Comparison

nRF Connect for Mobile vs SimpleLink™ Wi

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

nRF Connect for Mobile

This app is a versatile tool for scanning, exploring, and communicating with Bluetooth Low Energy devices. It also enables your device to act as a peripheral and supports firmware updates for compatible devices.

Highlights
  • Scan and discover Bluetooth LE peripherals
  • Communicate with Bluetooth LE devices
  • Advertise as a Bluetooth LE peripheral
  • Update compatible device firmware (DFU)
  • Filter scanned peripherals
  • Live RSSI chart
  • Log BLE function calls
Read full description

nRF Connect is a powerful generic tool that allows you to scan and explore your Bluetooth Low Energy (henceforth Bluetooth LE, also called Bluetooth Version 4.0+ of the Bluetooth specification) devices and communicate with them. nRF Connect also allows your iOS device to advertise as a peripheral, with full support of many of Bluetooth SIG adopted profiles. Additionally, nRF Connect supports Nordic Semiconductor’s Device Firmware Update profile (DFU) capabilities, allowing you to update compatible peripherals! + Features: • Supports DFU on all Nordic Semiconducto-powered devices. • Supports Nordic Thingy™ from Nordic Semiconductor. • Scan and discover nearby Bluetooth LE peripherals. • Filter Scanned Peripherals by Name, Manufacturer, Services (Advertised & Connected) and RSSI Level. • Parsing Multiple Formats of Bluetooth LE Advertisement Data. • Live RSSI Chart of Scanned Bluetooth LE Peripherals. • Complete iPad Support, including Multi-Tasking and Mouse Support as of 13.4. • Logs: Including BLE Function calls, and Export Function as CSV and Text. • Privacy-Oriented: Full-Disclosure of Scanned Data, Advertised Data, and User-Performed Actions held by nRF Connect. • Connecting to Any Connectable Bluetooth LE Smart Device. • Discovery of Services, Characteristics and Descriptors. • Read and Write Characteristics and Descriptors. • Enable and Disable Notifications and Indications. • Advertising as a Bluetooth LE Peripheral. • Setting up a Bluetooth LE (Peripheral) Server and Notifying/Indicating back to connected Central(s). • Low-Fat: nRF Connect for iOS is Very Small, so You Can Always Keep Us With You! >= Requirements: • iOS 16.0 and above. - Notes: nRF Connect also works with our Development Kits, which you may acquire online here: https://www.nordicsemi.com/eng/buy-online

About

SimpleLink™ Wi

This app configures, connects, and communicates with specific wireless devices for IoT applications. It helps users set up Wi-Fi connections and discover other devices on the network.

Highlights
  • Configure Wi-Fi device to connect to access point
  • Locate other SimpleLink Wi-Fi devices
  • Connect microcontrollers to IoT
  • Add embedded Wi-Fi connectivity
  • Single-chip Wi-Fi solution
Features
Read full description

The SimpleLink™ Wi-Fi® Solution Starter Pro mobile app is a tool for users to configure, connect and communicate with TI's CC31xx and CC32xx devices. • Configure the SimpleLink Wi-Fi device to connect to an access point • Locate other SimpleLink Wi-Fi devices connected to the network The SimpleLink Wi-Fi family is the first in a series of easy to use, low power wireless connectivity solutions for the IoT. This Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ chips and modules allow customers to easily add embedded Wi-Fi and Internet connectivity to a wide-range of home, industrial and consumer electronics. • SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC31xx: Connect any microcontroller (MCU) to the Internet of Things with this wireless network processor • SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC32xx: Industry's first single-chip Wi-Fi solution with user-dedicated programmable MCU For more information on the SimpleLink Wi-Fi family, or to download the latest host embedded code, visit: www.ti.com/simplelinkwifi

Screenshots

nRF Connect for Mobile4 screens
SimpleLink™ Wi4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: nRF Connect for Mobile at 4.5 against SimpleLink™ Wi's 1.0. nRF Connect for Mobile also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 10 months) and ratings volume (472 vs 3). SimpleLink™ Wi's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

nRF Connect for Mobile holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: nRF Connect for Mobile has 472 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

nRF Connect for Mobile ships an update every 5 weeks, SimpleLink™ Wi every 10 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
nRF Connect for Mobile versus SimpleLink™ Wi: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameternRF Connect for MobileSimpleLink™ Wi
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (472 ratings) — better1.0 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews70.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings472 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 10 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.09.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNordic Semiconductor ASATexas Instruments

Customer experience

nRF Connect for Mobile

All ratings466 ratings
Positive85.2%
Neutral6.7%
Negative8.2%
Written reviews239 reviews
Positive70.7%
Neutral8.4%
Negative20.9%

SimpleLink™ Wi

All ratings3 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Bugs and requests

nRF Connect for Mobile

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Can't read data from Bluetooth device
  • Tries to ask for Bluetooth connection when Bluetooth is off. Asks to connect to devices when Bluetooth is off. Who knows what this app is doing in the background without permission?! What ever it is , it ain't good
  • Tapping "tabs" doesn't work (nothing changes in the UI). To get some response from tapping UI controls typically requires (a) launching nRF Connect, (b) switching to another app, (c) switching back to nRF Connect. I've tried uninstalling and re-downloading. Same result. This used to be the bee's knees of BLE tools but it's only worth 1 star at the moment (v2.7.11).
  • Cant go past the initial announcement. The app is unresponsive to the taps.

Requested features

4 requests
  • Where's the mac addresses
  • Max rssi limit
  • Log view
  • We need macros in iOS version

SimpleLink™ Wi

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

nRF Connect for Mobile

No in-app purchases

None

SimpleLink™ Wi

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is nRF Connect for Mobile free?
nRF Connect for Mobile is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SimpleLink™ Wi free?
SimpleLink™ Wi is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, nRF Connect for Mobile or SimpleLink™ Wi?
nRF Connect for Mobile is rated higher. nRF Connect for Mobile averages 4.5 out of 5 from 472 ratings, while SimpleLink™ Wi averages 1.0 from 3 ratings.
Do nRF Connect for Mobile or SimpleLink™ Wi have ads?
Neither nRF Connect for Mobile nor SimpleLink™ Wi shows ads.
Which is updated more often, nRF Connect for Mobile or SimpleLink™ Wi?
nRF Connect for Mobile ships an update every 5 weeks, and SimpleLink™ Wi every 10 months. Most recently, nRF Connect for Mobile was updated on October 20, 2026 and SimpleLink™ Wi on October 5, 2026.

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