Comparison

ström vs Radio Unit

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

Head to head
About

ström

A simple internet radio player that supports various audio formats. Customize presets with your favorite stations or enjoy the included fluid, lake, and Swedish radio channels. It can also play streams of limited duration.

Highlights
  • Plays mp3, wav, aifc, aiff, m4a, mp4, caf, aac
  • Customizable radio presets
  • Includes fluid, lake, and Swedish radio channels
  • Supports finite length streams
  • Minimalistic interface
Features
Read full description

Ström is a minimalistic streaming internet radio. It is capable of playing the formats mp3, wav, aifc, aiff, m4a, mp4, caf and aac. Ström comes preset with fluid radio, lake radio and swedish radio p1, p2 and p3, but these can easily be changed to the user's choice. Of course, ström is also capable of playing streams of a finite length. Powered by Sparrow. Made by humble.

About

Radio Unit

Stream over 35,000 internet radio stations with this app. Enhance your audio experience by using it as an AUv3 plugin with other compatible music apps. Discover new music and save your favorites.

Highlights
  • Access 35,000+ radio stations
  • Enhance audio with AUv3 plugins
  • Intuitive interface
  • Song discovery and saving
  • Favorites sync across devices
  • MIDI control for AUv3 plugin
Read full description

Discover a world of music with Radio Unit, a sleek and powerful Internet radio player with a built-in Audio Unit (AUv3) plugin.  Elevate your listening experience by enhancing streaming audio in real time using your favorite third-party audio processing plugins (not included) within AUv3-compatible hosts like Drambo or GarageBand. Features: • Intuitive Interface: Enjoy a clean, user-friendly design for effortless navigation. • Song Discovery: Tap to add the currently playing song to your favorites, then open it in the Apple Music app or search for it on Google. • Massive Station Library: Access over 35,000 radio stations—search by name, browse by genre or location, and sort by popularity. • Favorites Sync: Save stations and songs to your favorites list, seamlessly synced across your devices. • AUv3 Integration: Use Radio Unit as a standalone app or as an AUv3 plugin in hosts like Drambo, GarageBand, and more, with support for multiple plugin instances. • MIDI Mapping: Control buttons can be triggered by MIDI Note events (C3 to F3). (AUv3 only) • Battery Efficient: Stream music without draining your device. The app requires internet connection.

Screenshots

ström3 screens
Radio Unit2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ström at Free against Radio Unit's $6.99. ström also leads on iOS requirement (7.0 vs 15.6). Radio Unit's advantage is rating (4.6 vs 3.4) and review sentiment (81% vs 60%). On ratings volume, update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

ström is free to download; Radio Unit costs $6.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Radio Unit holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 28 and 59 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of ström's written reviews are positive against 81% of Radio Unit's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
ström versus Radio Unit: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterströmRadio Unit
PriceFree — better$6.99
Rating3.4 (28 ratings)4.6 (59 ratings) — better
Positive reviews60.0% of reviews81.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2859 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS7.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperErik SigthBeepStreet

Customer experience

ström

All ratings28 ratings
Positive57.1%
Neutral3.6%
Negative39.3%
Written reviews25 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral4.0%
Negative36.0%

Radio Unit

All ratings59 ratings
Positive89.8%
Neutral3.4%
Negative6.8%
Written reviews54 reviews
Positive81.5%
Neutral9.3%
Negative9.3%

Bugs and requests

ström

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Radio Unit

Reported bugs

17 issues
  • Cannot remove recognized songs
  • Cannot remove favorite saved songs (Mac)
  • Last update ruined experience with loading times and connection issues
  • Sadé channel frequently disconnects
  • Some stations don’t connect at all
Show 12 more
  • Cannot see song title/artist
  • Seamless integration with GarageBand and Logic Pro doesn't work
  • Cannot change station with MIDI, LFOs etc. after update
  • Cubasis 3 can’t find app
  • BBC streams no longer play
  • Cannot edit user slots after adding of link
  • Links not working
  • Cannot add user slots ('see the developer to unlock slots')
  • Adding stations near impossible
  • Failed URL slot flashes red and is inaccessible
  • Cannot paste other URLs
  • Cannot record and sample the feed into DAW

Requested features

13 requests
  • Option to remove or filter hostile nations
  • Add more stations (Golha radio, IRIB radio)
  • Ability to organize, tag, and edit stream specifications
  • Ability to use with CarPlay
  • Pitch slider within the app to slow down radio in real time
Show 8 more
  • More user presets/slots
  • iCloud sync for recently played stations and discovered pieces
  • Ability to change station with MIDI, LFOs etc. (post-update issue)
  • More exposed parameters for tweaking
  • Greater resources for slots (folders/sections)
  • Import/export presets list
  • Assign MIDI CC to volume knob and channel switch buttons
  • Support for streams in OGG container format

In-app purchases

None

ström

No in-app purchases

None

Radio Unit

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ström free?
ström is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Radio Unit free?
Radio Unit costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, ström or Radio Unit?
Radio Unit is rated higher. ström averages 3.4 out of 5 from 28 ratings, while Radio Unit averages 4.6 from 59 ratings.
Do ström or Radio Unit have ads?
Neither ström nor Radio Unit shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ström or Radio Unit?
ström ships an update every 2 months, and Radio Unit every 2 months. Most recently, ström was updated on October 16, 2026 and Radio Unit on October 15, 2026.

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