# DS cam vs InstarVision

The clearest difference is review sentiment: InstarVision at 90% against DS cam's 32%. InstarVision also leads on rating (4.4 vs 3.0) and update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 4 months). DS cam's advantage is ratings volume (172 vs 9). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

InstarVision holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DS cam has 172 ratings behind it against 9, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 32% of DS cam's written reviews are positive against 90% of InstarVision's.

DS cam ships an update every 4 months, InstarVision every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 19, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | DS cam | InstarVision |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [3.0 (172 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ds-cam/id349087111/reviews) | **[4.4 (9 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/instarvision/id413109553/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **172** | 9 |
| Positive reviews | 31.8% of reviews | **90.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | **Every 5 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 85 MB | 152 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **13.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Synology Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/321493109) | [INSTAR Deutschland GmbH](https://appshunter.io/developer/413109556) |

## What reviewers say

### DS cam

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ds-cam/id349087111)

Monitor and receive alerts from your Synology surveillance cameras. Control PTZ, patrols, and lens functions in real-time. Easily filter recordings and manage essential tasks like disabling cameras or deleting snapshots.

**Highlights:** Real-time camera monitoring, Alert notifications, PTZ, patrol, and lens control, Advanced recording filters, Essential management tasks, Snapshot management

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Works great
- 👍 Good and useful app
- 🚀 Fast and stable
- 👍 Completely control camera recordings
- 👍 Toggle through events easily

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Regular app crashing
- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- 🐛 Cannot scroll back in timeline without issues
- 🐛 Event viewer rarely works
- 🐛 Slow and clunky

**Reported bugs**

- Regular app crashing
- Cannot scroll back in timeline without issues
- Event viewer rarely works
- Keeps buffering
- Crashes constantly

**Requested features**

- Selective motion notifications
- Custom notification sounds
- Ability to categorize alerts
- Live scrubbing on timeline
- Bookmarks and advanced filtering


### InstarVision

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/instarvision/id413109553)

View, control, and manage your IP cameras from anywhere. This app allows real-time video and audio streaming, camera settings adjustments, and playback of recorded footage.

**Highlights:** Live video/audio streaming, Add/edit/delete cameras, Pan/Tilt/Zoom control, Change camera settings, Save/share snapshots, Playback recordings, Motion detection activation

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is DS cam free?

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

### Is InstarVision free?

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

### Which has better reviews, DS cam or InstarVision?

InstarVision is rated higher. DS cam averages 3.0 out of 5 from 172 ratings, while InstarVision averages 4.4 from 9 ratings.

### Do DS cam or InstarVision have ads?

Neither DS cam nor InstarVision shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, DS cam or InstarVision?

DS cam ships an update every 4 months, and InstarVision every 5 weeks. Most recently, DS cam was updated on September 24, 2026 and InstarVision on September 19, 2026.

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