DS file vs ntfy
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
DS file
Access, manage, and edit files stored on your Synology NAS from your mobile device. Upload, download, and securely browse documents, pictures, and videos on the go.
- File management on Synology NAS
- Upload and download files
- Basic file editing
- Secure HTTPS access
- Browse pictures and videos
- Access work documents
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**You must own a Synology NAS to run this app, and have upgraded to DSM 5.2 to get the complete set of features** DS file is ideal to manage files stored on your DiskStation, upload or download between the NAS and the iDevice itself, or do basic editing tasks. And always securely with HTTPS support. Besides file management, DS file is also a useful tool to do anything from browsing pictures, watching videos or checking work documents when you are on the go.
ntfy
This app allows you to send push notifications to your phone from scripts or other applications using simple HTTP requests. It acts as a client for a free, open-source pub-sub service, enabling you to receive alerts and updates directly on your device.
- Send notifications via REST API
- Subscribe to topics
- Publish messages via HTTP
- Integrates with Bash/PowerShell
- Free and open source client
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Send push notifications to your phone from any Bash or PowerShell script, or from your own app using PUT/POST requests, e.g. via curl on Linux or Invoke-WebRequest. ntfy is a client for https://ntfy.sh, a free and open source HTTP-based pub-sub service. You can subscribe to topics in this app, and then publish messages via a simple HTTP API. Uses: * Notify yourself when a long-running process is done * Ping your phone when a backup has failed * Alerts when someone logs into your server Example: $ curl -d "Your backup is done" ntfy.sh/mytopic Find more examples and usage instructions here: https://ntfy.sh/docs
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ntfy at 78% against DS file's 29%. ntfy also leads on rating (4.8 vs 2.8) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 4 months). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ntfy holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 357 and 452 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 29% of DS file's written reviews are positive against 78% of ntfy's.
DS file ships an update every 4 months, ntfy fortnightly. Both last shipped on October 15, 2026.
| Parameter | DS file | ntfy |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.8 (357 ratings) | 4.8 (452 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 28.6% of reviews | 78.4% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 357 | 452 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 121 MB | 3 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Synology Inc. | Philipp Heckel |
Customer experience
DS file
ntfy
User reviews
DS file
From 357 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Simple and efficient file management
- 🚀 Fast file access and transfer
- 💡 Useful photo backup feature
- 🔒 Secure remote access to NAS
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes and freezes, especially after updates
- 🔍 Inconsistent file format support (e.g. .MOV, .HEIC)
- 🔍 Lack of advanced features like multi-select and sorting
- 🔍 Slow performance, especially on older devices
ntfy
From 452 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Simple and easy to use
- 🔒 Great for self-hosting
- 👍 Reliable and works as expected
- 🚀 Quick and easy to set up
- 🚀 Lightweight and functional
Room to improve
- 🐛 Notification issues on iOS
- 🔍 Limited features compared to other platforms
- 🔍 Lacks customization options
- 🐛 Occasional crashes or delivery issues
Bugs and requests
DS file
Reported bugs
4 issues- Login issues, unable to connect to NAS
- Video playback not working, especially on iOS 12+
- Excessive storage usage and cache issues
- Inconsistent behavior after iOS updates
Requested features
5 requests- Integrate with iOS Files app
- Add support for more file formats
- Improve photo/video backup functionality
- Implement dark mode
- Allow multi-file selection and batch operations
ntfy
Reported bugs
3 issues- Notifications not working on iOS
- Broken click URLs in notifications
- Compatibility issues with iOS notification summarizing
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to change notification sounds
- Support for Apple Watch
- Customizable topic names/aliases
- Improved iOS notification handling
- All topics view and read/unread indicators
In-app purchases
DS file
No in-app purchases
ntfy
No in-app purchases
