# Morse Elmer vs SDR

The clearest difference is price: Morse Elmer at $0.99 against SDR's $44.99. SDR's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and chart position (#156 vs unranked). On rating, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Morse Elmer costs $0.99 and SDR $44.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Morse Elmer holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 192 and 67 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 81% of Morse Elmer's written reviews are positive against 84% of SDR's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Morse Elmer ships an update every 2 months, SDR every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Morse Elmer | SDR |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **$0.99** | $44.99 |
| Rating | **[4.8 (192 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/morse-elmer/id414371107/reviews)** | [4.6 (67 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sdr-control-mobile/id1673327509/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **192** | 67 |
| Positive reviews | 81.2% of reviews | **84.3% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | **#156** |
| Size | 17 MB | 55 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 17.6 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Morgan Jones](https://appshunter.io/developer/414371110) | [Marcus Roskosch](https://appshunter.io/developer/334053438) |

## What reviewers say

### Morse Elmer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/morse-elmer/id414371107)

Learn Morse Code effectively with this app. It utilizes proven methods like the Koch Method and Farnsworth spacing to accelerate your learning. Track your progress with detailed graphs and train anytime to become proficient.

**Highlights:** Learn Morse Code, Koch Method training, Farnsworth spacing, Progress tracking, Graphical results, On-the-go training

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Intuitive and easy-to-use interface
- 🎯 Effective Farnsworth and Koch learning methods
- 📱 Portable practice anywhere on iPhone/iPad
- ⚙️ Highly customizable speed and spacing controls
- 📊 Progress tracking and session scoring

**What reviewers complain about**

- 📝 Requires pen and paper for copying
- 🐛 Manual self-scoring system (honor-based)
- 📱 Limited to 10-minute maximum sessions
- 🔊 Low volume output on some devices
- ⚙️ Twitchy Farnsworth spacing slider

**Reported bugs**

- Incorrect Morse code for some letters
- Missing option to add letters (iOS 15+)
- Text not displaying in settings dialog (iPad Air)
- Drops last character in sequence reporting
- Volume extremely low on headphone/Bluetooth

**Requested features**

- Higher speed support (beyond current limits)
- Keyboard input mode for automatic scoring
- Sending/keying practice capability
- Extended session duration (30+ minutes)
- Morse code reference chart in-app


### SDR

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sdr-control-mobile/id1673327509)

**Currently charting:** #156 Top Paid · Utilities (US App Store)

Control your Icom radio remotely from your iPhone. View spectrum scope, waterfall, and access all radio controls over Wi-Fi or the internet. Supports various Icom models and includes features for ham radio operators.

**Highlights:** Spectrum scope and waterfall display, Full radio control, Remote operation over Wi-Fi/internet, FT8-Improved and JS8 modes, CW decoder and keyer, Speech transcription and translation, Logbook with ADIF import/export

**Features:** iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Works perfectly with ICOM radios
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 🌟 Feature-rich and comprehensive
- 💯 Stable and reliable performance
- 📱 Great for remote operation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 FT8 decoding issues (lower signal levels)
- 🐛 Dialogs do not scale with larger text setting
- 🐛 UI elements can be cramped on iPhone
- 🐛 Some buttons are small and hard to press
- 🐛 Frequency display overlaps buttons

**Reported bugs**

- Dialogs do not scale with larger text setting
- Frequency display overlaps buttons
- FT8 decoding issues (lower signal levels than WSJTX)
- App crashes and leaves radio in transmit
- Logbook export not functional after update

**Requested features**

- Develop for IC-7800
- CarPlay support
- Apple Watch add-on
- Windows version
- JS8call support


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Morse Elmer free?

Morse Elmer costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is SDR free?

SDR costs $44.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Morse Elmer or SDR?

Morse Elmer is rated higher. Morse Elmer averages 4.8 out of 5 from 192 ratings, while SDR averages 4.6 from 67 ratings.

### Do Morse Elmer or SDR have ads?

Neither Morse Elmer nor SDR shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Morse Elmer or SDR?

Morse Elmer ships an update every 2 months, and SDR every 2 weeks. Most recently, Morse Elmer was updated on October 29, 2026 and SDR on October 30, 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.*