Software Alternatives & Reviews

rcmd VS Lunar.fyi

Compare rcmd VS Lunar.fyi and see what are their differences

rcmd logo rcmd

rcmd makes app switching instantaneous!When you have a lot of apps open, finding and switching to them might feel too slow using Command-Tab or the Dock.Hold down the right side |⌘ command| and press the first letter of the app name to focus it.

Lunar.fyi logo Lunar.fyi

Control monitor brightness, adapt using the ambient light sensor, adjust volume, switch inputs and turn off displays without fiddling with clunky buttons.
  • rcmd Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-11-22

Put that right Command key to good use

Hold down ⌘ command and press the first letter of the app name to focus apps instantly.

When pressing the key while the app is already focused, you can choose to hide the app or cycle to the next app with the same first letter.

Assign custom keys for your favorite apps

Hold down ⌘ command + ⌥ option and press any letter to assign that letter to the currently focused app.

When an app is in the static list:

  • the assigned key can launch the app when it isn't running
  • the Hide/Cycle setting can be adjusted on a per-app basis.
  • Lunar.fyi Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-06-24

Native brightness control

macOS can't control external monitors brightness natively. Lunar adds that capability so you can use the same familiar brightness keys to adjust all monitors at once, or fine tune each one.

Volume keys also work for adjusting monitor volume, and there are hotkeys for switching between monitor inputs/ports.

Adaptive brightness

By using the MacBook and iMac integrated Ambient Light Sensor, Lunar can automatically adapt your monitor brightness and contrast throughout the day so you can forget about fiddling with buttons.

Even if you have monitors with different brightness capabilities, Lunar can learn the differences between them and compute a custom brightness curve for each one so they're always at the same perceived luminance.

Break brightness limits

Displays that have more than 500nits of brightness are limited by macOS so they can't reach their full brightness. Lunar unlocks that through its XDR Brightness feature so you can work in sunlight.

The Sub-zero Dimming feature allows you to lower the brightness below the usual 0% so you can work comfortably during the night.

Turn off displays

Lunar's BlackOut feature can turn off individual displays (even the built-in MacBook display) so you can focus on single tasks:

  • No need to close the lid or press power buttons
  • Webcam, keyboard and trackpad keep working as usual
  • Monitors can still be adapted through the MacBook light sensor

rcmd

Pricing URL
-
$ Details
paid $12.99 / One-off
Platforms
Mac OSX
Release Date
2021 November

Lunar.fyi

Website
lunar.fyi
$ Details
freemium $23.0 / One-off (Pro)
Platforms
Mac OSX
Release Date
2017 November

rcmd features and specs

  • Instant app switching: Yes
  • Dynamic hotkeys based on app usage: Yes
  • Launch apps when not running: Yes

Lunar.fyi features and specs

  • Adaptive Brightness: Yes
  • Native Brightness Control: Yes
  • XDR Brightness: Yes
  • Dim brightness below zero: Yes
  • Switch monitor inputs: Yes
  • Sync brightness between displays: Yes
  • Turn off individual displays: Yes
  • External light sensor support: Yes
  • Scheduled brightness presets: Yes
  • Command-line integration: Yes

rcmd videos

rcmd App Demo

Lunar.fyi videos

Lunar 5 Demo

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to rcmd and Lunar.fyi)
Mac
51 51%
49% 49
Productivity
59 59%
41% 41
App Launcher
100 100%
0% 0
Utilities
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare rcmd and Lunar.fyi

rcmd Reviews

  1. Easier and faster to navigate through apps

    Since I managed to get used with this app I can't imagine a day of work without it. Incredible powerful and easy to use / configure.

    👍 Pros:    Increases your productivity
    👎 Cons:    You need a little time to get used with it
  2. A useful productivity tool

    rcmd is something that could potentially turbocharge your productivity. However! you will need to get used to using it.

    My only issue is that I forget about it ¯_(ツ)_/¯

    👍 Pros:    Improves your productivity
    👎 Cons:    It's super easy to forget that it exists

Lunar.fyi Reviews

  1. I can not live without Lunar.

    Have you ever felt down? Depressed? Like there's something missing?

    That's computing life before Lunar. You might still be depressed, but at least you'll feel control over your displays.

    Facelight, smart brightness sync across monitors, support for a DIY-ish light sensor, command line integration, APP SPECIFIC PRESETS (!) the ability to access the XDR brightness in your shiny new Macbook, and much more.

    Your screens deserve better, your eyes deserve better. There's simply no better way to manage how light gets into your eyes from your monitor.

    🏁 Competitors: DisplayBuddy, MonitorControl
    👍 Pros:    Cheap price|Great set of functions|Unique|Comprehensive functions
    👎 Cons:    You don't own it yet

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Lunar.fyi should be more popular than rcmd. It has been mentiond 77 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

rcmd mentions (43)

  • It's been almost 9 months since Ventura was released. What's your thoughts about "Stage Manager"?
    Recommending rCMD for the most efficient way of switching between apps. Source: 10 months ago
  • Anime.js – A lightweight JavaScript animation library
    One less known use case for this is creating animated UI demos, which as a dev I find harder to do using video editing software. I used it to create the simple demo on the rcmd frontpage: https://lowtechguys.com/rcmd This is the code, where I'm just animating elements of an SVG I previously created with Sketch: https://github.com/FuzzyIdeas/lowtechguys/blob/main/src/rcmd/index.plim#L211-L379 But because Lunar's... - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Witch – macOS window switcher replacement
    Also check out my rcmd app (https://lowtechguys.com/rcmd) for more keyboard centric workflows. It’s definitely not as powerful as Witch for windows/tabs but rcmd’s one-key approach is instant for app switching. Witch has some ingenious features indeed: searching browser/editor/terminal tabs, lingering on an app to show its windows etc. I wish Apple would allow this kind of functionality in App Store apps. - Source: Hacker News / 11 months ago
  • Witch – macOS window switcher replacement
    I've found rcmd quite useful for window switching. It lets you use the right command key plus another key to switch applications. Right command + s for Safari, for example. It can also display a switcher that displays the combinations. https://lowtechguys.com/rcmd/. - Source: Hacker News / 11 months ago
  • Software Developer Mac Apps
    Https://lowtechguys.com/rcmd : quick shortcuts using the right command key. Source: 12 months ago
View more

Lunar.fyi mentions (77)

  • Reverse Engineering a Software Crack
    It’s done in a similar way on macOS: a dylib is added to the bundle and an LC_LOAD command is added to the app binary. The dylib is the first thing that runs because of using the constructor attribute, like this: https://notes.alinpanaitiu.com/Injecting%20a%20DYLIB%20into%20a%20macOS%20app The nice thing is that a signed app will refuse to load a dylib that does not have the same signature. So crackers will be... - Source: Hacker News / 6 days ago
  • No I don't want 2, Emacs
    Pretty sure Lunar [0] can do this for you, and you can buy a lifetime license. [0]: https://lunar.fyi/. - Source: Hacker News / 14 days ago
  • Show HN: Multi-monitor KVM using just a USB switch
    I've had good luck with the Lunar app - it manages my Dell and LG monitors on an M2. (No affiliation) https://lunar.fyi. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
  • PHOLED Will Transform Displays
    Wild! I am working on exactly the same thing now for Lunar (https://lunar.fyi), and I'm also calling it Night Mode ^_^ what a coincidence I've been trying to make "white regions in dark backgrounds" less painful for months, but doing that at the system level on macOS is incredibly hard. I see you're doing it with CSS filters, which make sense in the limited scope of an article. But applying something like... - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • If buying isn't owning, piracy isn't stealing
    I was comparing anti-piracy measures with DRM, I don't have actual DRM in my app. I can't block users that really bought the app from using it (which is what DRM is notorious for). But I do have a license verification for the Pro features (https://lunar.fyi/#pro), and that is what people are cracking in the app. I only added more protection around this verification. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing rcmd and Lunar.fyi, you can also consider the following products

Contexts - Switch between application windows effortlessly — with Fast Search, a better Command-Tab, a Sidebar or even a quick gesture. Free trial available.

DisplayBuddy - Control the real brightness of your monitors directly from your Mac - no need to touch the buttons on your Monitor.

Charmstone - The quicker switcher launcher for macOS

MonitorControl - Control your external monitor brightness&volume on your Mac

Lacona - Fast, simple, powerful keyboard-driven commands for Mac

Rectangle - Window management app based on Spectacle, written in Swift.