Solar Eclipse Timer Reviews

Well-intended, but needs a redesign for use ability in low-data environments (a necessity in this specific intended use). App said Sandusky wasn’t in totality, whether using gps or manual input. Glad I wasn’t distracted trying to use during critical moments - would have had the opposite of intended effect if I had used it. Meh.
EDIT: The developer sent me a personal response to this review, suggesting that I did not follow the “simple instruction(s)”. Not only did I follow all of his specific, exact “simple instruction” on the day of the eclipse, I did so on multiple devices. It recognized where I was, yet stated we were “not in totality” for the 4/8/24 eclipse. Developer’s attempt at damage control comes off badly and they need to take a step back and realize that: 1) if they have a go-to response that the “simple instruction” was not followed, they are indicating a larger U.I. Issue, 2) need a refresher on how to not be passive-aggressive in wording their response - it comes off especially badly when the suggestion is incorrect, and 3) indicate thusly that they are not interested in utilizing feedback as a tool for improvement. They put a lot into SolarEclipseTimer, but they are thwarting their own efforts by not making it great.

I saw SolarEclipseTimer on Smarter every day and figured if Destin recommended it, it should be amazing. Unfortunately, that was not my experience. I went through all the tutorials and made sure the tests were successful on my iPhone prior to the 8 Apr 2024 eclipse. However, on eclipse day, SolarEclipseTimer kept telling me I was not within the path of totality and it did not give me any voice notifications or reminders. I personally did not find SolarEclipseTimer intuitive or value added, especially since it did not work as advertised or have any interactive maps. I found the video tutorial way too long and believe a well-designed app shouldn’t require such a video… it should be intuitive without explanation. I feel the intent for SolarEclipseTimer was good, but execution fell short of its intended target.

Used SolarEclipseTimer in August 2017 and it was *perfect*. I was so glad to see that it has been updated for 2024 as well, and it makes perfect sense to pay a meager $1.99 per eclipse. But I’m pretty frustrated that the developer has decided that annular eclipses don’t matter. They even updated it to support *partiality*, but state in a note on SolarEclipseTimer that the upcoming October 14 eclipse won’t be supported because “there is no totality.” This doesn’t make sense. If you’re going to support partiality, why not annularity, which is partway between partiality and totality? Even though glasses on/off prompts wouldn’t be applicable, SolarEclipseTimer could still help with timing around the ring of fire events. Now I have to go find *another* app to help me time this eclipse, if there even is one. :-(

A friend and I used this in Corvallis Oregon during the August 21 total solar eclipse. In the minutes leading up to totality the GPS cordinaes completely reset and we both stopped getting notifications, we tried to recalibrate but it wouldn't refresh. We missed all of the necessary notifications to put the glass back on, etc, which is one of the main reasons why I bought it. Not sure if it was a networking for interference during the eclipse or what? Disappointing that it didn't just lock on to the original coordinates. Frustrating that it happened on both of our phones. I am using an iPhone 5s.

So I downloaded it a couple days before eclipse but didn’t buy the 2024 set up until the eclipse had started. Why? Because we were expecting clouds and I couldn’t see paying for it when it had limited usefulness if cloudy. But once I realized we weren’t overcast just partly cloudy I decided to get it. Unfortunately I got one notification but then must have had my camera open when the other notifications came on because I got no notification banners or voiced until later when I got the 2 min pre contact notification.

I later noticed it does state on SolarEclipseTimer not to use the same device for the timer and camera capabilities.

Would be nice to have a notification pop up when you open SolarEclipseTimer on eclipse day that reminds people not to use their camera on this device if they wish to have SolarEclipseTimer work.

So I’m out a couple bucks and didn’t really get anything much out of SolarEclipseTimer . It was user error so I’m not going to rate them horribly or anything like that.

We did get a lot out of the smarter every day video with the interview with the man behind SolarEclipseTimer. So we knew to look for the solar “snakes”, listen for the crickets, tried various pinhole projections, etc. for all that “free” info, we are happy to pay a couple bucks for SolarEclipseTimer data even if we didn’t really get to use it.

We used this during the eclipse today just into the path of totality in SC. We didn't have an exact plan today, so being able to check our position was great. The built in announcements of when eclipse events were occurring were right on cue! We noticed temp changes, wildlife behaviors, and solar bands!

The only things I would change about this would be to have the choice for military time, as many people prefer not to use it. Also, I would like to see a digital countdown for each occurrence such as first contact, second contact... Another useful feature would be to know exactly what percentage of the eclipse you will see based on GPS location.

Another nice feature would be to know what percentage of the eclipse we are currently viewing during the eclipse. We would often look up and guesstimate about what percentage was covered and look around at the amount of light. It would be kinda of cool to know exactly what percentage of sunlight we were experiencing. It's crazy how much daylight the smallest sliver of sun can produce!

Again, amazing app with just a few convenience features missing. I'm looking forward to using it again in 2024!

Saw this on SmarterEveryDay, and used it for the 2017 eclipse in Oregon. Well done. But the voice never came on. I saw ticker tape messages, which were great, but despite following all instructions on my iPhone SE (mute off, volume up, all notifications enabled, SolarEclipseTimer only one running after restarting it) I got no voice prompts. The only thing I did that might (but shouldn't) have caused an issue was switching to camera and back to SolarEclipseTimer.

The word "Stop" does not look like a button, rather just plain title text, so it took me a long time to figure out I could tap it.

The main screen has to scroll (not obvious) so the critical Check Position button (which DOES look like a button unlike the Stop "button") is hidden off the bottom of the screen, so you just stair at the main screen wondering what to do with a dead timer app.

The "Check Position" button leads to another counterintuitive screen where you "Get My Location" (that sounds different than "check location") and "Calculate Contact Tines"). Why do I have to press these manually? Can't the contact times update automatically? It feels clunky, like Excel with auto calculate turned off. Further, I have to "Load Contact Times". Load from a disk drive? How about "apply" or "use"? The terminology on the page is a bit confusing.

I love the developer's engagement and contribution to science. I look forward to improvements, and of course 2024.

This was SolarEclipseTimer to have during the total eclipse. I was in the south eastern part of the US for the event but avoided large festivals or camp out areas. We ended up in the corner of a field on a country road where a dozen other had gathered. With SolarEclipseTimer on speaker it announced to everyone in our group what to look for and when to use glasses, with the important warning of when to put them back on. Immense respect for getting everything right. My only possible complaint is that the icon in the center for the stage of the eclipse didn't match what I was seeing early on. I look forward to using it again in 2024.

Old review:
SolarEclipseTimer lacks the most simple of features.
Ex1: requires you to do time zone calculations yourself.
Ex2: won't input time calculations into timers

I mean it WILL tell you tho, but it'd be really nice if the programmer spent a little more time. Like an hour more. An hour would do it.

Update:
After response from the developer and further research on my own after using SolarEclipseTimer more, the time zone will update after loading the times into the timers, but it is still a hassle because they do not automatically load unless you're in totality. SolarEclipseTimer functioned for what I needed, so I raised it up a few stars. I did this also because I received a response from the developer, so that was good. It could still use a little explanation or UI improvement with the timers as they are not extremely self explanatory.

Like many others, I saw SolarEclipseTimer and Dr Telepun with Destin on SED, and downloaded immediately. I didn't do a ton of advance work, but did familiarize myself with the functionality for thirty minutes and a few practice runs, and corrected the times for lunar limb profile at my location. I don't know how difficult that would be to integrate into SolarEclipseTimer , but allowing the calculation to occur as an option within SolarEclipseTimer would be nice -- although there are websites that do most of the heavy lifting on the calculation now anyway. On the day of the eclipse, I used a Bluetooth earbud to hear the vocal cues, and kept my eyes in the sky (and my kids). Great app, very accurate with the times once corrected -- which was very easy to do. Helpful verbal reminders, too.

I found SolarEclipseTimer very easy to use, and sufficiently comprehensive if a bit utilitarian. But as an engineer, utilitarian is as much a complement as comprehensive is. You might not confuse the GUI for a pretty Apple produced piece of software, but it's every bit as functional as one.

I was in Chile earlier this year -- and having an app like this at least makes me think about wanting to go back for the eclipse in 2019. Good work to the developer and team. Apps like this are the fantastic part about the smartphone world we live in.

This is basically a guided experience for eclipses. Saw this on Smarter Every Day and decided to try it. My watch party and I thought it was excellent!! SolarEclipseTimer is free and data for each eclipse is $2 per. The UI is a little clunky, but easy to figure out. You don’t need to be online to use it! Capture or enter your GPS location and it does the rest for you. The reminders were accurately timed to the second and the notifications bring your attention to many other interesting phenomena that you might miss in the excitement leading to totality. Best of all, it was not intrusive, it just aided and added to our experience. Will definitely use again!

I used this for the 2017 total eclipse and SolarEclipseTimer was a game changer. The audible alerts are worth their weight in gold because you will know everything that’s going to happen, before it happens! The rest of the crowd will merely be reacting. But you’ll be able to anticipate each event and prepare your photography or just know where to look and what to look for. I felt like the eclipse expert in the crowd compared to everyone else!

The Help File inside SolarEclipseTimer is extremely useful for knowing all the cool Partial Phase Phenomena to look for, such as the elusive Shadow Bands, and Sharp/Soft Shadow Effects. The author truly wants you to fully experience the eclipse and includes every possible tip to help you, SolarEclipseTimer even includes a 3 step Test to verify your device will audibly sound the alerts during the eclipse! So you can’t go wrong.

SolarEclipseTimer is recommended on all the forums/ threads for a reason. I used it yesterday for the April 8th solar eclipse, and it performed flawlessly.

SolarEclipseTimer calculates the precise times for the various phases of the eclipse at your viewing spot. One of the best features is the built-in timer that counts down to the next eclipse phase with notifications. This allows you to have your camera ready at just the right moments to get those amazing shots of the diamond ring, Baily's beads, and totality.

The only thing I would add in future versions: it has a way to create a photo cheat sheet for taking symmetrical partial eclipse images. It would be amazing if this could be linked with a timer or chime of some sort so that you know when to click the next shot. Still a 5/5 app even without this feature.

This is an amazing app. Once you load your location, it literally is accurate to the second, maybe split second, calls out important events, and tells you what to look for in the environment around you as well. The “dry run” or practice run is brilliant as well. Totality happens and goes by so quick, and is an adrenaline rush, so it is 100% worth it to do a PRACTICE run so you’re rehearsed during the actual event, especially important if your planning to try and capture any of it on media devices.

Anyways, beautiful app, highly recommend, very grateful to its creators for making our 2017 and 2024 American Eclipses the absolute best they could be!!

Nick

I’ve used SolarEclipseTimer for two total eclipses now in 2017 and 2024. I HIGHLY recommend SolarEclipseTimer to enhance your viewing experience. The accuracy is incredible! It points out all points of the eclipse audibly while watching and helps you see things you might not notice otherwise. We cut it very close this year arriving at our viewing spot in time to see totality and for peace of mind I refreshed their GPS location feature over and over again until we were in totality range. I don’t spend money on apps but the $2 price for this was a no brained!

SolarEclipseTimer, simply put, changed the eclipse for not just me, but everyone around us. Nobody knew what times things were going to happen and nobody knew about the things like shadow bands and Purkinje effect. But because of SolarEclipseTimer, the voice prompts helped everyone and it was just amazing. Thank you for making SolarEclipseTimer and thank you for letting Destin plug it for you.

Update- Everyone, almost all of these negative reviews are from people who didn’t bother getting to know SolarEclipseTimer first. Honesty, that’s on them. This is a once in a lifetime experience for most of us. So many people planned everything so perfectly. Why would you NOT poke around SolarEclipseTimer you plan to use to guide you through before the moment of truth? I had a hiccup with SolarEclipseTimer , but it was my own fault. Luckily, I fixed it. SolarEclipseTimer worked perfectly. And this “hidden paywall” thing is annoying me, too. People, it’s $2. TWO DOLLARS. If that bothers you so much, again, for a once in a lifetime experience, then that’s on you.

The developed of SolarEclipseTimer invested so much time, money, and effort into making SolarEclipseTimer on top of his already very busy schedule and people just whine about it. SolarEclipseTimer will function perfectly if YOU take the time to learn how to use it.

For making a once in a lifetime experience that much more incredible. Your live guidance helped us make the most of the eclipse. It was a lifesaver, as we had our sun flirting in and out of cloud cover. The audio cues kept us on track, particularly during totality when seconds were so important. Again, I cannot thank you enough. If I could give 10 stars I would. I plan not only to recommend but evangelize your app as we roll upon the next American eclipse. See you in 2024!

Wish I could give this amazing app more than 5 stars. We used the 2017 version at our first solar eclipse in Salem, OR. The knowledge and guidance it provided made the experience so much more meaningful and with its assistance we were able to get some great photos. Needless to say we are eager to explore the new Photographer’s Mode and other enhancements. We also bought the accompanying book. What a wealth of information. Thanks, thanks for making it available to all of us!

Due to clouds be drove hours west to find clear skies. SolarEclipseTimer worked perfectly and nailed the times. You can hear SolarEclipseTimer countdowns in my video and the eclipse cooperating to the second on cue. Since we did not know exactly where we were I used SolarEclipseTimer to show duration times as we drove north to the center line. When we reached 2:30 on SolarEclipseTimer we knew we were close enough. The voice prompts were invaluable since I was working 2 videos and a telescope mounted camera. Still had time to look up. Thanks so much !

Saw this on Smarter Every Day and decided to get it for watching the 2017 total eclipse in Fulton, MO. The audio alerts were accurate to the second - very impressive! I was glad to have it.

Only cons were that I could not hear the audio alerts if SolarEclipseTimer was in the background, and the user interface is pretty busy. However, I figured it out pretty easily after re-watching the Smarter Every Day video and playing with SolarEclipseTimer .

Overall, great app! Looking forward to using it again during the next total eclipse in April 2024!

I used SolarEclipseTimer during the 2017 total eclipse in Tennessee, and it worked perfectly. The timings were incredibly accurate, down to the second. Audio callouts were perfect, it let me just watch the eclipse. The people here who gave it one star reviews seem to have not used it correctly, don't pay attention to them. I just made sure to have it set to local time, I was in the path of total eclipse, I had my notifications and sound all the way up, and it was perfect. Absolutely must have for future eclipses.

The countdown timer is a vital feature for me. The demo mode works great to test before the big day of the eclipse. Highly recommended! UPDATE: Used SolarEclipseTimer the day of the eclipse and it worked PERFECTLY! My group of friends where thrilled to have the alerts during the phases of the eclipse to know what observations to make. My only nit to pick is that the interface could use some polish.

For those who had difficulty with SolarEclipseTimer , a gentle reminder to read the manual: There's extensive built-in help. Yes, you have to be in the path of totality, or there's nothing to count down.

SolarEclipseTimer is so well done! With very little practice SolarEclipseTimer was easily navigated and was 100% accurate down to the second! It could not have worked better! Without SolarEclipseTimer, and the accuracy and time spent making it, my total eclipse viewing experience would not have been so amazing! Perfect!! Absolutely perfect! I shared SolarEclipseTimer with several of my friend and they all had nothing but good things to say about it! Thank you so much Dr. Telepun for your expertise and effort with SolarEclipseTimer and thanks to Destin for informing me about SolarEclipseTimer. You two alone made this experience something I will never forget!

This was the perfect app for the 2017 solar eclipse. It made the experience easier and more interesting. WELL worth the $1.99.
We were in the path of totality, so it worked perfectly for us. Our viewing site was a few miles from cell coverage, so I was afraid it wouldn't work, but it did! I programmed the location before we lost coverage, and the counter and info proceeded, even without cell service. I connected my iPhone to a wireless speaker, and those around us were able to enjoy the tracking, too.
Thank you for developing SolarEclipseTimer.. Hope for an update for 2024!!

SolarEclipseTimer was perfect! I couldn't have video going or taking pics or we would miss updates for the eclipse, but we were warned about that. I was able to do a few test runs on different days, and SolarEclipseTimer even told us how much longer until the end of totality and yelled "glasses on!!!!" It was awesome. Great links included that I sent to friends for them to see how close they were to totality. My whole group relied on SolarEclipseTimer to tell us when the next thing was occurring and it didn't let us down. Thx to those who put so much effort into it. I can't imagine what it would've been like without it! Thanks so much from a Hopkinsville, KY resident!

I rarely write reviews, but I found SolarEclipseTimer to be so outstanding I feel compelled to spread the word. I am a professional photographer with a lot of astrophotography experience, but I've never photographed nor witnessed a solar eclipse. SolarEclipseTimer helped me rehearse my exposure plan for the Great American Eclipse of 2017, and was an absolute key to success for my eclipse photos (@paulgriffithphoto if you'd like to see them). Having the audible cues throughout the eclipse was like having a veteran umbraphile with us, which was absolutely priceless. I would suggest that the developer provide an easy way to load preset coordinates for contact times. Other than that, SolarEclipseTimer was an absolute treasure, and I send a sincere and deepest "thanks" to the developer!

I used SolarEclipseTimer for the 2017 eclipse, and it was worth paying for the version with voice dictation so I didn't have too be distracted from the event by constantly looking at my phone. It only used data for a moment when getting the GPS coordinates at my viewing location. After, it ran independently and was surprisingly precise to the second. SolarEclipseTimer uses military time for it's data.

We brought a white foam board and did see the shadow bands. Don't use a bed sheet on lumpy grass like another observer did. The white surface needs to be flat.

We also used binoculars to focus the sunlight onto the foam board to view the movement of the eclipse. I wish we had a telescope on a stand so we could hold it perfectly still. The kids loved it, and it helped to keep the little children (we has a 3yo and 5yo with us) from looking up at the sun.

I wish that I knew that during totality that I should have photographed the total eclipse with my iPhone using the eclipse glasses as a filter. All I got with my iPhone was the sun in a dark sky.

I hope I'll have the opportunity to view the eclipse again in 2024. 🙂

I flew to Jackson Wyoming so that I could view the August 21, 2017 solar eclipse from within the path of totality. SolarEclipseTimer performed perfectly. It provided all the information I needed while never distracting from the awesome experience of viewing the total eclipse of the sun. SolarEclipseTimer prompted me to look for shadow banding at the beginning and end of totality, which was amazing. SolarEclipseTimer prompted me to remove my eclipse glasses and gaze upon the coronal ring for two minutes and 18 seconds during totality, after which it prompted me with the command "glasses on, glasses on, glasses on". SolarEclipseTimer is comprehensive, easy to use, and it allowed me to enjoy the eclipse in a way I could not have done without it. Thank you for creating this perfect app, and contributing to the success of a once in a lifetime event.

Installed based on suggestion by SmarterEveryDay, loved it, and got 2-5 other people to install it on eclipse day!

Worked very well, the group of 15 or so people sharing my solar projector laughed and appreciated the voice warnings (I had the volume way up). And it was very accurate.

As others mentioned, it was fairly easy to accidentally stop the verbal updates - I think it should be pretty easy to generate a testing script (for a computer tester, or a human tester) that simulates the use you might expect (timer app running in background while camera or text apps are being used) and work out the bugs so that the verbals are forced no matter what else is going on, but without stopping the other stuff (I'm thinking about programmatically timed multi- shots - those two things running side by side on the same phone would be ideal).

If you publish the script and allow users to set up a dummy eclipse of their own (I think you have the demo already), the users can test apps and conflicts you won't be able to (given non-infinite time), and report back as to success/issues. Just a thought.

Can't wait for the 2018 and 2024 calcs!

Thank you!

I got SolarEclipseTimer after watching Smarter Every Day. I am so glad I did! After locking in my GPS coordinates, it took care of all of the alerts for me as well as the 20 or so people standing nearby as we were watching the eclipse.

A couple of notes for the developer:
1) the timing seemed to be slow by about 2-3 seconds. Meaning that totality through my glasses seemed to begin about 2-3 seconds before SolarEclipseTimer announced it. I know my coordinates were good but I am also fully aware that the clock on my phone could have been off or that my own perception could have been off. In any case, I'd rather leave my glasses on for a couple of extra seconds than take them off and burn my eyes!

2) Man, it took me a while to figure out how to use SolarEclipseTimer . I saw the extensive read me file but it took a second watching of the Smarter Every Day video to figure out the "dummy" 2 step process. Maybe for 2024 SolarEclipseTimer could come with a quick how-to video. That explains the features and use.

All in all a fantastic app that completely transformed my viewing experience and kept me informed about what was going on without requiring me to ever look away from the action! Well done, developer!

When I set it up on Monday all seemed fine. As the eclipse approached I started to get notifications. These notifications were spot on throughout the eclipse. This made it simple to take the photos I wanted. If I am lucky enough to be in the path of the 2026 eclipse I will use SolarEclipseTimer again. Thanks for making it available.

Good tutorial, like the audio testing, easy to setup, displays time for the local time zone. What worries me is the eclipse is tomorrow, but I am getting notices like the eclipse is today. I hope it will work properly tomorrow. If it works like expected, I will give SolarEclipseTimer 5 stars.