SofaBaton vs Dabble
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SofaBaton
Configure your physical remote control with this app. It connects via Bluetooth to access a vast database of IR codes for various home entertainment devices. Set up new devices, learn from original remotes, and create custom button assignments or macro sequences for simplified control.
- Bluetooth remote configuration
- IR code database access
- Device setup via online search
- Learning from original remotes
- Customizable button assignments
- Macro key sequence creation
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The app is used to set up and configurate the physical Sofabaton remote. The app uses Bluetooth signal to communicate with the Sofabaton remote control, giving access to the full database of IR code for home entertainment devices, such as TV's, SoundBar's, DVD's, etc. Devices can be set up by searching online IR code database or directly learning from original physical remotes. The app also gives you access to customizable functionalities such as assigning unique keys to certain buttons on the Sofabaton remote or creating macro key sequences so that you can enjoy the convenience of achieving certain activities by simply pressing one button. Features: -Online access to cloud-based database of Infrared Device -Universal search by device brand or type -Automatic setup on the Sofabaton remote using Bluetooth technology -Support both IR and Bluetooth remote protocol -Requires a Bluetooth Smart capable phone
Dabble
Control and communicate with hardware like Arduino and ESP32 using your smartphone's sensors and Bluetooth. This app transforms your phone into a virtual controller, offering modules for LED control, terminal commands, gamepad functionality, and access to phone sensors.
- LED Brightness Control
- Terminal for text and voice commands
- Gamepad control (analog, digital, accelerometer)
- Pin State Monitor
- Phone Sensor access (GPS, mic, accelerometer, etc.)
- Scratch & Arduino compatible projects
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Dabble is a versatile project interaction & Bluetooth controller app for Arduino, ESP32 & evive that replaces a wide variety of electronic components and exploits the inbuilt features and sensors of your Smartphone like the GPS, mic & accelerometer thus transforming into a virtual treasury of infinite shields & more. It lets you control & communicate with hardware via Bluetooth. It also provides you with dedicated projects compatible with Scratch & Arduino to help you learn by doing. What Dabble has in store: Currently Available Modules: • LED Brightness Control: Control brightness of LEDs and digital/analog pins. • Terminal: Send and receive textual and voice commands over Bluetooth. • Gamepad: Control devices/robot in analog (Joystick), digital, and accelerometer mode. • Pin State Monitor: Remotely monitor the live status of devices and debug them. • Phone Sensor: Access different sensors of your Smartphone such as the accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity sensor, magnetometer, light meter, sound meter, GPS, temperature sensor, and barometer to make projects and conduct experiments. Coming Soon: • Motor Control (Coming Soon): Control actuators such as the DC motor and servo motor. • Inputs (Coming Soon): Provide analog and digital inputs via buttons, knobs, and switches. • Camera (Coming Soon): Use the camera of your Smartphone for taking photos, record videos, colour picking, and face recognition (coming soon). • IoT (Coming Soon): Log data, publish it on cloud, and access data from API. • Oscilloscope (Coming Soon): Visualize and analyse the input and output signals given to the device using the oscilloscope module. • Music (Coming Soon): Receive commands from the device and play tones, songs, or other recorded audio files on your Smartphone. • Projects (Coming Soon): Make dedicated projects to experience different concepts of the real world first-hand like home automation, line-follower, and robotic arm. Boards Compatible with Dabble: • evive • Arduino Uno • Arduino Mega • Arduino Nano • ESP32 Bluetooth Modules Compatible with Dabble: • HM-10 BT 4.0 BLE (or AT-09) Want to know more about Dabble? Visit: https://thestempedia.com/product/dabble/ Module Documentation: https://thestempedia.com/docs/dabble/ Getting Started with Dabble: https://thestempedia.com/docs/dabble/getting-started-with-dabble/ Projects that you can make: https://thestempedia.com/product/dabble-app/ Permissions required for: Bluetooth: to provide connectivity. Microphone: to send voice commands and use the sound meter. Location: to use Location sensor and BLE.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Dabble at 3.9 against SofaBaton's 2.4. Dabble also leads on review sentiment (75% vs 37%) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.6). SofaBaton's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 months). 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Dabble holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 2.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 298 and 128 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 37% of SofaBaton's written reviews are positive against 75% of Dabble's.
SofaBaton ships an update every 2 weeks, Dabble every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SofaBaton | Dabble |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.4 (298 ratings) | 3.9 (128 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 36.7% of reviews | 75.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 298 — better | 128 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 72 MB | 18 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | HTT IMPORT AND EXPORT INC | STEMpedia |
Customer experience
SofaBaton
Dabble
User reviews
SofaBaton
From 298 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Works well
- 🚀 Easy to set up
- 💡 Customizable buttons
- 🔒 Reliable connection
- 🔋 Long battery life
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy app
- 👎 Unintuitive interface
- 🔍 Incomplete device database
- 🔍 Difficult to program
- 🔍 Lacks advanced features
Dabble
From 128 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use for beginners
- 🚀 Works well with ESP32 and Arduino
- 💰 Free and fully functional
- 💡 Great for robotics projects
- 📱 Useful phone sensors
Room to improve
- 🐛 Gamepad issues on iOS
- 🐛 Not all functions available on iPhone
- 🐛 GPS data transfer unreliable
- 🐛 Phone sensor data flaky
- 🐛 UI issues on older versions
Bugs and requests
SofaBaton
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes during setup
- Remote disconnects frequently
- Buttons not responsive
- Issues with firmware updates
Requested features
5 requests- Dark mode option
- Backup and restore settings
- Improved device support
- Easier programming process
- More advanced macro functionality
Dabble
Reported bugs
15 issues- Gamepad doesn't work on iOS
- Joystick values are blank on iOS
- Buttons do not show for gamepad
- Controller function broken on iPhones without a home button
- Gamepad won't turn, only shows left/right controls, format off
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- Gamepad doesn't load properly, shows only two arrows
- Game pad section is useless after iOS 16 update, doesn't show entire gamepad
- Lag and robot continues to move
- Joystick resets values when action button is pressed
- GPS data transfer not reliable
- Phone sensor data is flaky
- UI completely messed up due to no updates
- Auto connect problem (BLE services in reverse order)
- Doesn't connect to Nintendo Switch Lite, no SYNC button
- Gamepad doesn't display on iPhone 8, works on iPad
Requested features
7 requests- More buttons on gamepad or custom gamepad creation
- Additional controller types (joystick, button rows)
- Ability to map terminal commands to virtual actions/notifications
- Offline automation and scripts for iOS
- Xbox controller support
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- Motor control on iPhone
- Pro version with more options
In-app purchases
SofaBaton
No in-app purchases
Dabble
No in-app purchases









