Comparison

RetroDotTimer vs Nixie Tube Timer

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

Head to head
About

RetroDotTimer

Features
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A full-screen countdown that looks like the dot-matrix displays of vintage arcades and early computing. Set the time, put your iPhone or iPad face up on your desk, and let the pixel grid count down. ONE TIMER, FULL SCREEN • A large dot-matrix countdown, readable across the room • Tap the display to start, pause, or resume — or turn on the Start/Pause button if you prefer one • Optional landscape mode that fills the whole screen • Keep the screen awake while a timer runs, with an only-while-charging option LOCK SCREEN AND DYNAMIC ISLAND • The Live Activity shows a real dot-matrix face, not a plain text label • It counts down on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island • It follows the color scheme you chose in the app, including changes made mid-run • At zero it morphs into a checkmark and chimes once WIDGETS, CONTROLS, AND SIRI • A Home Screen widget that mirrors the timer, display-only • Control Center buttons to start a Pomodoro or a preset without opening the app • Siri and Shortcuts: start a timer, a preset, a Pomodoro, or the stopwatch, and pause, resume, or reset TIMER MODES • Presets: 5, 10, 25, and 45 minutes • Custom duration, 1 to 180 minutes • Classic Pomodoro: 25 minutes of work, 5-minute breaks, a 15-minute long break, 4 rounds • Stopwatch with a live hundredths-of-a-second sub-display • Multi-phase custom timers for intervals, rounds, and routines DISPLAY STYLES • Dot Matrix — the original pixel grid, with adjustable dot weight and square or round dots • 7-Segment — slanted LED calculator digits • Flip Clock — split-flap digits with animated transitions (Pro) • Big & Small — blocky digits with size-varied segments (Pro) COLOR • Transparent, Dark, and Light schemes • Six premium schemes: Amber, Green Terminal, Blue Glow, VFD Cyan, Sunset, Neon Pink (Pro) • Any text and background color you like (Pro) • Multicolored digits with Rainbow, Pastel, Neon, and Sunset palettes (Pro) WHEN TIME IS UP • Freeze at 00 or morph into a checkmark • A notification when the countdown ends • Sound and haptic alerts between Pomodoro and custom-timer phases WHAT THIS IS NOT Retro Dot Timer runs one timer at a time. No task lists, no labels, no session history, no analytics, no cloud sync. It is a single, quiet countdown. PRIVACY No accounts, no tracking, no analytics, no data collection. Everything works offline. FREE AND PRO The app is a free download and stays useful forever without paying. Presets, custom durations, the Dot Matrix and 7-Segment displays, square dots, Pomodoro, the stopwatch, the widget, Control Center buttons, Siri shortcuts, and the Live Activity are all free. Pro is a single one-time purchase, never a subscription. On iPhone and iPad it adds the Custom Timer Editor, six premium color schemes, custom colors, multicolored digits, and the Flip Clock and Big & Small displays. Pro is a Universal Purchase — the same payment unlocks the Mac menu-bar app. Every Pro feature is unlocked free for 14 days, starting automatically at first launch. No signup, no payment details. When the trial ends nothing is charged, Pro features simply return to the free tier, and any custom timers you saved stay runnable. LANGUAGES English, Spanish, Spanish (Latin America), German, French, Simplified Chinese. REQUIREMENTS iOS 18.0 or later. iPhone and iPad. SUPPORT contact@andeanbearstudios.com

About

Nixie Tube Timer

This app provides a visually appealing countdown timer with photorealistic nixie tubes. It allows users to extend timers mid-countdown and customize sound and color themes. It operates fully offline with no data tracking.

Highlights
  • Photorealistic nixie tube display
  • Extend timers mid-countdown
  • Eight customizable color themes
  • Six synthesized tick sounds and four alarms
  • Import custom alarm audio
  • User-defined timer increment buttons
  • Fully offline operation
  • Screen stays awake during countdown
Features
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Down to 30 seconds and need longer? Tap +1m and the clock reads 1:30, still running. Photorealistic nixie tubes, eight color themes, fully offline, nothing tracked. A TIMER YOU ACTUALLY WANT TO LOOK AT This is a countdown built around photorealistic nixie-tube digits. Dial in hours, minutes and seconds, hit Start, and watch the tubes glow down one digit at a time — a focus sprint, a kid's timeout, a pot on the stove. The screen stays awake while it runs. STRETCH A TIMER THAT'S ALREADY RUNNING This is the part other timers don't do. You set one minute. It counts down to thirty seconds and you realize you need longer. Tap +1m and the clock reads 1:30 and keeps going — still running, never stopped, never reset, nothing to start over. EIGHT COLOR SCHEMES Neon Green, Cyber Blue, Amber Glow, Crimson Red, Deep Purple, Hot Pink, Sunny Yellow and Rainbow. Switch instantly, no restart. A Full Glow style spreads the aura across the whole screen if you want more of it. SOUND ON YOUR TERMS Six tick sounds — Classic, Soft, Digital, Woodblock, Mechanical, Pendulum — synthesized on the fly and locked in step with the digits. Four alarms: Radar, Beacon, Chime, Pulse. Import your own audio file as a custom alarm, or set either to None for silence. Ticks and alarm have their own volume sliders. THE BUTTONS ARE YOURS The amounts you add are the ones you choose — +30s, +1m, +5m, +25m, whatever your day actually uses. Nothing is preset for you; press and hold to remove one. They sit right under the countdown while it runs, one tap from the tubes. Durations you run often come back as one-tap shortcuts too. BUILT TO BE QUICK - Timers from a few seconds up to 99:59:59 - Timed against the clock, so it stays accurate instead of drifting - Pause, resume, restart, cancel — or stretch the countdown without pausing it - Haptic feedback on start, on tap, and at zero - A local notification when the timer ends, even if you have left the app PRIVACY, PROPERLY No accounts, no ads, no analytics, no tracking, no data collection of any kind. The app never sends anything anywhere. Everything you set stays on your device. Free. iPhone, iOS 17 and later.

Screenshots

RetroDotTimer4 screens
Nixie Tube Timer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Nixie Tube Timer at none against RetroDotTimer's 1. Nixie Tube Timer also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs every 3 weeks). RetroDotTimer's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads and iOS requirement 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. RetroDotTimer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Nixie Tube Timer asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

RetroDotTimer ships an update every 3 weeks, Nixie Tube Timer every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
RetroDotTimer versus Nixie Tube Timer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRetroDotTimerNixie Tube Timer
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB85 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAndean Bear Studios GmbHGood Gary Apps LLC

In-app purchases

1 purchases

RetroDotTimer

One-time1
  • RetroDotTimer Pro$4.99
None

Nixie Tube Timer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is RetroDotTimer free?
RetroDotTimer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Nixie Tube Timer free?
Nixie Tube Timer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do RetroDotTimer or Nixie Tube Timer have ads?
Neither RetroDotTimer nor Nixie Tube Timer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, RetroDotTimer or Nixie Tube Timer?
RetroDotTimer ships an update every 3 weeks, and Nixie Tube Timer every 3 days. Most recently, RetroDotTimer was updated on October 25, 2026 and Nixie Tube Timer on October 29, 2026.

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