surco vs Smart Life Philco
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
surco
Transform your iPhone into a powerful smart home remote. Control a vast array of infrared devices with pre-installed commands and customizable options. Manage your home appliances from anywhere, save energy, and share control with family.
- Universal infrared remote control
- Extensive device code database
- Customizable remote editor
- Voice control integration
- Remote access via internet
- Smart scheduling
- Family sharing
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surco - Turn your iPhone into the most powerful remote to make smart home control simple than ever. With over 26 years of experience in manufacturing controllers. surco has a large database which includes complete code list , suitable for almost 95 % infrared home devices on the market. Remote control commands are pre-installed, ready to communicate with your existing home appliances. Quickly and easily connect and control your all traditional devices from a single app! Control your home appliances anytime form anywhere via internet in the world. With surco powerful remote to boost comfort, smart and start an energy-saving life. Smart Home Features: - supported TV, Set top box, DVD & blue ray players, AUX, Air-conditioning, Dyson Fan, Ceiling light, iRobot and more. - Edit: surco has a remote editor that allows you to customize each remote to make it your own.(Up to 3 remote controls) - Voice control via Google Home and Amazon Echo - Unlimited 7-day smart scheduling - Share your device control with family - Can be used by the whole family - Saves energy and reduces bill - Updated code database embed that is compatible with all main brands in the world including Sony, Panasonic, LG , Sharp, Samsung, Toshiba, Mitsubishi, DAIKIN , HITACHI ,GREE, Midea , Hisense, Dyson, TECO , Heran, SAMPO etc. How it works: Step 1：Download surco app Step 2：Connect to the internet Step 3：Pair up with home appliances Enjoy and start controlling Specification Product：surco Size：10.8 x 5.3 x1.4 cm Material：Plastic、iron plate、magnet Weight：180 g Power input：DC 5V / 1A adapter USB cable length : 150cm Distance：Infrared signal 8~10 meters, smartphone is able to control the device from anywhere with internet connection Frequency：Wi-Fi 2.4GHz（not compatible with 5GHz） Manufacturer：AIFA Technology Corporation (Powered by AIFA) --- You will purchase of a surco device to remote control all traditional IR devices. Please contact us if you're having any issues in using the app. We will do our best to make everyone using our app happily. You can send us feedback of any kind, we take every single one into consideration. ‧ Email us if you're having questions: support@simplecocoon.com ‧ Like our Facebook page: https://facebook.com/surcotw or send us a message there
Smart Life Philco
Control your home appliances remotely from anywhere. Manage multiple devices simultaneously, set timers for automated functions, and easily share device access with family members. The app offers a quick and simple connection process to your smart devices.
- Remote appliance control
- Simultaneous multi-device management
- Automated timer functions
- Device sharing with family
- Easy device connection
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1. Remote control: control home appliances from anywhere 2. Simultaneously control: control multiple devices with one App 3. Timer: set timer to perform multiple functions 4. Device sharing: Share devices among family members 5. Easy connection: easily and quickly connect App to devices
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: surco at every 9 days against Smart Life Philco's every 9 months. surco also leads on review sentiment (61% vs 36%) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 13.0). Smart Life Philco's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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.
Smart Life Philco holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 2 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 61% of surco's written reviews are positive against 36% of Smart Life Philco's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
surco ships an update every 9 days, Smart Life Philco every 9 months. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | surco | Smart Life Philco |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (3 ratings) | 4.5 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 61.2% of reviews — better | 36.4% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days — better | Every 9 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 183 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Aifa technology corp. | Philco Eletronicos SA |
Customer experience
surco
Smart Life Philco
In-app purchases
surco
No in-app purchases
Smart Life Philco
No in-app purchases
