ChronoDNA vs CrownBox
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
ChronoDNA
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ChronoDNA: Identify, Collect & Share Watches Point your camera at any watch and ChronoDNA identifies it in seconds: brand, model, reference number, retail price, and live market value. The ultimate app for watch collectors. SCAN ANY WATCH INSTANTLY Take a photo or upload one from your library. Our AI, trained on thousands of timepieces, returns the exact reference, MSRP, and current market price range in seconds. Works on wrist shots, box photos, and dealer listings. VISUAL AUTHENTICITY CHECK Every scan includes an AI-powered counterfeit check. Flags common signs of fakes before you buy, so you can shop with confidence. BUILD YOUR COLLECTION Add watches with details pre-filled from your scan: brand, model, reference, and pricing. Browse your collection at a glance, track what you own, and keep everything in one place. WISHLIST YOUR GRAILS Spot a watch you love? Save it to your wishlist in one tap. Your dream list, always with you. TOOLS FOR SERIOUS COLLECTORS Wrist Log: track which watches you've worn and when AD Waitlist: keep tabs on your authorized dealer waitlist status Insurance Export: generate a clean PDF of your collection for your insurer CONNECT WITH THE COMMUNITY Post scans and collection photos to the ChronoDNA feed. Like, comment, and tag fellow collectors with @mentions. The Alerts tab surfaces hot community finds: new drops, rare references, deals worth knowing. HOW IT WORKS Tap Scan, take or upload a photo, and the AI identifies the watch in seconds. Add to your collection, wishlist, or post to the feed. SUBSCRIPTION ChronoDNA includes 3 free scans to get started. Subscribe for unlimited AI identifications, cancel anytime.
CrownBox
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Your watches, their history. CrownBox keeps your watch collection, photos, daily wear and care records together. FIND THE WATCH YOU WANT Record brand, model, reference, movement, dial, serial number, purchase details and notes. Search by name, dial or style and filter by style. Your collection opens A to Z unless you have saved another sort order. The labeled sort control sits above your watches. START WITH ONE WATCH New free customers can keep one watch and two photos, with basic daily wear logging. Existing records and applicable earlier free allowances are preserved. The rotation coach suggests a rested watch without overdue care. CROWNBOX PRO Monthly, yearly and Lifetime provide the same Pro tools: โข Expand your collection and photo albums. Keep original photos, choose covers, add captions and dates, reorder images and inspect details. โข Keep original PDF and image receipts, warranties and service papers with each watch. Link documents to service entries and share the original files. โข Record service, battery changes, costs, providers and notes. Keep dated condition observations with photos. Review upcoming care, a care planner and a 12 month budget based on your due dates and recorded costs, with unknown costs identified. โข Enter manual timekeeping offsets over an elapsed period, calculate seconds per day and review trends. Export a watch's readings as CSV, with private notes only if selected. โข Plan multiple trips with selected watches, separate packing and return checks, dated condition records and retained watch names. โข Set care, departure and return reminders, with optional badges and notification settings. โข Prepare collection, service and trip PDFs from selected records, photos and original documents. Serial numbers, values and private notes are excluded by default. Attached originals are not automatically redacted: review every page before sharing. Preview, share and save the exact PDF. โข Keep a photo wishlist with references, target prices, links and notes. Move an acquired watch into your collection without treating its target price as an amount paid. โข Review wear calendars, weekly wear, 30 day rotation, unworn watches and cost per wear. See collection growth, breakdowns by brand, style and movement, recorded values and service spending by watch, including lifetime and current year totals. Compare watch records side by side. โข Check missing photos, references, serials, box, papers, value notes and insured values. Compare your recorded values and insurance notes, without insurance advice or certification. โข See a collector briefing of care and missing details, suggestions by occasion and a lineup excluding watches with overdue care. โข Export a complete backup with photos, documents, condition records and saved PDFs. Restore missing records while keeping existing information. Import and export collection CSV files. Records are stored locally, with private iCloud sync when available for your Apple Account. Availability depends on your account, connection and storage. Export a backup before changing devices. Delete All My Data is available in Settings. CrownBox provides no market appraisals or automatic watch measurements. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled in Apple Account settings. Prices and billing terms are shown before purchase. Lifetime is a one-time purchase. Existing Lifetime owners keep all Pro features. Restore Purchases is available in the app. Contact the Collector Desk in Settings. Review the limited device details before sending a question or suggestion. Privacy: https://innovalabworks.com/a/crownbox/privacy Terms: https://innovalabworks.com/a/crownbox/terms Apple standard EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: CrownBox at every 4 days against ChronoDNA's every 2 weeks. ChronoDNA's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases 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. ChronoDNA sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and CrownBox sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
ChronoDNA ships an update every 2 weeks, CrownBox every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ChronoDNA | CrownBox |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 4 days โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod โ better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 โ better | 18.0 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 47 MB | 20 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | WristOrbit, LLC | InnovaLabWorks |
In-app purchases
ChronoDNA
- chronodna_unlimited$9.991 Month
- chronodna_scan_5$0.99
- chronodna_scan_30$4.99
CrownBox
- Pro Monthly$4.991 Month
- Pro Monthly1 Month trial$4.991 Month
- CrownBox Pro Monthly1 Month trial$4.991 Month
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- Pro Yearly$29.991 Year
- CrownBox Lifetime$49.99








