# APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget vs DWARFLAB

The clearest difference is review sentiment: APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget at 88% against DWARFLAB's 36%. APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget also leads on rating (4.8 vs 3.5). DWARFLAB's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and iOS requirement (15 vs 17.0). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. DWARFLAB asks for nothing beyond the download.

APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 292 and 147 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget's written reviews are positive against 36% of DWARFLAB's.

APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget ships an update every 3 weeks, DWARFLAB every 5 weeks. Both last shipped on November 7, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget | DWARFLAB |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (292 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/apod-astronomy-pics-and-widget/id1532969874/reviews)** | [3.5 (147 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dwarflab/id1667394131/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **292** | 147 |
| Positive reviews | **88.1% of reviews** | 36.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Every 5 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 13 MB | 219 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Mark Hambly](https://appshunter.io/developer/627800469) | [Tinyphoton (Wuhan) Technology. Co., Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1470898020) |

## What reviewers say

### APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/apod-astronomy-pics-and-widget/id1532969874)

Access NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day with customizable widgets. View today's, random, or favorite images, and browse past APODs. Share your discoveries with ease.

**Highlights:** Today Widget, Random Widget, Favorites Widget, APOD Viewer App, Browse random APODs, Browse favorite APODs, Share favorites

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Tip Jar: Buy me a coffee | $2.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great when it's working
- 🤩 Captivating and educational
- 🌟 Fantastic Universe!
- 🌍 Amazing app, would recommend, this is definitely for space lovers
- 🤓 One of my favourite apps

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Unusable
- 🐛 Stopped working
- 🐛 iOS 26 HELP
- 🐛 No longer works
- 🐛 Broken images with iOS 26 :(

**Reported bugs**

- Stopped working with iOS 26 update
- Images do not load with iOS 26 at the moment
- Excessive battery usage by widget

**Requested features**

- Navigation buttons would be nice
- A way to swipe between days
- A search function
- A browser for other images by date


### DWARFLAB

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dwarflab/id1667394131)

This app connects wirelessly to a smart telescope, offering intuitive control for capturing stunning images of the night sky and dynamic terrestrial scenes. It features automatic tracking, in-app image processing, and panorama creation for both astrophotography and everyday use.

**Highlights:** Wireless telescope connection, In-built star atlas for astrophotography, Automatic celestial and motion tracking, In-app image stacking and post-processing, Gigapixel panorama creation, Time-lapse photography

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 📸 High-quality astrophotography results
- 💰 Excellent value for price
- 🎯 Intuitive sky atlas and target selection
- 🔄 Frequent app updates and improvements
- ⚡ Responsive developer team

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔌 Persistent WiFi connectivity issues
- ⏱️ Slow connection establishment (15-30 minutes)
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and freezes
- 📉 Tracking frame drops (25% loss reported)
- 🔄 Connection drops after minutes

**Reported bugs**

- WiFi connection fails repeatedly or drops within seconds
- App crashes on iOS 18 and older iOS versions
- Account creation security verification fails
- Full-screen mode freezes with no escape option
- Autofocus produces inconsistent or blurry results

**Requested features**

- One-tap return to home and power off function
- Panorama/mosaic image merging capability
- Comet-aligned tracking mode
- Dew control for iOS (available on Android)
- iPad-optimized app version


## Frequently asked questions

### Is APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget free?

APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is DWARFLAB free?

DWARFLAB is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget or DWARFLAB?

APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget is rated higher. APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget averages 4.8 out of 5 from 292 ratings, while DWARFLAB averages 3.5 from 147 ratings.

### Do APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget or DWARFLAB have ads?

Neither APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget nor DWARFLAB shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget or DWARFLAB?

APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget ships an update every 3 weeks, and DWARFLAB every 5 weeks. Most recently, APOD Astronomy Pics and Widget was updated on November 7, 2026 and DWARFLAB on November 7, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*