Realmac Software Reverses Course, Reinstates Original 'Clear' App - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Realmac Software Reverses Course, Reinstates Original 'Clear' App

by

With the launch of iOS 7, Realmac released a new universal Clear app to replace its original iPhone-only app, which it planned to discontinue.

Following customer backlash over the plan to eliminate the existing Clear for iPhone app, Realmac has reversed course and announced plans to continue support for both the original Clear app and the universal app, which has now been rebranded as Clear+.

The original iPhone app will now receive an iOS 7 update, complete with the iOS 7 redesign and new themes, and Realmac will continue to support all versions of Clear.

clear

We're bringing back the stand-alone iPhone version of Clear, and we'll be updating it for existing users with new iPhone features.

To that end, we've submitted an update that includes the iPhone enhancements for iOS 7 (including the new list themes) and will be releasing it as soon as Apple approves it.

To make it easy to differentiate, we're now calling Clear for iOS 7 "Clear+" to signify that it’s for all your iOS devices.

Launched in early 2012, Clear is a to-do app that received accolades for its minimalistic, gesture-based design. Since its iPhone release, the app has been expanded to both the Mac and the iPad.

- Clear for iPhone can be downloaded from the App Store for $0.99. [Direct Link]
Clear+ for iPhone/iPad can be downloaded from the App Store for $4.99 [Direct Link]
Clear for Mac can be downloaded from the Mac App Store for $9.99. [Direct Link]

Top Rated Comments

violaboy Avatar
163 months ago
Well that was very unclear...:confused:
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Schtumple Avatar
163 months ago
I'm not gonna lie, when I saw Clear in the app store and that I hadn't paid for it, I thought there was an error with the app store, upon closer inspection all I could really take away was that I needed to pay again to receive thinner fonts and a slightly changed icon?

I love Clear, but this is exactly what happens when you make minimalist software, unless you add in a bunch of genuinely evolutionary features it just looks like you're money grabbing.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rwilliams Avatar
163 months ago
Omni should do the same for OmniFocus. I'm still bitter they've discontinued support for a $20 app.

Isn't the old OmniFocus 5 years old now? How long should they continue to support something that old?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
163 months ago
I wish Apple would reverse course and reinstate iOS 6!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
163 months ago
Lovely how Apple keeps coming away from these exchanges unharmed in the customer's eyes. Upgrade pricing and a mechanism to deliver bug fixes to old versions would sort most of this out. People would still whine but they wouldn't have much to support them.

Isn't the old OmniFocus 5 years old now?
Yes. Yes, it is.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
163 months ago
This solves nothing - I have the original clear on my iPhone, but if I want it on my iPad I need Clear+, which will also work on my iPhone. Made a dumb move even worse. For your next "reversal", might I suggest getting rid of Clear+ and applying its changes to the original Clear like you should have done in the first place! :mad:
There are three things you have to be aware of. One, the developer gets nothing from you anymore once you paid for the app. In other words, the price you paid has to cover both initial and further investments of the app's development. Second, you don't have any claim on getting updates either. Developers need to be paid too to deliver updates, but they are getting nothing from you anymore. Third, and related, the original app had no iPad support and you accordingly never paid for it. The fact that universal apps do exist, does not give you any claim on additional features if the developer never offered those to you. If you want iPad support, you have to buy Clear+, simple.

The heart of the problem, in my judgment, is the rigidity of the App Store. Developers have no easy way to market their apps beyond the tools Apple offers. That is: no upgrade pricing and no partial pricing (e.g. to pay and get only iPhone support of a universal app). Instead developers have to make a choice between offering the update for free, raising the price, offering a completely new app, or making something work with in-app purchases. Why not give developers the flexibility they need? Who is Apple to decide how developers can market their apps?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

imac video apple feature

Apple Released Yet Another New Product Today

Friday March 20, 2026 2:39 pm PDT by
Apple has unveiled a whopping nine new products so far this March, including an iPhone 17e, iPad Air models with the M4 chip, MacBook Air models with the M5 chip, MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, the all-new MacBook Neo, an updated Studio Display, a higher-end Studio Display XDR, AirPods Max 2, and now the Nike Powerbeats Pro 2. iPhone 17e features the same overall design as...
iPhone 18 Pro Deep Red Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Wednesday March 18, 2026 7:39 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another six months or so, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component...
ios 26 4 pastel

iOS 26.4: Top 10 New Features Coming to Your iPhone

Friday March 20, 2026 2:44 pm PDT by
iOS 26.4 isn't the major update with new Siri features that we hoped for, but there are some useful quality of life improvements, and a little bit of fun with an AI playlist generator and new emoji characters. Playlist Playground - Apple Music has a Playlist Playground option that lets you generate playlists from text-based descriptions. You can include moods, feelings, activities, or...