Visual Traffic Pattern vs Cobalt
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Visual Traffic Pattern
Visualize runway traffic patterns with magnetic orientation matching your aircraft's heading. Includes wind component diagrams for crosswind and headwind calculations. Designed for pilots on iOS devices.
- Visual traffic pattern reference
- Magnetic orientation matching
- Wind component diagram
- Heading indicator control
- Runway crosswind/headwind calculation
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The Visual Traffic Pattern provides a complete visual reference to a selected runway's left or right traffic pattern. With a single finger rotation a pilot can easily view the runway, crosswind, downwind, base, and 45 degree entry headings associated with that runway's traffic pattern. The magnetic orientation of the runway can be rotated to match the aircraft's heading to allow the pilot to visualize the aircraft's approach to the selected runway. Additional features include compass control of the Heading indicator and a built in Wind Component diagram which will allow you to easily determine runway crosswind and headwind components before takeoffs and landings. This app is designed for optimal viewing and use on an iPad or iPhone 5 and above. This app requires iOS 8.0 or greater.
Cobalt
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Cobalt is the ultimate companion for your flight sim. Connect Microsoft Flight Simulator or X-Plane to your iPhone. Experience a live map, lock screen tracking, systems remote control, ATC messaging, and a logbook that writes itself. YOUR FLIGHT, OFF THE SCREEN. The sim stays at the desk. The flight comes with you. Install the free Cobalt Bridge on your PC, and your phone finds it on the network. Then you get a live map of the aircraft you're actually flying, next to the rest of the network. Works with MSFS 2020, MSFS 2024, X-Plane 11, and X-Plane 12. Any aircraft. LEAVE THE ROOM. TRACK THE FLIGHT. Altitude, progress, and a ticking ETA stay on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. Step away and the flight still lives on your phone. A top of descent alert brings you back for the approach. If the phone drops, the Bridge keeps recording and fills the gap when you return. A REMOTE FOR YOUR AIRCRAFT. Autopilot, lights, engines, cameras, and pause, wired to the sim. Reach for the airplane from the couch, or from anywhere with Cobalt Peak. MESSAGE ATC. FROM ANYWHERE. When a controller needs you, the thread is already on your phone. VATSIM and IVAO messages land in one inbox. Reply without getting back in the seat. KNOW THE LANDING, NOT JUST THE RATE. Every arrival is graded from the telemetry you actually flew. You remember the landing, not just the number. YOUR FLYING, AS A PASSPORT. Hours, stamps, and routes become the Cobalt Atlas. A passport of the places you've flown. A LOGBOOK THAT WRITES ITSELF. Every leg lands in the book as you fly it. Route, phases, hours, and aircraft, current the moment you shut down. ONE GLANCE. ALL THE DATA. Live widgets keep cruise, altitude, and ETA on the Home Screen and Lock Screen. You never have to unlock just to check in. Apple Watch complications. A full iPad layout with the map always visible. THE MAP IS THE APP. Your aircraft on a dark live map, next to VATSIM, IVAO, and PilotEdge traffic and every online controller. Your SimBrief route in magenta, your flown track behind you. Search a callsign and jump to it. SETUP. Cobalt Bridge is a small desktop app. It auto-detects the sim. No plugins to start tracking, no config files. Your phone pairs on its own. cobaltsim.com/setup FREE TO FLY. Live map, Lock Screen, logbook, and the Atlas are free. Cobalt Peak adds remote systems, live camera, ATC messaging, Relay when you leave home, full history, and the Bridge on up to three PCs. Same account on every device. The sim stays at the desk. The flight comes with you. COBALT PEAK SUBSCRIPTION Peak is offered as an auto-renewing subscription, Peak Monthly (1 month) or Peak Yearly (1 year), or as a one-time Lifetime purchase. Payment is charged to your Apple ID when you confirm the purchase. The subscription renews automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and your account is charged for the renewal within the 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel anytime in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://cobaltsim.com/eula Cobalt Terms: https://cobaltsim.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://cobaltsim.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Cobalt at Free against Visual Traffic Pattern's $1.99. Visual Traffic Pattern's advantage is iOS requirement (8.0 vs 18.0). On ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Cobalt is free to download; Visual Traffic Pattern costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
| Parameter | Visual Traffic Pattern | Cobalt |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.4 (7 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 77.8% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 7 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 28 MB | 26 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Arthur Varrassi | Noah Livingston |
In-app purchases
Visual Traffic Pattern
No in-app purchases
Cobalt
No in-app purchases





