Marinus vs VHF Trainer Lite
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Marinus
This app provides comprehensive guidance on maritime navigation rules and signals. It offers detailed information on flags, lights, sounds, and buoyage systems, along with interactive quizzes and a map feature. Designed for sailors, it ensures safe navigation on any vessel.
- Maritime flags and meanings
- Weather scales and cloud identification
- Sound signal guidance
- Vessel navigation light diagrams
- Day shape identification
- Safe navigation maneuvers
- Morse code decoder
- IALA Buoyage System
- Radio communication guidelines
- COLREGs text
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Not just another app for navigation rules… this is THE app for navigation rules! Created by sailors, for sailors, Marinus COLREGs is designed to provide clear and instant answers to your questions anytime, anywhere. It's the essential app for your sailboat or motorboat. Key Features: • Flags – All maritime flags with their meanings. • Meteo – Beaufort and Douglas scales, plus cloud identification. • Sounds – Navigate safely with sound signal guidance. • Lights – Detailed views of every vessel's navigation lights from all angles. • Day Shapes – Learn and identify the correct day shapes for any situation. • Maneuvers – Clear guidance on safe navigation maneuvers. • Morse – Decode Morse signals with ease. • Buoys (IALA) – Understand the International Buoyage System. • Radio – Key radio communication guidelines. • ColRegs – Full text of the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (IRPCS). • Quiz – Test your knowledge with interactive quizzes. • Map – Visualize navigation concepts on an interactive map. Access PRO Features Unlock all PRO features with an affordable annual subscription. Your support helps us maintain and improve the app, keeping it the trusted tool for sailors around the world. Join thousands of sailors who trust Marinus ColRegs every day on their iPhone. Whether you're an experienced seafarer or just starting your nautical journey, this is the app you’ve been looking for! For any questions, feel free to contact us at info@marinus.es.
VHF Trainer Lite
Learn and practice VHF radio, Digital Selective Calling, and GMDSS with an immersive experience. This app offers learning modules, tests, and 3D simulations to help you master maritime radiocommunication equipment and distress procedures in a safe environment.
- VHF radio, DSC, and GMDSS learning
- Interactive tests and quizzes
- 3D maritime simulation
- Distress alert practice
- Progress tracking and scoring
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Changing the way of learning VHF Trainer Lite is the most complete application on the market for learning and practicing about VHF radio, Digital Selective Calling and GMDSS. It is divided into three sections (Learning, Test and Simulation) so you can have an immersive experience aboard a ship, read, train and test all your knowledge in a didactic and fun way. in the full version you will get : - 9 illustrated chapters in full color and with great quality that will allow you to learn in an easy and attractive way everything related to the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System and radiocommunication equipment at sea. - More than 20 scenarios: The 3D simulation allows you to navigate aboard a ship using a marine VHF equipment with all its functions: you will receive radio communications, send alerts and you will be able to experience situations of distress. Get ready to navigate and experience an interaction with the ocean in a safe and controlled environment. - More than 200 questions about the VHF equipment: Answer questions, join concepts with arrows and choose the right option from a list of possibilities in a trivia that will allow you to evaluate the knowledge that you have assimilated. VHF Trainer Lite will score your answers and congratulate you or invite you to continue studying according to your performance. Our focus is on advancing, growing and evolving, always thinking about the end user experience, and to be able to offer products of quality and easy assimilation following the principle "if I listen, I forget; If I see it, I remember it; If I do and I practice it, I understand." ----------------------- Keywords: VHF, DSC,VHF-DSC, SRC, GMDSS, Skipper, PNB, PER, LRC, General operator, Short range certificate
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: VHF Trainer Lite at 5.0 against Marinus's 4.4. VHF Trainer Lite also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ads (none vs shown). Marinus's advantage is ratings volume (215 vs 2) and review sentiment (65% vs 50%). On price, update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Marinus sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $8.99 per year. VHF Trainer Lite asks for nothing beyond the download.
VHF Trainer Lite holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Marinus has 215 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 65% of Marinus's written reviews are positive against 50% of VHF Trainer Lite's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Marinus ships an update every 5 weeks, VHF Trainer Lite monthly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | Marinus | VHF Trainer Lite |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.4 (215 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 65.3% of reviews — better | 50.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 215 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Monthly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 7.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 113 MB | 471 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Alejandro | Advenio Software |
Customer experience
Marinus
VHF Trainer Lite
Bugs and requests
Marinus
Reported bugs
4 issues- App not working, ads won't clear
- App crashes frequently
- Mistake with sounds
- App crashes after 10-15 seconds
Requested features
7 requests- Settings for Buoyage A & B & combined
- Search feature
- Combine sounds and lights
- Add tides information
- More free version functionality
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- More detail in maneuvers section
- Lights with silhouette and head-on/stern-on views
VHF Trainer Lite
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Marinus
- Marinus PRO3 Days trial$8.991 Year
VHF Trainer Lite
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Marinus free?
Is VHF Trainer Lite free?
Which has better reviews, Marinus or VHF Trainer Lite?
Do Marinus or VHF Trainer Lite have ads?
Which is updated more often, Marinus or VHF Trainer Lite?
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