PDB Viewer vs OpenBat
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
PDB Viewer
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PDB Viewer turns your phone into a molecular microscope. Search the entire Protein Data Bank and over 200 million AlphaFold predictions, then explore any protein, virus, drug, or DNA structure in interactive 3D โ free, with no account, no ads, and no sign-up. WHERE THE MOLECULES COME FROM โข RCSB Protein Data Bank โ 200,000+ experimentally determined structures โข AlphaFold โ 200M+ AI-predicted protein models โข SWISS-MODEL โ template-based homology models โข PubChem and ChEMBL โ millions of drugs and compounds โข Crystallography Open Database โ small-molecule crystals โข NCI/CADD resolver โ type a chemical name and get a 3D model Every source is free and needs no API key. You can also open your own .pdb and .cif files. WAYS TO SEE IT โข Five representations: wireframe, ball-and-stick, space-filling (CPK), cartoon/ribbon, and a smooth molecular surface โข Color by element, chain, secondary structure, rainbow, or AlphaFold confidence (pLDDT) โข Biological assemblies: rebuild an entire icosahedral virus capsid from a few deposited chains โข NMR ensembles: overlay every model in the bundle to watch a protein flex โข Automatic secondary-structure detection MADE FOR TOUCH โข Rotate, pinch-zoom, and pan with smooth native rendering โข Tap any atom to see its element, residue, and chain โข Recently viewed structures are cached, so they reopen instantly and work offline For students, researchers, teachers, and the simply curious. PDB Viewer makes structural biology beautiful and accessible. Structures are provided by their respective databases. PDB Viewer is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by the RCSB PDB, EMBL-EBI, or AlphaFold.
OpenBat
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OpenBat is a free iOS app that turns a compatible ultrasonic USB microphone into a live bat detector. It captures audio at up to 384 kHz, shows a real-time spectrogram, detects individual echolocation pulses, and, where an open-source model exists for your region, suggests species IDs on-device. Currently covers the US and Canada, with UK/Europe in beta. ** Bat detection requires an external ultrasonic microphone. Visit OpenBat.app to learn more. ** Hear bats in real time OpenBat uses two ways to turn ultrasonic bat calls into sound you can actually hear: - Heterodyne: tunes into a band of frequencies and scales it down. Preserves rhythm and loudness, but can sound clicky. - Time expansion: records a call, then plays it back at a fraction of the speed. Preserves the character of the call, but not the rhythm. - Het + TE hybrid: both running at once. Analyse your recordings Record what you hear, then break down the calls in Playback. Extract the parameters used to identify species, save them for later, or post recordings straight to iNaturalist for the community to help confirm an ID. Learn about bats AutoID suggests which species might be around you in real time. The Field Guide covers bats in your area and worldwide, curated by bat experts and kept up to date โ and if you know your local bats, you can contribute too. Share it, or keep it to yourself Play the bats you're hearing through your device's speakers, or plug in headphones and listen alone.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: OpenBat at none against PDB Viewer's 1. OpenBat also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs monthly). PDB Viewer's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. PDB Viewer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. OpenBat asks for nothing beyond the download.
PDB Viewer ships an update monthly, OpenBat every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 10, 2026 and November 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PDB Viewer | OpenBat |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 4 days โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No โ better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 โ better | 18.0 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 2 MB | 52 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Qvyshift LLC | Niall Bell |
In-app purchases
PDB Viewer
- PDB Viewer Pro$9.99
OpenBat
No in-app purchases









