Comparison

Hao Deng vs Smart Elfin

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

Head to head
About

Hao Deng

Effortlessly manage your smart LED lights with a vast array of color and brightness options. Create custom scenes, group bulbs by room, and utilize security or wake-up lighting features. Sync lights to music or ambient room colors for a dynamic experience.

Highlights
  • 16 million color choices
  • Brightness control
  • Customizable scenes
  • Multi-room grouping
  • Security lighting timers
  • Wake-up/turn-down lighting
  • Music sync (MIC mode)
  • Camera color detection
Features
Read full description

Controlling your smart LED has never been easier. 16 million amazing color choices, coolwhite or warmwhite, or many other tones in between. Select any color you want, vary the brightness, store favorite scenes, or choose one of the preset color sequences. MULTI-ROOM / MULTI-SCENE Control the bulbs individually, or group them together. Create individual moods for different rooms. Full control, at your finger tip. SECURITY LIGHTING Going out of town? Set the smart LED to come on and off at certain times, and no one will know you are away. Set individual timers for daily, weekdays, weekends, or specific days. PERFECT WAKE-UP or TURN-DOWN LIGHTING Setup the smart LED to gently turn on the room lighting in the morning, or reduce brightness in the evenings. Perfect way to start the day or settle into the evening. PARTY TOOL Having a party? Set the device to MIC mode, where it’ll listen to the surrounding music and change colors to match the beat. Want lighting to match the color of the room? Easy, use the camera from the APP to detect the surrounding color, which then auto-updates the LED device to matching colors. SHARE Have you created the perfect scene using your lights? Have multiple users at home? No problem, use the email to share devices with other members of your household. SECURE Setup passwords to ensure only authorized persons have access to your smart lighting network.

About

Smart Elfin

Control smart home devices like lights and fans via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. Manage power, brightness, color temperature, and fan speed. Schedule automatic turn-off times for convenience.

Highlights
  • Device power on/off
  • Adjust light brightness
  • Adjust color temperature
  • Control fan speed
  • Scheduled shutdown timers
  • Quick device setup
Features
Read full description

# Bluetooth 2.4G Devices For successful pairing, click the Pairing button within 5 seconds after powering on the device. Key Features: 1. Device Control: Turn on/off, adjust light brightness/color temperature & fan speed levels 2. Scheduled Shutdown: Set custom timers for automatic turn-off 3. Quick Setup: Add devices instantly in Settings or via "Add Device > Manual Setup" # WiFi+Bluetooth Dual-Mode Devices For successful pairing, go to "Add Device > Discover Devices" within 1 minute after power-on. Key Features: 1. Device Control: Turn on/off, adjust light brightness/color temperature & fan speed levels 2. Scheduled Shutdown: Set custom timers for automatic turn-off

Screenshots

Hao Deng3 screens
Smart Elfin4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Hao Deng at 2.7 against Smart Elfin's 1.4. Hao Deng also leads on review sentiment (36% vs 5%). Smart Elfin's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 weeks). On price, ratings volume, 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

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

Hao Deng holds the better App Store score, 2.7 against 1.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 83 and 139 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 36% of Hao Deng's written reviews are positive against 5% of Smart Elfin's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hao Deng ships an update every 6 weeks, Smart Elfin fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Hao Deng versus Smart Elfin: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHao DengSmart Elfin
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.7 (83 ratings) — better1.4 (139 ratings)
Positive reviews36.5% of reviews — better4.7% of reviews
Number of ratings83139 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS12.011.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size40 MB50 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJM Zengge Co., LtdQuspeed Future Artificial Intelligence Technology Guangzhou Co., Ltd.

Customer experience

Hao Deng

All ratings83 ratings
Positive38.6%
Neutral6.0%
Negative55.4%
Written reviews85 reviews
Positive36.5%
Neutral7.1%
Negative56.5%

Smart Elfin

All ratings137 ratings
Positive5.8%
Neutral5.1%
Negative89.1%
Written reviews107 reviews
Positive4.7%
Neutral2.8%
Negative92.5%

Bugs and requests

Hao Deng

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Smart Elfin

Reported bugs

16 issues
  • App crashes on startup
  • Bluetooth not detected or enabled
  • App says update needed but none available
  • Language changes to Chinese/Japanese unexpectedly
  • Cannot register or log in
Show 11 more
  • App loses connection to devices
  • Buttons/controls unresponsive
  • Device control functions backwards
  • Fan on/off non-functional
  • Lights blinking/changing colors on their own
  • App doesn't sync with devices
  • Privacy policy screen blank or buttons not working
  • App requests excessive permissions
  • Brightness reverts to full in pulsating mode
  • Cannot control two lights independently
  • Remount control mixes with TV functions

Requested features

6 requests
  • Adjust brightness in pulsating mode
  • Lighter/darker color options
  • Improve app for US market
  • Provide clear instructions/tutorials
  • Fix language issues (English support)
Show 1 more
  • Allow control of multiple lights independently

In-app purchases

None

Hao Deng

No in-app purchases

None

Smart Elfin

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Hao Deng free?
Hao Deng is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Smart Elfin free?
Smart Elfin is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Hao Deng or Smart Elfin?
Hao Deng is rated higher. Hao Deng averages 2.7 out of 5 from 83 ratings, while Smart Elfin averages 1.4 from 139 ratings.
Do Hao Deng or Smart Elfin have ads?
Neither Hao Deng nor Smart Elfin shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Hao Deng or Smart Elfin?
Hao Deng ships an update every 6 weeks, and Smart Elfin fortnightly. Most recently, Hao Deng was updated on October 13, 2026 and Smart Elfin on October 19, 2026.

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