you are. WATCHED CASE ALERTS By default, watched-case alerts are built on your device. You can optionally have the SCOTUSWatch server build them instead for more reliable delivery; in that mode the server stores your watched cases (muted ones are never sent). ABOUT AI SUMMARIES When enabled, SCOTUSWatch uses AI to generate plain-language summaries of new opinions and orders, along with a short topic tag identifying the area of law. Summaries are clearly labeled and intended to help you quickly understand what was decided — not to replace the original document. AI summaries may contain errors or omissions; always refer to the official Court document for authoritative text. SCOTUSWatch is an independent app and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Supreme Court of the United States. Terms of Use: https://scottsapps.angstreich.net/TOS.html

Screenshots

ACM XRDS4 screens
SCOTUSWatch4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: ACM XRDS at none against SCOTUSWatch's 5. ACM XRDS also leads on iOS requirement (10.2 vs 18.0). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. SCOTUSWatch sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. ACM XRDS asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
ACM XRDS versus SCOTUSWatch: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterACM XRDSSCOTUSWatch
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (3 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—3 — better
Update frequency—Every 6 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS10.2 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size17 MB4 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperAssociation for Computing MachineryScott Angstreich

In-app purchases

None

ACM XRDS

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

SCOTUSWatch

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Support$0.991 Month
  • Annual Support$9.991 Year
One-time3
  • Double Espresso$2.99
  • Cold Brew$4.99
  • Grande Macchiato$9.99

Questions

Is ACM XRDS free?
ACM XRDS is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SCOTUSWatch free?
SCOTUSWatch is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do ACM XRDS or SCOTUSWatch have ads?
Neither ACM XRDS nor SCOTUSWatch shows ads.

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