DS video vs Jellyfin Mobile
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
DS video
Stream your video collection from your Synology NAS to your mobile device. Automatically retrieves movie information and organizes content into libraries. Record and manage TV programs remotely if you have compatible HDHomeRun devices connected to your NAS.
- Stream video collection from Synology NAS
- Automatic movie information retrieval
- Organized video libraries
- Record and manage TV programs
- Remote TV schedule management
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**You must own a Synology NAS to run this app, and be running the latest Video Station 2.3.0 to get the complete set of features** Use DS video to stream your video collection on your DiskStation from your iOS mobile device. Browsing is made easy as your videos are sorted in different libraries, and each movies has its information retrieved online automatically. And if you have connected HDHomeRun devices with DVB-T standard to the same local area network as your Synology NAS, you will also be able to record TV programs, as well as view the TV program to manage the recording schedule even when on the move. Find all detailed features about the app on our website: www.synology.com > NAS > DSM 7.1 > Apps > Mobile Apps > Software Specs https://www.synology.com/dsm/software_spec/mobile#DSvideo
Jellyfin Mobile
Access and stream your entire media collection from your own server. Enjoy your audio, video, and photos on your device with a user-friendly interface. This app requires a Jellyfin server to be set up and running.
- Stream personal media collections
- Access audio, video, and photos
- User-friendly interface
- Watch Live TV and recorded shows
- Official companion app
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The Jellyfin project is an open source, free software media server. No fees, no tracking, no hidden agenda. Get our free server to collect all your audio, video, photos, and more in one place. To use the app, you must have a Jellyfin server set up and running. Find out more at https://jellyfin.org With a Jellyfin server, you can: - Watch Live TV and recorded shows from your Jellyfin server (additional hardware/services required) - Stream your media to your iOS/iPadOS device - View your collection in an easy to use interface This is the official Jellyfin companion app. Thank you for using Jellyfin!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Jellyfin Mobile at 4.0 against DS video's 2.8. Jellyfin Mobile also leads on review sentiment (49% vs 27%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Jellyfin Mobile holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 2.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 257 and 506 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 27% of DS video's written reviews are positive against 49% of Jellyfin Mobile's.
DS video ships an update every 2 months, Jellyfin Mobile every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | DS video | Jellyfin Mobile |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.8 (257 ratings) | 4.0 (506 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 26.7% of reviews | 49.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 257 | 506 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 | 12.4 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 35 MB | 11 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Synology Inc. | Anthony Lavado |
Customer experience
DS video
Jellyfin Mobile
User reviews
DS video
From 257 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- ⭐ Simple and fast
- ⭐ Excellent ability to stream to Chromecast
- ⭐ Automatically fetches metadata
- ⭐ Allows sharing with family/friends
- ⭐ Works flawlessly with Synology NAS
Room to improve
- 🐛 Unstable, crashes frequently
- 🐛 Playback issues, video doesn't start or stops unexpectedly
- 🐛 Doesn't support common video formats like MKV, HEVC, DTS
- 🐛 Transcoding/download issues, videos don't play properly
- 🐛 Buggy on newer iOS/tvOS versions
Jellyfin Mobile
From 506 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Wonderful FOSS app
- 🚀 Light weight and effective
- 🚀 Getting close to Plex
- 👍 Amazing!
- 👍 Works great
Room to improve
- 🐛 Audio problems with background playback
- 🐛 Download on iPad not working
- 🐛 Background play does not work
- 🐛 Slow on RasPi
- 🐛 Clunky but functional
Bugs and requests
DS video
Reported bugs
4 issues- Playback controls not working on Apple TV
- Subtitle display issues
- Inability to play videos over encrypted connections
- Synology NAS integration problems
Requested features
6 requests- Add support for more video formats
- Improve playback controls (skip forward/backward, resume, etc.)
- Implement auto-play next episode for TV shows
- Add Picture-in-Picture support on iPad
- Improve Chromecast and AirPlay support
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Enhance parental controls and content filtering
Jellyfin Mobile
Reported bugs
12 issues- Audio problems with background playback
- Download on iPad not working
- Background play does not work
- Slow on RasPi
- Won't connect
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- Couldn't connect to server
- Subtitle scaling issues
- Buggy client state
- Transcoding issues
- Chromecast connection failure
- Stops playing after 30 seconds
- Buggy and feature limited
Requested features
8 requests- Add background playback
- Add Chromecast support
- Add offline downloads
- Add shuffle functionality
- Add Apple TV support
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- Add external subtitle support
- Add lockscreen controls for music
- Add download offline functionality
In-app purchases
DS video
No in-app purchases
Jellyfin Mobile
No in-app purchases
