Comparison

StarTracker HD vs Remote Pilot Study Buddy

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

Head to head
About

StarTracker HD

Explore the night sky with this augmented reality planetarium. Identify stars, constellations, planets, and deep sky objects by simply pointing your device at the sky. All data is available offline.

Highlights
  • Augmented Reality Star Gazing
  • Identify 8000+ stars, planets, and constellations
  • Offline data access
  • Search and lock celestial objects
  • Time Machine feature
  • High-quality graphics
Features
Read full description

== Best StarGazing experience @60fps! == == Video: http://tiny.cc/starvideo == --- Top 1 Education app in 34 countries and Top 10 Education app in 79 countries when FREE! Thank you all my dear users, please leave a review or rating if you love this application! --- Hey, get outdoor with your friends and start star gazing! Let StarTracker guide you to explore the universe. Just hold up and point the device to the sky and have fun! You can see any stars, constellations and deep sky objects you are watching in reality. ======================== What our user said: "Best star gazing app I've ever used. Very well put together and great visuals!!! From end to end this app is a must-have for anyone interested in astronomy!!" "This app is a marvel of technology, art, and science. Super smooth operation, great graphics and a great merging of the devices capabilities. Having grown up using star charts and compasses, this app feels like science fiction come to life. Great job!" "Looking at the sky was never this incredible!" "If you download only one app, make sure it's this one!! This is one of the best apps I've ever seen, period! Its quality is unmatched among star gazing apps!" ======================== Features: • Augmented Reality Star Gazing with gyroscope! Just hold up the device. • Sun, Moon, planets and 8000+ stars visible to the naked eyes. • 88 Constellations & 100+ deep sky objects with magnificent graphics. • All data is offline! • Search and Lock the objects in Solar system, 12 Zodiac Constellations, 88 Constellations, Deep Sky Objects and Famous Stars. • 3D compass in AR mode, indicate position of objects your searched. • Location auto set by GPS, or set manually. • Time Machine. Time and date can be adjusted smoothly. • Capture a screenshot and share with your friends on Facebook, Twitter or save to Photos. • Smooth motion flow and quick response which is realized by cutting edge signal processing technique. • Superb high quality graphics with full screen anti-aliasing. Usage: • Bottom Right: Hide/Show Main Setting Menu, settings for name display, constellation, deep sky object, night mode, star amount and grid mode. • Top Right: Search Menu (Solar system, 12 Zodiac and 88 Constellations, Deep Sky Object and Famous Stars) • Top Left: Location Menu, choose location from a world map. Below is the Share button. • Top bar: Time Machine Menu, adjust any time/date. • Bottom Left: AR Compass indicator in AR track mode, pan the screen to enter un-track mode and click track button to back. Tips: • When search any object under un-track mode, it will be locked at the center of the screen, then user can adjust time/date to see changes of the related sky. • When under un-track mode, just lift up the screen and point it to the sky to enter AR track mode.

About

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

Prepare for your FAA Remote Pilot Certificate exam with comprehensive study materials and practice tests. Master drone regulations and knowledge areas through various study modes, including flashcards and simulated exams. Track your progress and review detailed explanations to ensure readiness for the official test.

Highlights
  • Study questions by topic
  • Review question flashcards
  • Take practice tests
  • Progress reports
  • Included study resources
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Operating a drone for non-hobby operations requires a Remote Pilot Certificate. You must successfully complete the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Knowledge Exam to earn a Remote Pilot Certificate with a Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) rating. Bundled with an wealth of resources including the Small UAS Study Guide and the Remote Pilot Knowledge test Guide, Sporty's Drone Study Buddy will prepare you for the Remote Pilot FAA written test like no other study tool available. After reviewing the study material you can then study the test questions with three modes of operation. Test material is expertly organized into categories based on subject matter and includes, questions, answers, correct answers, and detailed explanations. • STUDY QUESTIONS BY TOPIC • Learning Mode allows you to create custom review sessions by selecting exactly which categories you want to review. Each session randomly generates the question order, and provides instant feedback based on your answer selection. Each question also provides a detailed description as to why each answer is right. These explanations were developed by Sporty’s team of Master Instructor’s, based on their experience preparing for the Remote Pilot certificate. • REVIEW QUESTION FLASHCARDS • Flashcard mode tests your knowledge by allowing you to only see the question without the answer choices. After answering the question mentally, you can then select to show the correct answer, and self-grade your progress along the way. This is a great feature that keeps you from being distracted by incorrect answers. • TAKE PRACTICE TESTS • Test mode randomly generates a 60-question session from the entire database of published FAA test questions, simulating the real Remote Pilot test. After answering all the questions, you’ll be given instant results, and have the option to review either all the questions, or just missed questions. Included in the review session are the same detailed explanations for why each answer is correct. • PROGRESS REPORTS • After completing each test your results are saved in the app's Progress Report section, where you can review previous scores and and a detailed history of each question and answer selection. You can also pause a partially-completed session, and resume it at a later time here. • REMOTE PILOT STUDY RESOURCES • To help you prepare for the knowledge areas covered on the Remote Pilot knowledge test we've included the following resources in the app: - Remote Pilot - Small UAS Study Guide - Remote Pilot - Smal UAS Airman Certification Standards - FAR Part 107 Advisory Circular

Screenshots

Remote Pilot Study Buddy4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: StarTracker HD at $3.99 against Remote Pilot Study Buddy's $19.99. StarTracker HD also leads on ratings volume (43 vs 12). Remote Pilot Study Buddy's advantage is rating (4.5 vs 4.0) and review sentiment (91% vs 59%). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

StarTracker HD costs $3.99 and Remote Pilot Study Buddy $19.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Remote Pilot Study Buddy holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 43 and 12 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 59% of StarTracker HD's written reviews are positive against 91% of Remote Pilot Study Buddy's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

StarTracker HD ships an update every 5 months, Remote Pilot Study Buddy every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on June 9, 2026 and September 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
StarTracker HD versus Remote Pilot Study Buddy: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStarTracker HDRemote Pilot Study Buddy
Price$3.99 — better$19.99
Rating4.0 (43 ratings)4.5 (12 ratings) — better
Positive reviews59.4% of reviews90.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings43 — better12
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 4 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank—#174 — better
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB62 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developer身吉 潘Sporty's Pilot Shop

Customer experience

StarTracker HD

All ratings43 ratings
Positive74.4%
Neutral4.7%
Negative20.9%
Written reviews96 reviews
Positive59.4%
Neutral12.5%
Negative28.1%

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

All ratings12 ratings
Positive91.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative8.3%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive90.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative9.1%

Bugs and requests

StarTracker HD

Reported bugs

15 issues
  • App crashes on startup or during use
  • Compass direction incorrect (north pointing wrong direction)
  • Gyroscope not responding or locked
  • Share button causes crashes
  • Forward/share button greying out and causing screen loss
Show 10 more
  • Screen display only showing bottom right corner on iPad Pro 12.9
  • App spinning continuously without stopping
  • Screen orientation lock issues after iOS updates
  • Duplicate app installations appearing
  • iPad 2 compatibility issues despite gyroscope presence
  • Inaccurate celestial object positioning (e.g., M71 placement)
  • Sun position showing incorrectly during daytime
  • Ursa Minor not rotating properly over 24-hour period
  • Menu disappearing after using forward button
  • Half-screen display stuck after exploring tools

Requested features

13 requests
  • Add search functionality for celestial objects
  • Include ISS and satellite tracking
  • Display object information (distance, magnitude, color, brightness)
  • Add ecliptic line visibility option
  • Show coordinate information (RA, Dec, Alt, Azimuth)
Show 8 more
  • Tap-to-identify popup descriptions for objects
  • Add grid markings and horizon line with directional labels
  • Better zoom control with more detailed object information
  • Ability to manually rotate and correct star map
  • Offline functionality without WiFi requirement
  • Remove or disable astrology content
  • Project capability for classroom screens
  • iPhone version availability

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

StarTracker HD

No in-app purchases

None

Remote Pilot Study Buddy

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is StarTracker HD free?
StarTracker HD costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Remote Pilot Study Buddy free?
Remote Pilot Study Buddy costs $19.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, StarTracker HD or Remote Pilot Study Buddy?
Remote Pilot Study Buddy is rated higher. StarTracker HD averages 4.0 out of 5 from 43 ratings, while Remote Pilot Study Buddy averages 4.5 from 12 ratings.
Do StarTracker HD or Remote Pilot Study Buddy have ads?
Neither StarTracker HD nor Remote Pilot Study Buddy shows ads.
Which is updated more often, StarTracker HD or Remote Pilot Study Buddy?
StarTracker HD ships an update every 5 months, and Remote Pilot Study Buddy every 4 months. Most recently, StarTracker HD was updated on June 9, 2026 and Remote Pilot Study Buddy on September 19, 2026.

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