SmartSDR™ vs Satellite Tracker
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SmartSDR™
Control your FlexRadio SDR device from your iPad or iPhone. Access nearly all features of the desktop client, including digital modes, signal analysis, and remote operation via SmartLink. Requires compatible FlexRadio hardware.
- FT8 and FT4 support
- SSTV TX and RX
- APRS TX and RX
- CW Decoder and keyer
- Weather Fax decoder
- Slice and Panadapter management
- SmartLink remote access
Read full descriptionHide full description
The Official FlexRadio Systems® Client for iPhone and iPad. Your FLEX-6000, FLEX-8000 or Aurora radio, at home over Wi-Fi or from anywhere with SmartLink™. Made by a ham, for hams, with personal support included. Works with any radio firmware: SmartSDR v1, v2, v3 and v4, including the newest release. WORKS WITH ■ FLEX-6300, FLEX-6400, FLEX-6400M, FLEX-6500, FLEX-6600, FLEX-6600M, FLEX-6700 ■ FLEX-8400, FLEX-8400M, FLEX-8600, FLEX-8600M ■ AU-510, AU-510M, AU-520, AU-520M (Aurora) OPERATE ■ Panadapter and waterfall with band plan, DX Cluster, POTA and FT8 spots ■ Slices, filters, TNFs, memories, profiles (TX, microphone, global), transverters, equalizers ■ SmartLink™ remote access, MultiFlex™, SmartControl, APD / SmartSignal™ ■ CWX with side tone and live sending, software paddle and straight key ■ Compact floating panels: CWX, Tune Stack, macros, Command Bar, DTMF, RIT / XIT ■ Firmware Update of your radio, right from the app ■ Your iPhone or iPad as microphone and speaker; the radio keeps playing in the background ■ Ready for iPhone Duo, iPad split screen and Apple Vision Pro MODES ■ FT8-Improved with AutoAnswer and AutoCQ, the classic FT8 and the FT8 Skimmer ■ JS8 keyboard chat ■ CW with decoder, keyer, ESM and CW keyboard ■ Speech: incoming voice transcribed and translated, your typed text sent as speech ■ SSTV, HF-Fax, APRS and WSPR FT8-Improved, JS8, Speech and WSPR need iOS 26. TOOLS ■ Logbook with ADIF import and export, shared via iCloud with SDR-Control, FT-Control, TS-Control and K4-Control, on iPhone, iPad and Mac ■ DX Cluster, POTA, PSK Reporter, Call Lookup, Band Plan, Network Stats ■ 4O3A Genius devices (Power, Tuner, Antenna and Rotator Genius), Ultra Beam antennas ■ HomeKit: switch your radio, antenna switches and other devices ■ Controllers: MIDI, CTR2, HaliKey, Pryme, Flic, PowerMate MADE BY A HAM Made by Marcus, DL8MRE, who has been developing apps for Apple devices since 2009 and uses this app every day in his own shack. Personal online support and a detailed manual are included. Updates with new modes and features are free: no subscription, no in-app purchases. WHAT YOU NEED ■ One of the radios above, on your network ■ An iPhone or iPad with iOS 18 or later ■ For SmartLink™: a radio set up for SmartLink (SmartSDR v2 or later) Manual: https://go-to.me/smartsdr-manual More apps: https://ham-radio-apps.com
Satellite Tracker
Track satellites, the Sun, and the Moon with rise/set times and visibility calculations. Visualize Earth with 3D globe or 2D map views and customize tracking options. Offers free basic functionality with optional subscriptions for expanded satellite access.
- Satellite, Sun, and Moon tracking
- Rise/set times and visibility calculations
- 3D globe and 2D map Earth views
- Customizable tracking options
- Free basic functionality
- Optional satellite subscription plans
Read full descriptionHide full description
Satellite Tracker is the follow on to our award winning HamSat series of applications. Satellite Tracker merges all the features of the iPhone and iPad versions providing you a single application that seamlessly optimizes the screen to the device you’re running it on (check out the various iPhone and iPad screen shots). The application will calculate the rise/set times and associated azimuth and elevation for the selected satellite, Sun or Moon given either the user entered or network retrieved location. There are two modes for satellite rise/set calculations. The first is for those folks wanting to know all overflights for a given location (like Ham radio operators) while the second mode computes only those passes where the satellite would be visible to a ground observer. In the ground observer mode, the calculations not only take into account that the ground is dark but also that the satellite is in sunlight (it even takes into account if the satellite becomes lit or unlit during the pass) In addition, you can see the Earth rendered either as a 3D globe or a 2D map using photo realistic texture maps for the Earth model. The orientation of the map is easily changed by a simple rotation of the device from portrait (3D) to landscape (2D). In either orientation you can zoom in and out as well as pan using the touch screen. There are more than a dozen controls provided to allow you to customize how the application works to meet your specific needs (type of Earth texture used, location, type of overflight calculated…) Finally, the application is now free to download and provides full functionality for tracking, viewing and communicating with the International Space Station (what was the capability of the ISS family of paid apps). The following subscriptions are available for tracking and communicating with a larger set of satellites: -HamSat (Annual and Monthly): Provides access to the NORAD and AMSAT two line element sets which cover all amateur related satellites. -ProSat (Annual and Monthly): Provides access to thousands of satellites grouped into the following categories (from www.celestrak.com): -100 (or so) Brightest -Last 30 Day’s Launches (or so) -Amateur Ham Radio Satellites -CubeSats -Disaster Monitoring -Earth Resources -Education -Engineering -Geodetic -Geostationary -GOES -GPS Operational -Intelsat -Iridium -Molniya -NOAA -Orbcomm -Search & Rescue (SARSAT) -Space & Earth Science -Space Station -Weather To get a feel for the apps, please checkout the iPad quickstart video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiHCGxV0WM8) and associated user’s guide (http://www.vosworx.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/SatSeriesHD.pdf) or the iPhone quickstart video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuPccQI9oSg) and it’s user’s guide (http://www.vosworx.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/SatSeries.pdf). Please note that InApp payments will be charged to your AppleID account at the confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renews unless it is canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel your subscription by going to your account settings on the App Store after purchase. For more information, please visit our Terms of Service at http://www.vosworx.com/terms-of-service-for-app and our Privacy Policy at http://www.vosworx.com/privacy-policy-for-apps. Thanks to everyone who has sent in their questions/requests and keep them coming! -Craig (support@vosworx.com)
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Satellite Tracker at Free against SmartSDR™'s $79.99. Satellite Tracker also leads on iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.6). SmartSDR™'s advantage is rating (4.3 vs 3.4) and review sentiment (77% vs 44%). On ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Satellite Tracker is free to download; SmartSDR™ costs $79.99 up front. SmartSDR™ sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Satellite Tracker sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
SmartSDR™ holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SmartSDR™ has 132 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of SmartSDR™'s written reviews are positive against 44% of Satellite Tracker's.
SmartSDR™ ships an update every 2 weeks, Satellite Tracker every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SmartSDR™ | Satellite Tracker |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $79.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.3 (132 ratings) — better | 3.4 (13 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews — better | 44.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 132 — better | 13 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 57 MB | 23 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Marcus Roskosch | Craig Vosburgh |
Customer experience
SmartSDR™
Satellite Tracker
In-app purchases
SmartSDR™
- Region 1,2 and 3 Band PlanFree
- DX-Cluster$5.99
- Griffin PowerMate BT Controller support$5.99
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- MidiController support$5.99
- Logbook Add-on$5.99
- Flic 2 Button support$5.99
- Voice Macros$5.99
- 4O3A Genius Device support$9.99
- FT8$19.99
- FlexRadio Device access$64.99
Satellite Tracker
- Amateur Satellites Monthly$1.491 Month
- All Satellites Monthly$1.991 Month
- Amateur Satellites Annual$8.991 Year
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- All Satellites Annual$11.991 Year








