# Escea Remote vs AUTOMATE SHADES

The clearest difference is rating: AUTOMATE SHADES at 3.1 against Escea Remote's 1.0. AUTOMATE SHADES also leads on update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 16 months) and review sentiment (33% vs 9%). Escea Remote's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

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

AUTOMATE SHADES holds the better App Store score, 3.1 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: AUTOMATE SHADES has 93 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 9% of Escea Remote's written reviews are positive against 33% of AUTOMATE SHADES's.

Escea Remote ships an update every 16 months, AUTOMATE SHADES every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Escea Remote | AUTOMATE SHADES |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [1.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/escea-remote/id514839287/reviews) | **[3.1 (93 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/automate-shades/id1460852253/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 2 | **93** |
| Positive reviews | 8.8% of reviews | **32.6% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 16 months | **Every 6 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 2 MB | 151 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 15.1 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Escea Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/514839650) | [ROLLEASE ACMEDA](https://appshunter.io/developer/1134859288) |

## What reviewers say

### Escea Remote

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/escea-remote/id514839287)

Control your gas fireplace remotely from your smartphone. Adjust temperature, turn it on/off, manage flame effects, and set timers for ultimate comfort and convenience.

**Highlights:** Remote on/off control, Thermostat temperature adjustment, Flame effect control, Fan boost control, Timer functions, Multi-fireplace management

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to setup
- 👍 Quick to set up
- 👍 Works well (when it works)
- 👍 Slick new version (in 2016)
- 👍 Allows programmed timers to be set (though remote does it easily)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Very glitchy
- 🐛 Remote access hit and miss
- 🐛 Often completely unavailable
- 🐛 Not possible to set custom times
- 🐛 App has been left to rot

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when reopened
- App crashes unexpectedly
- App broken in iOS 17
- App broken with latest iOS
- Fireplace goes offline

**Requested features**

- Add Alexa integration
- Add Google Home integration
- Add Apple HomeKit integration
- Add Amazon Alexa integration
- Add ability to set schedules based on weather or temperature


### AUTOMATE SHADES

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/automate-shades/id1460852253)

Effortlessly control and automate motorized window shades. Organize shades by room, group them into scenes, and set timers for daily routines. Monitor battery levels and signal strength for all shades remotely.

**Highlights:** Room-based organization, Scene creation and activation, Automated timers, Remote control, Battery and signal monitoring, Sunrise/sunset automation

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Great customer service
- 🚀 Fantastic support
- 🚀 Works as described
- 🚀 Excellent functionality and flexibility
- 🚀 Timer function is exceptional

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable
- 🐛 Frequent disconnections and sync issues
- 🐛 Difficult to set up and configure
- 🐛 Poor HomeKit and smart home integration
- 🐛 Unresponsive devices

**Reported bugs**

- Frequent app crashes
- Shades disappearing from the app
- Timers and schedules not working as expected
- Connectivity issues between hub and shades
- Inconsistent performance after updates

**Requested features**

- Improved user interface and navigation
- Better sync and reliability across devices
- Enhanced smart home integrations
- Customizable shade positioning and automation
- Battery level notifications


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Escea Remote free?

Escea Remote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is AUTOMATE SHADES free?

AUTOMATE SHADES is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Escea Remote or AUTOMATE SHADES?

AUTOMATE SHADES is rated higher. Escea Remote averages 1.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while AUTOMATE SHADES averages 3.1 from 93 ratings.

### Do Escea Remote or AUTOMATE SHADES have ads?

Neither Escea Remote nor AUTOMATE SHADES shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Escea Remote or AUTOMATE SHADES?

Escea Remote ships an update every 16 months, and AUTOMATE SHADES every 6 weeks. Most recently, Escea Remote was updated on November 1, 2026 and AUTOMATE SHADES on October 26, 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.*