Acupuncture Tools vs Dotted
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Acupuncture Tools
This app provides acupuncturists with a comprehensive suite of tools for TCM, Five Element, and Dr. Tan's Balance Method. It includes AI pattern determination, symptom and condition indexes, and substance searches. Offline functionality ensures accessibility for practitioners.
- AI pattern determination
- Symptom and condition indexes
- Five Element theory tools
- Dr. Tan's Balance Method calculations
- Substance search (salts, homeopathy, Ayurveda, TCM foods)
- Offline functionality
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This App has tools that are useful to acupuncturists, both from a TCM, "Five Element" (5E), Japanese, Korean and Dr Tan background. a) For TCM there is a simple list of point categories like Yuan Source, Xi Cleft, Shu Points. It also has an AI Chat service which helps determine involved patterns. It also has a BaGua AI service, though this is in Beta. There are pages for: * Sign and Symptoms. * Pathology Diagrams * Extraordinary Channels * Conditions Points (a large index) * Diagnostics (pulse and tongue)[Beta] b) For Five Elements it has tools for the following theories: * Transfer of Qi, * Four Needles, * Aggressive Energy, * Possession, * Husband-Wife, * Entry-Exit blocks. c) Dr. Richard Tan's acupuncture system, often referred to as "Balance Method" or "Dr. Tan's Balance Method," is a unique approach to acupuncture that focuses on achieving quick and effective results. Dr. Tan's Balance Method is known for its systematic approach to diagnosis and treatment, often resulting in quick pain relief and improvement in various conditions. It combines traditional Chinese medicine principles with modern insights into the body's energy systems. This app calculates global balance, seasonal balance and meridian conversion. Once installed, no internet connection is necessary. The app is created in the spirit of generosity of Dr Tan. d) Japanese intro. e) Korean traditional medicine. Sasang Constitution, Sa-am. f) Substances - salts, homeopathy, Ayurveda and TCM foods. There is a search engine that searches across all these categories. The substances are not harmful. TCM foods and Ayrveda substances can be bought in supermarkets. Do let me know if there are other calculations that might benefit acupuncturists.
Dotted
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Dotted is a calm, private habit notebook. One small dot a day, paper-textured pages, and quiet progress — instead of charts, badges, and noise. Keep your habits in one place. Mark the day with a dot. Add a note. Log a mood. Then close the app. QUIET BY DEFAULT Soft terracotta and paper. No streaks shouting at you, no leaderboards, no accounts to create. Dotted does not collect your habits. ONE DOT A DAY Tap to mark the day. The grid fills slowly. The app never tells you to do more. DAILY TASKS A quiet to-do list lives next to today's dots. Add a small task, check it off, or carry it to tomorrow. You can also keep a shared task with the person in your Shared Ritual. PHOTO JOURNAL Every day gets its own journal page. Write freely or follow three gentle prompts, add up to 10 photos, and pick a mood. Search past entries and keep your favorite days close. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Dotted has no accounts and no servers we own. Your habits, dots, notes, and moods stay on your device and sync only through your own iCloud. REVIEW AT YOUR PACE Browse the week, the month, or the year. See gentle stats — no shame, no graphs that pretend to know you. SHARED RITUALS Keep one small ritual together with someone you trust — like a daily walk, a stretch, or a check-in. Both tap a dot for the day; the ritual stays in sync between you. No public feed, no followers. You can leave at any time. QUIET REMINDERS & QUIET HOURS One gentle nudge if you want one. Set quiet hours to silence reminders at night. HOME SCREEN WIDGETS Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets keep today's dots one glance away. GENTLE WEEKLY, MONTHLY, AND YEARLY REVIEWS Three quiet rooms to look back: the past week, the past month, the past year. Streaks, gentle stats, and a paper-textured year calendar. SHARE CARDS A quiet way to share a small win — turn a streak or a finished month into a paper-textured card you can save or send. MADE WITH CARE Dotted is built and maintained by Teddy App Labs. No advertising. We use product analytics and crash diagnostics to improve Dotted. ——— Dotted is free to download: three habits, the photo journal, mood and tasks are free. Optional Dotted Pro unlocks unlimited habits, reviews, share cards and more as a monthly or yearly subscription or a one-time lifetime purchase. Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled in Settings → [your name] → Subscriptions. Privacy Policy: https://dotted.day/privacy Terms of Use: https://dotted.day/terms
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Acupuncture Tools at none against Dotted's 3. Acupuncture Tools also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Dotted's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 3 months) and device support (5 vs 3). On price 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. Dotted sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Acupuncture Tools asks for nothing beyond the download.
Acupuncture Tools ships an update every 3 months, Dotted weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Acupuncture Tools | Dotted |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | — |
| Number of ratings | 1 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Vision Pro — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 39 MB | 31 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Jon Loken | Teddy App Labs, LLC |
In-app purchases
Acupuncture Tools
No in-app purchases
Dotted
- Dotted Pro Monthly$9.991 Month
- Dotted Pro Annual7 Days trial$59.991 Year
- Dotted Pro Lifetime$99.99
Questions
Is Acupuncture Tools free?
Is Dotted free?
Do Acupuncture Tools or Dotted have ads?
Which is updated more often, Acupuncture Tools or Dotted?
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