Comparison

SkyView® vs Reflector Director

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

Head to head
About

SkyView®

Identify stars, constellations, planets, and satellites by simply pointing your device at the sky. This app uses augmented reality to guide you and provides information on celestial objects, upcoming events, and even allows you to travel through time to view the sky on different dates.

Highlights
  • Identify stars, planets, and satellites with AR
  • Discover all 88 constellations
  • Schedule alerts for celestial events
  • Night mode for preserving vision
  • Time travel to view past/future skies
  • Capture and share celestial images
Read full description

SkyView® brings stargazing to everyone. Simply point your iPhone, iPad, or iPod at the sky to identify stars, constellations, planets, satellites, and more! Over 3.2 million downloads. App Store Rewind 2011 -- Best Education App “If you've ever wanted to know what you're looking at in the night sky, this app is the perfect stargazer's companion.” – CNET "If you’ve ever been looking for a stargazing app for your iPhone, then this [is] definitely the one to get." – AppAdvice “SkyView is an Augmented Reality app that lets you see just what delights the sky has to offer.” – 148Apps Editor’s Choice You don't need to be an astronomer to find stars or constellations in the sky, just open SkyView® and let it guide you to their location and identify them. SkyView® is a beautiful and intuitive stargazing app that uses your camera to precisely spot and identify celestial objects in sky, day or night. Find all 88 constellations as they fade in and out while you scan across the sky, locate every planet in our solar system, discover distant galaxies, and witness satellite fly-bys. Features: • Simple: Point your device at the sky to identify galaxies, stars, constellations, planets, and satellites (including the ISS and Hubble) passing overhead at your location. • Sighting Events: schedule alerts for upcoming celestial events. • Apple Watch: see what objects are visible tonight and how to spot them using your Apple Watch. • Today Widget: brand new iOS 8 today widget lets you quickly see upcoming celestial events. • Night Mode: Preserve your night vision with red or green night mode filters. • Augmented Reality (AR): Use your camera to spot objects in the sky, day or night. • Sky Paths: Follow the sky track for any object to see it’s exact location in the sky on any date and time. • Comprehensive: Includes thousands of stars, planets, and satellites with thousands of interesting facts. • Time Travel: Jump to the future or the past and see the sky on different dates and times. • Social: Capture and share beautiful images with friends and family on social networks. • Mobile: WiFi is NOT required (does not require a data signal or GPS to function). Take it camping, boating, or even flying! What a fun way to teach yourself, your children, your students, or your friends about our wonderful universe!

About

Reflector Director

Control screen mirroring software from your mobile device. Remotely manage connected screens, highlight content, and preview presentations without being tied to your computer. Enhance focus and create a professional presentation environment.

Highlights
  • Manage connected device screens remotely
  • Highlight and emphasize specific devices
  • Preview connected device screens
  • Add or hide device frames
  • Secure and easy pairing methods
  • Full-screen mode for emphasis
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Reflector Director allows you to manage the Reflector 4 desktop screen mirroring software from an iPad or iPhone. Step away from your computer and maintain control of shared content. View and manage connected device screens from the palm of your hand. Reflector Director features: Emphasize Devices Use Reflector Director to highlight a device that’s connected to Reflector 4. Spotlight important content or action. Reflector Director brings screens to center stage for emphasis. Eliminate distractions by enabling full-screen mode. Preview Screens Reflector Director shows screen previews of any devices that are connected to Reflector 4, even if the screen is hidden to your audience. This allows you to know what’s going to be presented before you show a connected device screen to others in the room. Keep Audience Focused Add Reflector Director to any classroom or collaborative space to create a distraction-free environment. Spend more time concentrating on people and less time in front of a computer screen. Device Frames Use Reflector Director to select new device frames to display on mirrored screens, or choose to hide frames entirely. Displaying a frame around devices adds a polished and professional feel. Secure Pairing Pairing Reflector Director to Reflector 4 is easy and secure. Reflector Director even helps you easily connect to a computer’s Reflector software on limited and restricted networks. The apps are paired directly together with no in-between connections. Use a Quick Connect Code (TM), QR Code or Bluetooth to easily pair. How It Works Simply open the Reflector Director app on your iOS device and connect to the Reflector 4 software on your computer to begin managing the devices that are connected to the Reflector software. Reflector Director allows you to step away from your computer while still controlling how your audience views the devices that are connected to Reflector 4. Easily show and hide devices, emphasize screens, enable full-screen mode or change device frames all while away from your computer. Reflector Director is compatible with Reflector 4. It REQUIRES this application running on your computer: https://www.airsquirrels.com/reflector/download/ NOTE: Reflector Director does NOT allow you to mirror a device to your iPhone or iPad. Reflector Director DOES allow you to manage the devices that are connected to Reflector 4 software.

Screenshots

SkyView®4 screens
Reflector Director4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: SkyView® at 77% against Reflector Director's 14%. SkyView® also leads on rating (4.6 vs 1.7) and ratings volume (7.7K vs 22). Reflector Director's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 16.0). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases 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

SkyView® costs $2.99 and Reflector Director $6.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SkyView® holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 1.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SkyView® has 7.7K ratings behind it against 22, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of SkyView®'s written reviews are positive against 14% of Reflector Director's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 18, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
SkyView® versus Reflector Director: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSkyView®Reflector Director
Price$2.99 — better$6.99
Rating4.6 (7.7K ratings) — better1.7 (22 ratings)
Positive reviews76.8% of reviews — better14.1% of reviews
Number of ratings7.7K — better22
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 4 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
Best chart rank#2 — better#158
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.09.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size112 MB69 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTerminal Eleven LLCSquirrels LLC

Customer experience

SkyView®

All ratings7,665 ratings
Positive89.9%
Neutral2.9%
Negative7.2%
Written reviews850 reviews
Positive76.8%
Neutral7.3%
Negative15.9%

Reflector Director

All ratings22 ratings
Positive13.6%
Neutral4.5%
Negative81.8%
Written reviews135 reviews
Positive14.1%
Neutral2.2%
Negative83.7%

User reviews

SkyView®

From 7.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🔭 Helpful for stargazing and identifying celestial objects
  • 🌌 Provides a lot of information about the night sky
  • 🎶 Relaxing background music
  • 🤩 Amazed by the app's capabilities

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Calibration issues and inaccurate compass
  • 🤷‍♀️ Missing some celestial objects like comets and the James Webb Space Telescope
  • 🌌 Constellation overlays can be obstructive
  • 🙈 Showing stars/planets on walls/floors even when not present
  • 📱 Compatibility issues on certain devices

Reflector Director

From 22 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ✅ Works well when properly configured
  • 🎯 Effective screen mirroring and casting functionality
  • 🎨 Good customization options for device display
  • 📱 Useful for presentations with multiple devices
  • 🔧 Easy setup for users who understand requirements

Room to improve

  • 🚫 Frequently fails to connect between devices
  • ❌ Unreliable and inconsistent performance
  • 💸 Expensive for limited functionality
  • 📚 Poor documentation and confusing setup process
  • 🆘 Inadequate customer support and no refund policy

Bugs and requests

SkyView®

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Freezing and crashing issues
  • Compass and orientation problems
  • Inconsistent behavior when switching between automatic and manual calibration

Requested features

6 requests
  • Add more celestial objects like comets, dwarf planets, and the James Webb Space Telescope
  • Improve calibration and compass accuracy
  • Add option to hide constellation overlays
  • Implement a feature to track the International Space Station and other satellites
  • Add a widget for quick access to sky information
Show 1 more
  • Improve support for older devices and iOS versions

Reflector Director

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • App crashes when adding new computer connection
  • Connection drops after brief connection
  • Won't detect devices on same network
  • Crashes on iOS updates
  • Auto-detection and pairing crashes companion Mac app
Show 4 more
  • Inconsistent connection requiring multiple retry attempts
  • Audio degradation during recording
  • Broken help links in app
  • Requires firewall deactivation to work

Requested features

7 requests
  • Trial period before purchase
  • Standalone app without requiring desktop software
  • Better error messages and troubleshooting guidance
  • Audio quality improvement for recordings
  • Ability to interact with mirrored device from computer
Show 2 more
  • Automatic firewall configuration
  • Easy refund process and contact information

In-app purchases

None

SkyView®

No in-app purchases

None

Reflector Director

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SkyView® free?
SkyView® costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Reflector Director free?
Reflector Director costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, SkyView® or Reflector Director?
SkyView® is rated higher. SkyView® averages 4.6 out of 5 from 7.7K ratings, while Reflector Director averages 1.7 from 22 ratings.
Do SkyView® or Reflector Director have ads?
Neither SkyView® nor Reflector Director shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SkyView® or Reflector Director?
SkyView® ships an update every 4 months, and Reflector Director every 4 months. Most recently, SkyView® was updated on October 18, 2026 and Reflector Director on October 17, 2026.
Which is more popular, SkyView® or Reflector Director?
SkyView® currently peaks at #2 in the App Store charts, and Reflector Director at #158. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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