Comparison

Ed the Editor vs Preen Display

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

Head to head
About

Ed the Editor

This utility provides a straightforward text editing experience, focusing on efficiency and a minimalist interface. It's designed for users who prefer a no-frills approach to text manipulation, reminiscent of classic command-line editors.

Highlights
  • Minimalist text editing
  • Efficient interface
  • Classic command-line style
  • No-frills functionality
  • Standard text editor
Read full description

Use the editor that doesn't waste your VALUABLE time. Ed, man! !man ed ED(1) Unix Programmer's Manual ED(1) NAME ed - text editor SYNOPSIS ed [ - ] [ -x ] [ name ] DESCRIPTION Ed is the standard text editor. --- Computer Scientists love ed, not just because it comes first alphabetically, but because it's the standard. Everyone else loves ed because it's ED! “Ed is the standard text editor.” “Ed is the standard text editor.” Let's look at a typical novice's session with the mighty ed: ? help ? ? ? quit ? exit ? bye ? hello? ? eat flaming death ? --- Note the consistent user interface and error reportage. Ed is generous enough to flag errors, yet prudent enough not to overwhelm the novice with verbosity. “Ed is the standard text editor.” Ed, the greatest WYGIWYG editor of all. ED IS THE TRUE PATH TO NIRVANA! ED HAS BEEN THE CHOICE OF EDUCATED AND IGNORANT ALIKE FOR CENTURIES! ED WILL NOT CORRUPT YOUR PRECIOUS BODILY FLUIDS!! ED IS THE STANDARD TEXT EDITOR! ED MAKES THE SUN SHINE AND THE BIRDS SING AND THE GRASS GREEN!! When I use an editor, I don't want eight extra KILOBYTES of worthless help screens and cursor positioning code! I just want an EDitor!! Not a “viitor”. Not a “emacsitor”. Those aren't even WORDS!!!! ED! ED! ED IS THE STANDARD!!! TEXT EDITOR. When IBM, in its ever-present omnipotence, needed to base their “edlin” on a Unix standard, did they mimic vi? No. Emacs? Surely you jest. They chose the most karmic editor of all. The standard. Ed is for those who can remember what they are working on. If you are an idiot, you should use Emacs. If you are an Emacs, you should not be vi. If you use ED, you are on THE PATH TO REDEMPTION. THE SO-CALLED “VISUAL” EDITORS HAVE BEEN PLACED HERE BY ED TO TEMPT THE FAITHLESS. DO NOT GIVE IN!!! THE MIGHTY ED HAS SPOKEN!!! ? Apologies to Patrick J. LoPresti who came up with this description of the mighty ED lo these many years ago.

About

Preen Display

Features
Read full description

Preen Display turns an iPad on a stand into a live, glanceable display for widgets you ask for in a sentence. Tell your AI coding agent what you want — a TV remote, a revenue ticker, a security-camera feed — and the free Preen hub for Mac publishes it onto your iPhone and feeds it live data. No code, no dashboard builder. Just a sentence. HOW IT WORKS 1. Run the free Preen hub on your Mac (preendisplay.com). 2. Ask your agent for a widget ("Make a power button that turns my Samsung TV on and off"). The hub's bundled MCP server and CLI do the rest. 3. The widget opens on your iPhone, fullscreen, and updates the instant the data changes. Want it different? Ask your agent to publish an update. Prefer your own hands? Widgets are plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript — write and publish them yourself with the Preen command-line tool. IF YOU CAN SAY IT, YOU CAN GLANCE AT IT • A TV remote — on and off • What's playing right now: one big album art • A live security-camera feed • One-tap buttons for your busiest Slack channels • A focus stopwatch to keep your head down • Today's revenue, in numbers too big to ignore PRIVATE BY DESIGN No account required. By default your phone talks directly to your Mac over your own local network — your widgets and their data stay between your devices. MADE FOR THE STAND • Full screen, edge to edge — portrait or landscape • Reconnects on its own when the network blips • Lock Screen widget and Control Center control to jump straight back in TRY IT WITHOUT A MAC Tap "Preview a widget" on the first screen to see a live demo widget right away. PREEN PLUS (optional subscription) On your own Wi-Fi, Preen is free. Preen Plus adds remote access: an end-to-end encrypted relay keeps your display live when you and your Mac aren't on the same network. The full experience requires the free Preen hub app on a Mac running macOS 14 or later (Apple silicon), from preendisplay.com. Terms of Use: https://preendisplay.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://preendisplay.com/privacy

Screenshots

Ed the Editor1 screens
Preen Display4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Ed the Editor at none against Preen Display's 2. Ed the Editor also leads on iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.0). Preen Display's advantage is device support. On price 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. Preen Display sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Ed the Editor asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
Ed the Editor versus Preen Display: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterEd the EditorPreen Display
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Ads—No
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
Devices—iPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB19 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRobert EfroymsonPink Door Multimedia LLC

In-app purchases

None

Ed the Editor

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Preen Display

Subscriptions2
  • Preen Plus (Monthly)7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Preen Plus (Yearly)7 Days trial$17.991 Year

Questions

Is Ed the Editor free?
Ed the Editor is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Preen Display free?
Preen Display is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

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