SolarWriter vs BYOK Studio
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SolarWriter
Transform your e-reader into a portable typewriter for outdoor writing. This app connects your keyboard to your e-reader's screen, allowing you to type comfortably on e-ink displays in bright sunlight. Save and share your work easily.
- E-reader integration
- External keyboard support
- Outdoor writing on e-ink screens
- Text mirroring to e-reader
- File saving and sharing
- Detailed setup instructions
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Traditional screens are fantastic everywhere but outside, especially on a sunny day. E-ink screens work well, but e-readers like the Kindle are difficult to type on and don't support external keyboards. SolarWriter gives you the best of both worlds. SolarWriter runs on your iOS device and acts as a hub between your keyboard and your e-reader. You type on the keyboard, and the text appears on both on the iOS device and on the e-reader's screen (via its web browser). Take advantage of your Kindle's (or other e-reader's) e-ink screen to put your thoughts on paper even outside, with no need to transcribe later. Write at parks, on beaches, in backyards... anywhere you wanted to but couldn't. Save files on your device, or share through email, SMS, and more. Detailed instructions for setup are included inside the app.
BYOK Studio
This app provides a dedicated writing environment for organizing and developing creative projects. It offers tools for drafting, planning, mapping ideas visually, and managing project-specific reference material.
- Focused writing editor
- Manuscript building from scenes
- Card and outline planning
- Visual idea mapping
- Project wiki for reference
- Scratchpad for quick ideas
- Project organization drawer
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Studio is a writing space built for writers and writing projects. Draft scenes, organize notes, plan chapters, build manuscripts, map ideas, and keep your work together in one purpose-built environment. Whether you are writing a novel, memoir, essay, screenplay, journal, research project, or long-form draft, Studio gives you a flexible place to move from first idea to structured work. Write in a focused editor Draft chapters, scenes, notes, essays, and long-form projects in a clean editor designed to keep the work in front of you. Build manuscripts from scenes Bring separate files, chapters, and sections together into a larger manuscript so your project can take shape piece by piece. Plan with cards and outlines Capture scene ideas, research, structure, notes, and beats using flexible cards and hierarchical outlines. Map your ideas visually Use the Grid Map to create mind maps, flow charts, relationship maps, timelines, and visual plans with shapes and connection lines. Create a project wiki Keep track of characters, places, concepts, research, worldbuilding, and other reference material in a living wiki for your project. Use the Scratchpad for quick ideas Capture loose thoughts, reminders, and checkable tasks before they disappear. Scratchpad entries can also be created from your BYOK device. Keep every project organized Use the Project Drawer to store and organize files, folders, drafts, notes, cards, outlines, grids, wiki entries, and other project materials. Connect with BYOK Studio is designed to work alongside the BYOK writing device, giving you a place to continue organizing, editing, and shaping the drafts you start elsewhere. Studio is more than a blank page. It is a writing environment for the whole project behind the words. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: BYOK Studio at 5.0 against SolarWriter's 3.8. BYOK Studio also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 64%) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). SolarWriter's advantage is ratings volume (16 vs 2). On price, 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
Both are free to download. SolarWriter sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and BYOK Studio sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
BYOK Studio holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SolarWriter has 16 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 64% of SolarWriter's written reviews are positive against 100% of BYOK Studio's.
SolarWriter ships an update every 5 months, BYOK Studio every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 10, 2026 and September 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SolarWriter | BYOK Studio |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.8 (16 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 64.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 16 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Every 5 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 92 MB | 43 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cool S, LLC | BYOK LLC |
Customer experience
SolarWriter
BYOK Studio
In-app purchases
SolarWriter
- SolarWriter Pro$9.99
BYOK Studio
- Standard$9.991 Month
- Standard1 Year trial$82.991 Year
- Lifetime Plan$299.99









