AlwaysOn vs Smart TV Guide
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
AlwaysOn
Transform a plugged-in iPhone into a convenient desk display. View the time, date, calendar, and weather at a glance. Features a sleep mode for nighttime use and custom display hours.
- Large digital clock display
- Current date and calendar
- Upcoming calendar events
- Local weather forecast
- Customizable display hours
- Low-brightness sleep mode
- Burn-in protection
Read full descriptionHide full description
Turn your iPhone or iPad into a beautiful desk and nightstand clock. Free, with no ads and no subscriptions. AlwaysOn shows the time, your calendar, weather and more on a screen you leave docked or propped up, and on your Home Screen and Lock Screen too. START WITH A FINISHED DESIGN • Ready-made layouts, each with its own background • Swipe between layouts, and the background moves with your widgets • Change any of them, or make your own WIDGETS FOR YOUR HOME SCREEN • Clock, with seven faces including Eclipse: the time inside a glowing ring • Time Together, Daylight, Word Clock, Card Clock, Tube Clock, Countdown, Green Room, Moon Phase and Horizon • Home Screen, Lock Screen and StandBy • Tap ▶ to watch a whole day go by in seconds CLOCKS AND BACKGROUNDS • Digital clocks in eleven styles, including big iPhone-style digits • Clock backgrounds: Lens, Card (split-flap), Tube, Prism, Stone, Shadow and Green Room • Space backgrounds: Tonight's Sky shows the real stars over your city, plus Earthrise, Saturn and Jupiter • Animated and still backgrounds: Earth, Horizon, Moon Phase, Catnap, Soft Flow, Tide and more • Seasonal backgrounds for holidays and festivals MADE FOR NIGHT • Darker nights with a soft amber clock • Day Mode hours, Smart Dimming and burn-in protection • A sunrise alarm that wakes you with light YOUR LAYOUT • Arrange the clock with Calendar, Up Next, Weather, World Clock, Countdown, a Focus timer, Photos and Battery • Separate layouts for portrait and landscape, made for both iPhone and iPad PRIVATE BY DESIGN • No account, no tracking, no data collected • Available in English, Spanish and Simplified Chinese AlwaysOn turns a screen you're not using into something calm and useful.
Smart TV Guide
Read full descriptionHide full description
Smart TV Guide helps you decide what to watch in seconds. Browse TV programs for France, Belgium and Switzerland in a clear, fast app designed for relaxed evenings in front of the TV. • See what is on now and what is coming up next. • Browse several days of schedules with a 24-hour timeline. • Quickly search for a channel and open its detailed page. • Add your favorite channels and keep them at the top of your guide. • Set a reminder before a show you do not want to miss. • Choose your country, theme and a compact layout that fits your habits. • Refresh the schedule whenever you want, with a Wi-Fi-only option to help limit mobile data usage. Your favorites, country and display preferences stay on your device. No account is required to use the guide. The free version may show native ads. Smart TV Guide is a TV program guide: it does not stream television channels or replace a TV subscription.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: AlwaysOn at none against Smart TV Guide's 1. AlwaysOn also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 9 days). On price, device support 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
Both are free to download. Smart TV Guide sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. AlwaysOn asks for nothing beyond the download.
AlwaysOn ships an update every 4 days, Smart TV Guide every 9 days. Both last shipped on November 10, 2026.
| Parameter | AlwaysOn | Smart TV Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (26 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 26 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 4 days — better | Every 9 days |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 63 MB | 35 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Weijin Wang | Theo Vankoekelberg |
In-app purchases
AlwaysOn
No in-app purchases
Smart TV Guide
- Smart TV Guide Plus$3.99
Questions
Is AlwaysOn free?
Is Smart TV Guide free?
Do AlwaysOn or Smart TV Guide have ads?
Which is updated more often, AlwaysOn or Smart TV Guide?
Other comparisons















