Comparison

TN5250 Lite vs SmartTE Terminal Emulation

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

Head to head
About

TN5250 Lite

This app provides access to IBM iSeries (AS/400) midrange servers, acting as a terminal emulator for business applications. It supports various emulation features, secure connections, and multiple barcode scanner options for efficient data entry.

Highlights
  • 5250 emulation
  • Alternate screen sizes
  • SSL/TLS support
  • Barcode scanner integration
  • Customizable colors
  • Auto login
Features
Read full description

The AS/400 - also called the "IBM iSeries," is a midrange server from IBM, designed for the business world. TN5250 is a terminal emulator which provides access to an AS/400. Wants to receive print jobs from an AS/400, try Mocha TN3812 for iPhone/iPad. LITE VERSION: The full version does not require a coffee break (30 seconds) on the Server after 5 minutes use. FEATURES: - Supports all standard 5250 emulation features - Alternate screen size (24x80 or 27x132) - SSL/TLS (Secure Socket Layer) - Zoom and scroll as the Safari browser - Auto login - Hardware barcode scanners from SocketMobile and Linea - Support for Zebra RFD8500, CS4070 and LI3678 barcode scanner. - Camera as barcode scanner - Support for 10 different EBCDIC code pages - Colors can be customized - Device name support - Hotspots

About

SmartTE Terminal Emulation

This app provides reliable wireless terminal emulation for business environments, ensuring secure and high-speed connections without dropped sessions. It modernizes green screen applications into intuitive graphical interfaces for enhanced productivity on touchscreen devices.

Highlights
  • Wireless terminal emulation
  • Modernizes green screen apps
  • Secure data transmission
  • Barcode scanning support
  • Centralized management console
  • Supports multiple emulation types
Features
Read full description

StayLinked Smart TE is the only Terminal Emulation (TE) product specifically designed for wireless environments. Traditional TE solutions are, by the nature of their architecture and transport layer, incapable of dealing with the real-world inconsistencies of both Wi-Fi and cellular wireless networks. StayLinked TE delivers secure, high-speed terminal emulation while completely eliminating the major productivity killer - dropped sessions. With its unique thin-client architecture, StayLinked allows mobile devices to connect to emulation host systems with industry-leading performance, connection/session reliability, and data security. Centralized help desk and tech staff benefit from the included StayLinked Administrator management console. SmartTE easily converts your "Green Screen" applications to intuitive, modern, graphical apps. There are great productivity improvements gained by implementing an easy-to-use, graphical data collection application that supports modern, touchscreen devices. Additionally, StayLinked helps eliminate the high costs, long implementation cycles, and application performance risks associated with migrating away from fast and reliable Terminal Emulation “green screen” applications. With StayLinked SmartTE you get the best of both worlds with No-Risk application modernization. Continue to realize the speed, reliability, and security of StayLinked TE while increasing productivity with the addition of an intuitive, modern user experience. DEMO MODE: This version includes the ability to easily connect to the StayLinked demonstration server and interact with a live host-based application. REQUIREMENTS: If you are not currently running the required StayLinked Server, please contact StayLinked.com or your preferred StayLinked Reseller to arrange for a free evaluation. FEATURES • Terminal Emulation over Wi-Fi or Cellular connections • Barcode scanning through iDevice camera or connected 3rd party scanners/card readers •. Wireless IP printing support •. StayLinked Server software runs natively on the most reliable server OS platforms, including IBM i (AS/400), AIX, HP-UX, Sun, SCO, Linux and Windows Servers •. Supports IBM 5250/3270, VT220/100/420/52 and SSHv2 terminal emulation •. Security - All Telnet or SSHv2 communications take place on the host machine and are never broadcast over the wireless network. With Blowfish encryption, firewall-friendly design, application lock-down, and support for port filter and access list controls, StayLinked ensures the integrity of your data and communications. •. Advanced Session Management - StayLinked delivers full management of all aspects of telnet sessions on the mobile device, configuration, and licensing. StayLinked eliminates the need to purchase additional software to manage software distribution, client configuration, barcode configurations, keyboard maps, scripting, screen reformatting, file transfers, session transfers, device reboots, diagnostics, and more. • Comprehensive Help Desk Toolset - Features include the ability to fully remote control or observe a live telnet session, run diagnostics on the mobile device, collect log files, send text messages to the device, re-start the client software, re-boot the mobile device, change device configurations, execute commands, run programs, manage licenses, collect usage data, and more. • StayLinked supports voice enablement of existing applications with no changes to the host-based application for such applications as voice picking. • The Client2Host protocol is very efficient, only transmitting data across the network on the demand of the client. UDP also avoids the IP traffic and connection issues that are inherent in the TCP protocol and exacerbated in a wireless environment • All configuration and licensing is controlled via a centralized management console • Transferable concurrent-user terminal emulation licensing.

Screenshots

TN5250 Lite4 screens
SmartTE Terminal Emulation4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: SmartTE Terminal Emulation at 5.0 against TN5250 Lite's 2.6. SmartTE Terminal Emulation also leads on iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.6). TN5250 Lite's advantage is review sentiment (55% vs 33%). On price, ratings volume, 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

SmartTE Terminal Emulation holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7 and 5 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 55% of TN5250 Lite's written reviews are positive against 33% of SmartTE Terminal Emulation's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

TN5250 Lite ships an update every 5 months, SmartTE Terminal Emulation every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on August 15, 2026 and June 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
TN5250 Lite versus SmartTE Terminal Emulation: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTN5250 LiteSmartTE Terminal Emulation
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.6 (7 ratings)5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews54.5% of reviews — better33.3% of reviews
Number of ratings7 — better5
Update frequencyEvery 5 months — betterEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.612.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMochaSoftStayLinked Corporation

Customer experience

TN5250 Lite

All ratings7 ratings
Positive28.6%
Neutral14.3%
Negative57.1%
Written reviews77 reviews
Positive54.5%
Neutral9.1%
Negative36.4%

SmartTE Terminal Emulation

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative66.7%

In-app purchases

None

TN5250 Lite

No in-app purchases

None

SmartTE Terminal Emulation

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is TN5250 Lite free?
TN5250 Lite is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is SmartTE Terminal Emulation free?
SmartTE Terminal Emulation is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, TN5250 Lite or SmartTE Terminal Emulation?
SmartTE Terminal Emulation is rated higher. TN5250 Lite averages 2.6 out of 5 from 7 ratings, while SmartTE Terminal Emulation averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.
Do TN5250 Lite or SmartTE Terminal Emulation have ads?
Neither TN5250 Lite nor SmartTE Terminal Emulation shows ads.
Which is updated more often, TN5250 Lite or SmartTE Terminal Emulation?
TN5250 Lite ships an update every 5 months, and SmartTE Terminal Emulation every 6 months. Most recently, TN5250 Lite was updated on August 15, 2026 and SmartTE Terminal Emulation on June 5, 2026.

Other comparisons