Comparison

Text Clock Widget vs Wadokei57 Astronomical clock

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

Head to head
About

Text Clock Widget

Features
Read full description

This app includes widgets that displays the current time as text, a faster way to perceive the time than reading numbers. Add the widgets to the different places where widgets can be displayed on iPhone, iPad, AppleWatch and MacOS. Three different time text styles can be used: • Hour and minutes • To and past the hour • To and past the half hour Choose to show the current date and whether the time should be rounded to the nearest 5 minutes. You can choose between 6 different background colors.

About

Wadokei57 Astronomical clock

This app combines a traditional Japanese clock based on sunrise and sunset with a miniature planetarium. It displays celestial movements, moon phases, and seasonal changes, all optimized for Apple Watch.

Highlights
  • Traditional Japanese time system
  • Miniature planetarium with star simulation
  • Moon phase and seasonal displays
  • Complications for Moon, Sun, Venus
  • Time navigation via crown rotation
  • Offline operation
Features
Read full description

This Apple Watch app combines a Japanese "Wa-dokei" (traditional Japanese clock) based on sunrise and sunset with the world's smallest planetarium. The red hand at the top of the clock shows the current time. The center hand indicates the phases of the moon and the seasons. ● Key Features ・Complications for the Moon, Sun, Venus, and traditional Japanese time ・Traditional Japanese time: A system dividing the day (sunrise to sunset) and night (sunset to sunrise) into six segments each ・Displays time periods based on the 12 Chinese Zodiac signs, synchronized with local sunrise and sunset times based on latitude and longitude ・Simulates the starry sky for locations around the world ・Time navigation by rotating the crown ・Displays a gradient on the day/night ring representing night sky brightness based on moon phase and altitude ●About WADOKEI The ancient Japanese WADOKEI has 12 animals named for each hour of the day. ・子: Mid-night – when the Rat is most active. ・丑: Early hours of night – when the Ox is chewing the cud. ・寅: Late hours of night – when the Tiger is prowling and seeking food. ・卯: Sunrise – when the Hare and the Rabbit are busy foraging for food. ・辰: Early morning – when the divine Dragon rises to control the rain (the dawn sunrise determining the day’s weather). ・巳: Mid-morning – when the Snake becomes active. ・午: Mid-day – when the Horse cavalry return from drill. ・未: Early-afternoon – when the Sheep is eating grass. ・申: Mid-afternoon – when the Monkey becomes active hunting scraps. ・酉: Late-afternoon – when the C**k returns from the forest to roost. ・戌: Early-evening – when the Dog keeps watch. ・亥: Late-evening – when everything is quiet and the Pig or Boar forages. (source:wadokei.org) In this app, the hour of 酉 is set to the time of sunset. ● Celestial Simulation ・Real-time Celestial Calculation: Accurate sunrise and sunset times for your current location. ・Constellation Display: Accurately depicts over 1,000 stars and 88 constellations. ・Sun and Moon Orbits: Track the movement of celestial bodies in real time. ・Tracks the movement of Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn in real time. ●Privacy & Security ・Location Information: Used Only for Astronomical Calculations; No External Transmission ・Offline Operation: No Internet Connection Required ・Data Protection: All Calculations Performed Locally ・Battery Optimization: Long-Lasting Operation with Efficient Algorithms ● 24 Solar Terms Calendar ・Calculates and displays the 24 solar terms based on the solar orbital position ・Moon Phase Display: Precisely reproduces the phases of the moon, from new moon to full moon. Inverted left and right in the Southern Hemisphere. ・Seasonal Hand: Turn the crown to simulate seasonal changes throughout the year. ● Apple Watch Optimization Swipe to switch between Japanese clock display, starry sky display, and settings screen. Switch between Japanese clock display and starry sky display with index finger and thumb gestures. (Series 9 and later) Double-tap the Japanese clock display screen to switch the kanji characters to animal illustrations. Location support: Accurate astronomical calculations anywhere in the world. ● Expanded Starry Sky View Observe the constellations. Turn the crown to move through time. ・The starry sky rotates in real time with the electronic compass. ・Displays the direction and altitude of the stars. ・Displays the positions of the sun and moon. ● Intuitive Operation ・Long Press: A 10-second animation of seasonal changes throughout the year. ・Swipe: Switch between Japanese clock and starry sky view. < Download now > Timeless beauty meets cutting-edge technology Would you like to watch a millennium of time on your wrist? This software uses the following libraries: ●SunCalc Copyright (c) 2025, Vladimir Agafonkin All rights reserved. (BSD-2-Clause license)

Screenshots

Text Clock Widget4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Wadokei57 Astronomical clock at every 5 days against Text Clock Widget's every 15 months. Wadokei57 Astronomical clock also leads on iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.4). Text Clock Widget's advantage is price ($0.99 vs $3.99). On ads, in-app purchases 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

Text Clock Widget costs $0.99 and Wadokei57 Astronomical clock $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Text Clock Widget ships an update every 15 months, Wadokei57 Astronomical clock every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 5 level
Text Clock Widget versus Wadokei57 Astronomical clock: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterText Clock WidgetWadokei57 Astronomical clock
Price$0.99 — better$3.99
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Update frequencyEvery 15 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Paid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPod, Apple Watch
Requires iOS17.415.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB4 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMagne RoaldShinichi Sekiguchi

In-app purchases

None

Text Clock Widget

No in-app purchases

None

Wadokei57 Astronomical clock

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Text Clock Widget free?
Text Clock Widget costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Wadokei57 Astronomical clock free?
Wadokei57 Astronomical clock costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Text Clock Widget or Wadokei57 Astronomical clock have ads?
Neither Text Clock Widget nor Wadokei57 Astronomical clock shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Text Clock Widget or Wadokei57 Astronomical clock?
Text Clock Widget ships an update every 15 months, and Wadokei57 Astronomical clock every 5 days. Most recently, Text Clock Widget was updated on October 27, 2026 and Wadokei57 Astronomical clock on October 8, 2026.

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