SynScan Pro vs SynScan Photo
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SynScan Pro
Control motorized telescope mounts for celestial observation and astrophotography. Features include precise slewing, alignment, GOTO, and tracking of stars, planets, and deep-sky objects. Supports advanced functions like polar alignment and camera triggering.
- Control telescope mount (slew, align, GOTO, track)
- Point and Track celestial objects
- Gamepad navigation support
- Catalog of celestial objects
- Third-party app integration (ASCOM, SkySafari)
- Polar alignment (with or without polar scope)
- Camera shutter release control
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Use the SynScan app to control Sky-Watcher telescope mounts via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth LE. Mounts without built-in Wi-Fi can be supported via a SynScan Wi-Fi adapter. This is the Pro version of the SynScan app and contains features suited for expert users using equatorial mounts. Features - Control telescope mount to slew, align, GOTO and track. - Point And Track: track celestial objects (including the Sun and planets) without aligning. - Support gamepad navigation. - Browse a catalog of stars, comets, and deep sky objects. Or, save your own objects. - Provide access to mount for use by third-party apps, including ASCOM clients, SkySafari, Luminos, Stellarium Mobile Plus, Stellarium Desktop or customer-developed apps. Also set up mount alignment for Luminos, Skysafari. - Support access to the mount and the SynScan app from any platform that supports TCP/UDP connections. - Provide emulator mount for testing and practicing. - Track fast-moving earth satellites by working with the PreviSat app on Windows PC or the Lumios app on iOS devices. - Perform polar alignment with or without a polar scope. - Control shutter release (SNAP) port to trigger an attached camera. (Requires mount with SNAP port and adapter cable that matches camera.) - Use ASCOM to perform autoguiding on mounts that do not have autoguider (ST-4) port. - Other mount controls: auto home, PPEC, park.
SynScan Photo
Control Skywatcher AZ-Mounts for astrophotography tasks like panoramas and time-lapses. Requires a mount with a Wi-Fi module and specific firmware version.
- Control Skywatcher AZ-Mounts
- Perform panoramic photography
- Create time-lapse sequences
- Execute multiple-point scans
- Wi-Fi module required
- Firmware version 3.20+ needed
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SynScan Photo can control a Skywatcher AZ-Mount(i.e. AZ-GTi、Star Discovery、SynScan AZ80...)to perform multiple photographic tasks, including panorama, time-lapse or multiple-points scan. Note: A mount with a built-in Wi-Fi module must be used, and the motor firmware of the mount is version 3.20 or higher.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: SynScan Pro at 2.6 against SynScan Photo's 2.0. SynScan Pro also leads on ratings volume (51 vs 2). SynScan Photo's advantage is monetization model (free vs paid) and review sentiment (50% vs 22%). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
SynScan Pro holds the better App Store score, 2.6 against 2.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SynScan Pro has 51 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 22% of SynScan Pro's written reviews are positive against 50% of SynScan Photo's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
SynScan Pro ships an update every 2 months, SynScan Photo every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on July 4, 2026 and September 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SynScan Pro | SynScan Photo |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.6 (51 ratings) — better | 2.0 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 21.5% of reviews | 50.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 51 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 46 MB | 11 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Astropower Technology Co. Ltd. | SynUe Tech. Co., Ltd |
Customer experience
SynScan Pro
SynScan Photo
In-app purchases
SynScan Pro
No in-app purchases
SynScan Photo
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is SynScan Pro free?
Is SynScan Photo free?
Which has better reviews, SynScan Pro or SynScan Photo?
Do SynScan Pro or SynScan Photo have ads?
Which is updated more often, SynScan Pro or SynScan Photo?
Other comparisons
