Comparison

Jazz91 KCSM vs HPR

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

Head to head
About

Jazz91 KCSM

Listen to a diverse range of jazz music, including Bop, Cool, Latin, and Blues, 24/7. Enjoy commercial-free broadcasts from the San Francisco Bay Area with excellent sound quality.

Highlights
  • 24/7 jazz broadcasts
  • Commercial-free listening
  • Diverse jazz genres
  • High-quality streaming
  • Veteran announcer handpicked music
Features
Read full description

KCSM-FM Jazz 91.1 - “The San Francisco Bay Area’s Jazz Station” Bop, Cool, Latin, Mainstream, Blues, Swing, Traditional, World and beyond. Handpicked by veteran announcers from the largest Jazz Radio library in the USA 24 /7/365. Broadcast from the College of San Mateo campus in the San Francisco Bay Area. Featuring our mobile device friendly HE-AACv2 stream for excellent sound quality! Real jazz, all the time and commercial free too!

About

HPR

Listen to live public radio streams with DVR-like controls, explore on-demand programs from various providers, and bookmark favorite content. Search for stories, set alarms, and share programs with ease.

Highlights
  • Live streaming with pause and rewind
  • On-demand program access
  • Search for stories and programs
  • Bookmark live or on-demand content
  • Integrated program schedules
  • Sleep timer and alarm clock
Features
Read full description

HPR App: The HPR Public Radio App allows you to listen to HPR live, pause and rewind the live audio, and view the program schedule all at once! You can explore On Demand content, search for stories, bookmark a story for later, and wake up to HPR with the alarm clock! Live Streaming • DVR-like controls (pause, rewind, and fast forward). You can pause the live stream to have a conversation and pick up right where you left off! Or rewind to catch a comment you just missed! • Listen to live streams from HPR even while traveling! Start the app and your favorite station starts playing – no clicks to start listening. • Integrated program schedules for every station. You can display up to three of your favorites at a time or flick once to see the schedules for all of your favorite stations. • One click stream switching – flip over to the program you noticed on another stream with a single click. • Listen to HPR in the background while browsing the web or catching up on your emails! On Demand • Access public radio programs from multiple content providers (NPR, BBC and HPR) easily and quickly. • DVR-like controls. Pause, rewind and fast forward your program with ease. • When listening to national programs, individual story segments (when available) are listed so you can review and choose one or listen to the entire program. • Easy to access past programs. • The HPR Public Radio App displays the web page associated with the program or story segment you are listening to On Demand so you can explore for more information. Radio Bookmarks • Save what you were listening to (Live or On Demand) so you can replay, follow-up, or share it later by simply clicking “Bookmark”. • Compatible with the popular Radio Bookmark device (www.radiobookmark.com). Search • The unique “Search Public Radio” feature finds stories or programs across hundreds of stations and web pages and makes it easy to play instantly. Additional features • Easily share stories and programs with family and friends via the “Share” button. • A built in Sleep Timer and Alarm Clock allows you to go to sleep and wake up to your favorite station. The HPR Public Radio App is brought to you by the people at HPR and Public Media Apps. We work to provide our valued listeners with great solutions to find what you want, when you want it, and where you want it. Please support HPR Public Radio by becoming a member today! http://www.hawaiipublicradio.org http://www.publicmediaapps.com

Screenshots

Jazz91 KCSM4 screens
HPR4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: HPR at 4.6 against Jazz91 KCSM's 3.5. HPR also leads on review sentiment (83% vs 43%) and ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, 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

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

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

HPR holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 67 and 249 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 43% of Jazz91 KCSM's written reviews are positive against 83% of HPR's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Jazz91 KCSM ships an update every 6 months, HPR every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Jazz91 KCSM versus HPR: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJazz91 KCSMHPR
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (67 ratings)4.6 (249 ratings) — better
Positive reviews42.6% of reviews83.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings67249 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationAd-supportedFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.214.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size12 MB35 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperKCSMHawaii Public Radio

Customer experience

Jazz91 KCSM

All ratings62 ratings
Positive53.2%
Neutral12.9%
Negative33.9%
Written reviews61 reviews
Positive42.6%
Neutral11.5%
Negative45.9%

HPR

All ratings238 ratings
Positive90.8%
Neutral3.4%
Negative5.9%
Written reviews78 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral7.7%
Negative9.0%

User reviews

Jazz91 KCSM

From 67 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎶 Great music selection
  • 🎧 Good sound quality
  • 📱 Track ID on lock screen
  • 👍 Better than other platforms
  • 🌟 Supports public radio

Room to improve

  • ❌ AirPlay not working
  • 📺 Intrusive ads
  • 🐛 Buggy and inconsistent performance
  • 🚫 App doesn't work (blank screen)
  • 📉 Stops when phone locks/app minimized

HPR

From 249 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use and intuitive interface
  • 🌍 Access HPR from anywhere globally
  • 📻 Convenient live streaming and on-demand content
  • 🎵 High-quality music and news programming
  • ⏸️ Ability to pause and resume listening

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App stops playing after 10-15 minutes
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and unexpected disconnections
  • 👆 Overly sensitive touch controls causing accidental clicks
  • 🔗 Links too easy to tap unintentionally while scrolling
  • 🌙 No dark mode option

Bugs and requests

Jazz91 KCSM

Reported bugs

33 issues
  • Doesn't AirPlay anymore
  • Sleep timer needs work
  • Drops signal completely at random
  • Simply doesn't work
  • App doesn't work (blank screen and silence)
Show 28 more
  • Shuts off every time the phone locks or the app is minimized
  • Ads pop-up almost constantly and stop the music
  • App stops playing when screen is dark or app is minimized
  • Live stream kept dropping
  • Disconnects frequently
  • App crashes
  • Play/pause button within the app does not work
  • App somehow continues playing through phone's speakers after closing and disconnecting Bluetooth
  • App keeps crashing on iPad 2
  • Sleep timer's CANCEL button doesn't do anything
  • Alarm clock doesn't work if device is put to sleep
  • Share button for Facebook didn't work
  • App refuses to respond to slide up play button
  • Regularly stops streaming at intervals
  • App doesn't show on App Store search
  • Latest version is buggier
  • Cannot open menu or select i icon when streaming
  • No in-app volume control
  • When phone locks, black screen with volume control, no visual indication of KCSM
  • App doesn't work since iOS8 update
  • App prevented iPad 1 users from listening
  • No volume control
  • No playlist
  • Latest version of the app is still ugly
  • App doesn't work with AirPlay
  • App won't play on speakers anymore, only on phone
  • Pause button switches back to Play a few seconds later
  • App doesn't switch to digital out when headphone amp/dac is plugged in

Requested features

14 requests
  • Put AirPlay control back
  • Improve sleep timer
  • Make Mac version a full app
  • Add year of track release
  • Click through to album notes/Amazon
Show 9 more
  • Dark mode option
  • Change background image/font color
  • Link to buy songs/albums
  • Clarify red bar under song
  • Put ads towards the bottom
  • Add a sleep mode
  • Support for retina display
  • Remove or change bottom buttons
  • Stop the slideshow

HPR

Reported bugs

10 issues
  • App stops playing after 10-15 minutes and requires restart
  • Random disconnections and cutouts during streaming
  • Crashes when attempting to access certain content
  • Overly sensitive touch controls causing unintended navigation
  • Streaming lag and sync issues between live and app
Show 5 more
  • App fails to load or play content approximately 25% of the time
  • Dual audio playback when switching between streaming and live
  • Frequent gaps in music playback on HPR-2
  • App boots user off mid-segment without saving position
  • String button sometimes unresponsive requiring app reinstall

Requested features

10 requests
  • Dark mode for nighttime listening
  • Improved car-friendly interface
  • Song title display in now-playing bar
  • Better accessibility to archived driveway moments
  • Remember last listening position
Show 5 more
  • Reduce sensitivity of touch controls
  • Add newscast button like NPR app
  • Move HPR1/HPR2 selector to bottom of interface
  • Include URL links for social media sharing
  • Reduce commercial interruptions

In-app purchases

None

Jazz91 KCSM

No in-app purchases

None

HPR

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Jazz91 KCSM free?
Jazz91 KCSM is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is HPR free?
HPR is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Jazz91 KCSM or HPR?
HPR is rated higher. Jazz91 KCSM averages 3.5 out of 5 from 67 ratings, while HPR averages 4.6 from 249 ratings.
Do Jazz91 KCSM or HPR have ads?
Jazz91 KCSM shows ads; HPR does not.
Which is updated more often, Jazz91 KCSM or HPR?
Jazz91 KCSM ships an update every 6 months, and HPR every 3 months. Most recently, Jazz91 KCSM was updated on November 1, 2026 and HPR on November 10, 2026.

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