Comparison

Arsenal 2 vs DWARFLAB

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

Head to head
About

Arsenal 2

This app provides intelligent remote control for DSLR and mirrorless cameras, offering both automated smart settings and full manual control. It helps photographers capture challenging scenes like HDR and timelapses with ease, ensuring sharp focus and perfect exposure.

Highlights
  • Smart Mode with machine learning scene analysis
  • Full manual camera control via smartphone
  • Live shot preview
  • High Dynamic Range (HDR) automation
  • Focus stacking for sharp images
  • Automated timelapse capture
  • Remote shutter trigger up to 100 feet
Features
Read full description

Arsenal 2 is an intelligent assistant for your DSLR or mirrorless camera. The Arsenal 2 app provides you with complete remote control of Arsenal and your camera. NEVER MISS THE PERFECT SHOT: Like your own personal photography assistant, Arsenal lets you focus on the parts of photography you love while it takes care of the rest. In Smart Mode, Arsenal 2’s machine learning algorithm understands the scene you’re shooting, chooses smart settings, and fine tunes them using 18 different environmental factors. GET COMPLETE CONTROL: When you want full creative control, Arsenal 2’s Manual Mode turns your smartphone into the world’s best wireless camera remote. Set your camera’s shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. See a live preview of your shot. And trigger the shutter... all from up to 100 feet away! TAKE GREAT SHOTS IN TRICKY LIGHT: Capture scenes with High Dynamic Range (HDR) without spending hours in front of your computer. Arsenal 2 automates advanced exposure stacking techniques. KEEP EVERYTHING SHARP: With focus stacking, you can get your entire scene in sharp focus. CAPTURE STUNNING TIMELAPSES: Arsenal 2 makes capturing “holy grail” timelapses a breeze. Simply start your timelapse and let Arsenal 2 adjust the exposure as the light changes for a smooth day-to-night transition. You can even preview your timelapse while it’s being recorded. WORKS WITH MOST POPULAR CAMERA MODELS: Arsenal 2 fully supports nearly 100 popular DSLR and mirrorless camera models from Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Fuji. To see if your camera is supported, visit https://witharsenal.com/supported-cameras You can learn more about Arsenal 2 at https://witharsenal.com

About

DWARFLAB

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
Read full description

DWARFLAB smart telescope, empowered by advanced technology, opens up a world of diverse perspectives for users, capturing the wonders of life. No guidance or experience needed, it's ready to use out of the box. Wireless Connection Use the App to connect wirelessly with DWARFLAB smart telescope, enabling not only precise control but also making the shooting process more flexible and efficient. Astrophotography The App features an in-built star atlas, allowing you to simply tap on the celestial you desire to proceed with automatic star tracking and enjoy real-time image stacking. You can also adjust the astro curves and personalize the color grading to create your own 4K astronomical images. In-App Post Processing Capture, select, stack, and enhance — all in one seamless workflow for astrophotography. Supports both onboard stacking and cloud-based processing, with multi-format export options to make every astro image crisp and brilliant. Motion Tracking You can freely select the target to track on the shooting interface, enjoying the flexibility of manual selection; or you can use the telescope's automatic recognition function, which intelligently identifies tracks, and starts recordings, easily capturing dynamic scenes such as bird predation, flights, and sports close-ups. Gigapixel Panorama Simply set the shooting range and tap to start — with one-click stitching, you can create extremely detailed and vast panoramic images, supporting deep zoom and experiencing an unprecedented level of detail richness. Time-Lapse Photography Capture the flow and changes of time, recording the hustle and bustle of traffic, the blooming and wilting of flowers. Combined with astronomical tracking functions, it can also record the trajectory of the sun, solar/lunar eclipses, and the star trails.

Screenshots

Arsenal 24 screens
DWARFLAB4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Arsenal 2 at 4.4 against DWARFLAB's 3.5. Arsenal 2 also leads on ratings volume (941 vs 143). DWARFLAB's advantage is monetization model (free vs paid) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, review sentiment, update cadence 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

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

Arsenal 2 holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Arsenal 2 has 941 ratings behind it against 143, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 29% of Arsenal 2's written reviews are positive against 36% of DWARFLAB's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Arsenal 2 ships an update monthly, DWARFLAB every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Arsenal 2 versus DWARFLAB: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterArsenal 2DWARFLAB
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (941 ratings) — better3.5 (143 ratings)
Positive reviews28.8% of reviews36.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings941 — better143
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.515 — better
Further details — not scored
Size498 MB219 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNorth of You, LLCTinyphoton (Wuhan) Technology. Co., Ltd.

Customer experience

Arsenal 2

All ratings933 ratings
Positive86.6%
Neutral3.8%
Negative9.6%
Written reviews59 reviews
Positive28.8%
Neutral13.6%
Negative57.6%

DWARFLAB

All ratings143 ratings
Positive60.1%
Neutral7.7%
Negative32.2%
Written reviews114 reviews
Positive36.0%
Neutral21.1%
Negative43.0%

User reviews

Arsenal 2

From 941 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Immediate results, focused, clear, perfect shots
  • 🔍 Helpful for settings and viewing results
  • 📷 Exceptional product, helps improve photography
  • 👍 Wonderful controller and app

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes, freezes, and disconnects frequently
  • 🔋 Battery drains quickly
  • 📱 Compatibility issues with newer cameras
  • 🤔 Unclear how to use features, lacking tutorials
  • 🔍 Poor image quality from stacking/processing features

DWARFLAB

From 143 App Store ratings

What we love

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

Room to improve

  • 🔌 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

Bugs and requests

Arsenal 2

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Fails to save/load panoramic files
  • Incompatible with certain camera models/lenses
  • Night mode turns off camera during 'star focus'
  • Upside down/portrait orientation issues with phone mount

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for GPS data
  • Improve panorama functionality
  • Implement true BULB mode support
  • Provide raw/DNG file output for stacked images
  • Add iPad app version with larger interface

DWARFLAB

Reported bugs

21 issues
  • 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
Show 16 more
  • Manual focus unresponsive
  • Tracking takes excessive time to initiate
  • Dark frame calibration lines appear and ruin images
  • Temperature-related calibration failures
  • Settings reset to defaults after stacking
  • IR Cut/Pass filter constantly resets to Pass mode
  • Photo saving to album is inconsistent (hit or miss)
  • App freezes when changing camera systems
  • Inverted controls and flipped image display
  • Battery icon obscures capacity readout on iPhone
  • STA mode connectivity broken
  • Firmware update errors prevent connection
  • Image preview not displaying in app
  • Joystick controls unresponsive intermittently
  • Wide and telephoto lens menu settings reversed
  • App incompatible with iOS versions below 15

Requested features

13 requests
  • 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
Show 8 more
  • Histogram display in app
  • Burst mode functionality
  • External Barlow lens support
  • Mac M-series silicon compatibility
  • Ability to skip firmware updates until convenient time
  • Milky Way capture documentation for Dwarf Mini
  • Photo album integration improvements
  • STA mode WiFi connectivity fix

In-app purchases

None

Arsenal 2

No in-app purchases

None

DWARFLAB

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Arsenal 2 free?
Arsenal 2 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is DWARFLAB free?
DWARFLAB is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Arsenal 2 or DWARFLAB?
Arsenal 2 is rated higher. Arsenal 2 averages 4.4 out of 5 from 941 ratings, while DWARFLAB averages 3.5 from 143 ratings.
Do Arsenal 2 or DWARFLAB have ads?
Neither Arsenal 2 nor DWARFLAB shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Arsenal 2 or DWARFLAB?
Arsenal 2 ships an update monthly, and DWARFLAB every 5 weeks. Most recently, Arsenal 2 was updated on October 21, 2026 and DWARFLAB on October 25, 2026.

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