Comparison

DWARFLAB vs SunSketcher

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

Head to head
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.

About

SunSketcher

Capture crucial data during the Great North American Eclipse. This app automatically takes photos of the sun, helping scientists create a precise model of its shape and study solar interior flows. Participate in citizen science from your smartphone.

Highlights
  • Automatic eclipse photography
  • Location-based timing for totality
  • Data upload for scientific analysis
  • Citizen science participation
  • Contributes to heliophysics research
  • No special equipment needed
Read full description

SunSketcher is a citizen science initiative anyone can use to photograph the April 8th, 2024 Great North American Eclipse. Mass participation will generate an incredible database of images that, when analyzed together, could allow scientists to more accurately model the Sun. "We don't know the shape of the Sun?" you ask. Nope. Well, not exactly. Scientists have a pretty good idea, but it's not nearly as precise as it could be. Our hope is to change that—to measure the Sun's oblateness to an accuracy of a few parts in a million! This app uses your location to determine the time that totality will start and end there. This allows it to automatically take photos chock-full of data of the eclipse while you don't have to worry about the precise details! After totality, you can choose to upload the photos that were taken, along with a few other details about your location at the time of the eclipse and what settings your phone's camera was using, to our data servers for scientific analysis. What is citizen science? Citizen science is a collaborative style of research involving volunteers from the general public. The contributions of these “citizen scientists” help researchers collect and analyze large datasets. Citizenship is NOT a requirement. How will this project contribute to heliophysics research? We are aiming to create the first large-scale database of Baily's Bead images, which will allow the Sun’s shape to be precisely determined to within a few parts per million. Just as the precise shape of the Earth’s ocean surface allows us to determine flows inside the Earth, the SunSketcher database will allow us to study flows in the solar interior. In addition, knowing the precise shape of the Sun will allow physicists to test against and possibly disprove different theories of gravity, including General Relativity! Are there requirements or qualifications needed to participate? Can I participate if I’m not a scientist? You do not need to be a scientist to participate. Our aim is to involve as large and diverse a group of SunSketchers as possible. Why should I participate in SunSketcher? The unique aspect of SunSketcher is that everyone with a phone can make a valuable contribution to a state-of-the-art science project. No special equipment is required, just a smartphone. And, if you register as a SunSketcher on our site, we will add your name to the list of contributors. You might even get mentioned as a Guinness World Record Holder! Where do I have to be on the eclipse day? Anywhere inside the path of totality. Will I be able to watch the eclipse at the same time that I'm using SunSketcher? YES!! In fact, we encourage you to view the eclipse on your own (with appropriate safety precautions at appropriate times) while SunSketcher is running on your phone. The scientific quality of the images obtained will be best if the phone is left untouched throughout the few minutes between the start and end of totality. The app will be finished with the nitty-gritty science stuff just a minute or two after totality ends, at which point you can pick up and begin using your phone again.

Screenshots

DWARFLAB4 screens
SunSketcher4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: DWARFLAB at 3.5 against SunSketcher's 2.6. DWARFLAB also leads on ratings volume (141 vs 23) and device support (3 vs 1). SunSketcher's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 5 weeks). On price, review sentiment, 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

DWARFLAB holds the better App Store score, 3.5 against 2.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DWARFLAB has 141 ratings behind it against 23, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 36% of DWARFLAB's written reviews are positive against 33% of SunSketcher's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

DWARFLAB ships an update every 5 weeks, SunSketcher fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
DWARFLAB versus SunSketcher: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDWARFLABSunSketcher
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (141 ratings) — better2.6 (23 ratings)
Positive reviews36.0% of reviews — better33.3% of reviews
Number of ratings141 — better23
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size209 MB26 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTinyphoton (Wuhan) Technology. Co., Ltd.Western Kentucky University

Customer experience

DWARFLAB

All ratings141 ratings
Positive61.0%
Neutral7.8%
Negative31.2%
Written reviews114 reviews
Positive36.0%
Neutral21.1%
Negative43.0%

SunSketcher

All ratings23 ratings
Positive39.1%
Neutral8.7%
Negative52.2%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral8.3%
Negative58.3%

Bugs and requests

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

SunSketcher

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

DWARFLAB

No in-app purchases

None

SunSketcher

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is DWARFLAB free?
DWARFLAB is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SunSketcher free?
SunSketcher is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, DWARFLAB or SunSketcher?
DWARFLAB is rated higher. DWARFLAB averages 3.5 out of 5 from 141 ratings, while SunSketcher averages 2.6 from 23 ratings.
Do DWARFLAB or SunSketcher have ads?
Neither DWARFLAB nor SunSketcher shows ads.
Which is updated more often, DWARFLAB or SunSketcher?
DWARFLAB ships an update every 5 weeks, and SunSketcher fortnightly. Most recently, DWARFLAB was updated on October 16, 2026 and SunSketcher on October 3, 2026.

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