Comparison

Scientific Timer vs PDF Reader

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

Head to head
About

Scientific Timer

Features
Read full description

Scientific Timer helps researchers keep complex experiments on schedule. It breaks multi-step protocols into timer-tasks, so every incubation, wash and spin gets its own timer, in order, and you always know what comes next. Tired of juggling kitchen timers across the bench, or losing track of which tube went in the centrifuge when? Start from a curated protocol or build your own, then run as many timer-tasks in parallel as your experiments need. FEATURES PROTOCOLS AS TIMER-TASKS Each step of a protocol becomes a timer-task with its name, duration and position. Start, pause and reset each one on its own, and see its progress at a glance. CURATED PROTOCOLS, READY TO RUN 12 protocols with 211 timer-tasks, already set up: 10x Chromium Single Cell 3' Gene Expression v4 and 5' Gene Expression v3, 10x Xenium In Situ Gene Expression, ScaleBio Single Cell RNA Sequencing v1.1, Twist Library Preparation EF 2.0, Beckman Coulter SPRIselect left-side and double-sided size selection, Qiagen QIAamp DNA Micro, Qiagen RNeasy Midi/Maxi, NEB Ligation, immunofluorescence on frozen sections and trypsinization. Choose the ones you use when you first open the app, and change your selection later in Settings. YOUR OWN PROTOCOLS Create protocols and timer-tasks of your own, up to 24 hours each, as a countdown timer or a stopwatch. Put steps in the order you run them and mark your favorites. RUN MANY AT ONCE Run as many timer-tasks in parallel as you need, across several protocols. Timers keep counting while the app is closed, and a timer that passes its target keeps going, shown with a "+", so you know exactly how far over it is. QUIET NOTIFICATIONS A subtle notification on your iPhone tells you when a timer-task is done, instead of another alarm ringing across the lab. SEARCH Find a protocol by name in your library, or a timer-task by name within a protocol. BACK UP AND SHARE Export the protocols you created to a file, and import them again on another iPhone or share them with your lab. ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE Works with VoiceOver and Voice Control, adapts to the largest text sizes, supports Dark Mode, respects Reduce Motion, and does not rely on colour alone. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Scientific Timer collects no data. No account, no sign-in, no analytics, no tracking, no third-party SDKs. Your protocols and timers stay on your iPhone. LANGUAGES The app and its curated protocols in English, French, Spanish and Simplified Chinese. REQUIREMENTS iPhone with iOS 18 or later. Privacy Policy: https://elyzeo.com/apps/scientific-timer/privacy.html

About

PDF Reader

This app automatically finds and organizes all PDF files on your device, allowing you to view, edit, and share them. It offers features like highlighting, note-taking, and electronic signatures for efficient document management.

Highlights
  • Automatic PDF scanning and organization
  • View, edit, and annotate PDFs
  • Highlight text and add notes
  • Electronic signatures and form filling
  • Convert photos to PDFs
  • Split and combine PDFs
  • Password protection for documents
Features
Read full description

PDF Reader is the perfect solution for you! It automatically scans your device, finds all PDF files and presents them in a convenient list. It allows you to open, browse and manage documents in one place in no time. Versatile PDF reader The app allows you to quickly read files in various formats - documents, receipts, photos, business cards and notes. In addition to reading, you can highlight text, take notes, add electronic signatures, bookmarks and share PDF files with other users. Download now and increase your efficiency! PDF Reader is a combination of a PDF viewer, e-book reader and PDF editor - lightweight, free and extremely user-friendly. Perfect for work and study! Download PDF Reader and use all the features for free! PDF Reader Key Features - Convenient document browsing - Browsing page by page or in continuous scrolling mode - Support for portrait and landscape orientation - Reflow mode for smooth reading - Quickly jump to the selected page - Search and copy text from a document - Intuitive zooming in and out of pages Fast and free PDF support - Automatic scanning and detection of PDF files in the phone's memory - Quickly search for documents and content by keywords - Clear lists of PDF files for easy access - Instantly open and browse documents - Add bookmarks to PDF pages - Light and dark mode switched with a single click PDF editing features - Highlighting text fragments with different colors - Creating notes and highlights (e.g. underline, strikethrough) - Adding electronic signatures and filling out PDF forms (coming soon) - Drawing directly on PDF documents - Creating annotations and comments - Copying any text fragments from documents Advanced PDF tools - Convert photos to PDFs - Split and combine PDFs - Add your own texts to PDFs - Compress PDFs to reduce size (feature in the works) Professional document management - Quick access to recently opened files - Password protection of documents against unauthorized access - Options to rename, delete and mark files as favorites - Easily share documents with other users - Support for printing PDFs directly from your phone

Screenshots

Scientific Timer4 screens
PDF Reader4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: PDF Reader at every 2 weeks against Scientific Timer's every 16 months. PDF Reader also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads and in-app purchases 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

Scientific Timer costs $0.99 and PDF Reader $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Scientific Timer ships an update every 16 months, PDF Reader every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 2, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Scientific Timer versus PDF Reader: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterScientific TimerPDF Reader
Price$0.99$0.99
Rating—4.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 16 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Paid
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB42 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStephane BoutetGrzegorz Rakoca

In-app purchases

None

Scientific Timer

No in-app purchases

None

PDF Reader

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Scientific Timer free?
Scientific Timer costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is PDF Reader free?
PDF Reader costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Scientific Timer or PDF Reader have ads?
Neither Scientific Timer nor PDF Reader shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Scientific Timer or PDF Reader?
Scientific Timer ships an update every 16 months, and PDF Reader every 2 weeks. Most recently, Scientific Timer was updated on October 2, 2026 and PDF Reader on October 15, 2026.

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