Comparison

DWARFLAB vs AstroFITS

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

AstroFITS

This app allows users to quickly open and view FITS files on iOS devices using GPU acceleration. It features automatic image stretching and supports various color formats and bit depths, making astronomical image analysis more accessible.

Highlights
  • Open FITS files quickly on iOS
  • GPU accelerated image processing
  • Automatic image stretching
  • Supports RGB and gray color
  • Handles multiple BITPIX formats
  • Save adjusted images to Photos
Features
Read full description

A simple app to open FITS file in iOS quickly using GPU. It has an auto-stretch feature. And works on FITS file with RGB or gray color. It handles BITPIX of 8,16,32,-32 and -64. It is designed and tested for Seetar FITS file. It takes about 2 seconds to open and automatically stretch a 50mb FITS file. Sample links are provided below. Enjoy! Use: 1. Download your FITS file to your phone File directory. 2. Tap Image icon on the first top left. 3. Select your FITS file. 4. It will auto stretch. 5. Adjust the image level. 6. Adjust the image curve. 7. Tap the second top icon to save image to Photo. If you encounter an issue, please email to ustrainsit74@gmail.com with your FITS file as attachment. Sample: Below are some FITS files for download. - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Li8f1QH1u1R6U8RKZZ0kwW9LZ4cHCaXz/view?usp=share_link - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MVuW1oa7qAjbfdl_iGUI-q7knE2ij67v/view?usp=share_link - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TE70gdDK3XmLx9-iB43I-uh6INq8FCaO/view?usp=share_link Privacy policy and term of use (EULA) is at https://deepskycolor.blogspot.com/2018/12/privacy-policy-for-deep-sky-color-app.html

Screenshots

DWARFLAB4 screens
AstroFITS3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: DWARFLAB at 3.5 against AstroFITS's 2.0. DWARFLAB also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (140 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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. AstroFITS sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $0.99 per year. DWARFLAB asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

DWARFLAB holds the better App Store score, 3.5 against 2.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DWARFLAB has 140 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

DWARFLAB ships an update every 5 weeks, AstroFITS monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 20, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
DWARFLAB versus AstroFITS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDWARFLABAstroFITS
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (140 ratings) — better2.0 (1 ratings)
Positive reviews35.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings140 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size205 MB61 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTinyphoton (Wuhan) Technology. Co., Ltd.yong chong loh

Customer experience

DWARFLAB

All ratings140 ratings
Positive60.0%
Neutral8.6%
Negative31.4%
Written reviews103 reviews
Positive35.9%
Neutral21.4%
Negative42.7%

AstroFITS

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

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

AstroFITS

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

DWARFLAB

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

AstroFITS

Subscriptions1
  • Yearly Subscription$0.991 Year

Questions

Is DWARFLAB free?
DWARFLAB is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is AstroFITS free?
AstroFITS is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, DWARFLAB or AstroFITS?
DWARFLAB is rated higher. DWARFLAB averages 3.5 out of 5 from 140 ratings, while AstroFITS averages 2.0 from 1 ratings.
Do DWARFLAB or AstroFITS have ads?
Neither DWARFLAB nor AstroFITS shows ads.
Which is updated more often, DWARFLAB or AstroFITS?
DWARFLAB ships an update every 5 weeks, and AstroFITS monthly. Most recently, DWARFLAB was updated on September 20, 2026 and AstroFITS on September 21, 2026.

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