Released My First iOS App - PerspectivePixels

A week and a half ago, I released my first-ever iOS app… actually, my first real app in general. Before anyone gets too excited, I should mention that this is the first iteration of a basic app, and it probably shows 😅. Still, I’m happy to have passed that first milestone.

About

The app is called PerspectivePixels, and it’s available on the app store. It’s a simple iOS application that calculates several display metrics. For example, it calculates PPI, PPD, FOV, including their scaled values on HIDPI displays. You can also save display specs to tweak or compare later.

That’s the general summary so far. I have ideas for future features, but this had everything I needed, so it seemed like a good cutoff point for the MVP release.

Why

Why did I make this app in the first place?

First: I wanted it. Whenever I see the specs for a laptop or display, I inevitably have questions that require deeper calculations to answer:

“Will this monitor have a high enough PPI for proper 2x scaling on macOS?”

With PerspectivePixels, I can enter the stats and immediately see the PPI. Additionally, I can even see what the ‘scaled’ resolution and PPI are if I would use it at a 2x scale

“If I downsize from a 32” to 27" monitor, but move it 6 inches closer, will it effectively appear to be the same size to me?"

Here, I enter the specs of the two displays in question, including the distance from my eyes and compare. I can look to see if the field of view (FOV) is roughly the same, and even toggle the distances to see how the values change. I can also look at the ppd values to see how sharp the device remains while moving it. It doesn’t matter if a moved monitor covers the same field of view if each pixel suddenly looks like a LEGO brick.

“Will this device’s screen have a ‘usable’ resolution?”

Sometimes when I’m looking at unusual devices (for example mini-laptop/netbooks) it can be hard to tell what type of working space I will have. In this case, I can enter the specs and play around with the scaling values. For example I might see an 8" 1440x900 device. At 200 PPI, I’ll probably want to use 2x scaling, but with a scaled working resolution of 720x450, will it be worth it?

Before building PerspectivePixels, I relied on a Python module I cobbled together years ago. Having an app that I can quickly open up and use, with saved items, is much better.

Second: I wanted to build my first app, and this was a great way to start. I had most of the back-end logic from my python code and it was easy enough to port to Swift. All the remaining tasks: designing + coding the UI, creating graphical assets (ex: app icons, screenshots), figuring out App Store Connect, TestFlight, and App Store Review process… were all things I had never done before.

Being a simple, low-risk, app meant it was perfect as a learning project. At the end of the day, even if no one likes it, it’s something simple I wanted… and now have.

Conclusion

So, feel free to check it out! I admit it’s not the best app out there, but I’ve already found it useful. I have a list of improvements I hope to make now that the MVP out, but I’m also always open to feedback.

Enjoy, and thanks if you give it a try!