Comparison

Heavy Headlines vs TechPulse by CNET Group

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

Head to head
About

Heavy Headlines

Stay updated with all things metal. This app aggregates news, new album releases, and concert listings from top sources. It personalizes your feed based on your favorite bands and offers ticket purchasing directly within the app.

Highlights
  • Aggregates metal news from top sources
  • Personalized feed based on favorite bands
  • Explore new album releases
  • Find and purchase concert tickets
  • Automatic background news refresh
  • Customizable themes
Features
Read full description

Built BY a metalhead FOR metalheads Heavy Headlines for iPhone, iPad - and now Apple Watch - is the BROOTAL one-stop destination for all of your metal news, new album release, and concert listing needs. To put it another way, I'm a big metal fan and much to my surprise there was just nothing in the app store that did what I was looking for - show me metal news and do it well. So as a professional app developer I took it upon myself to fill that void with the following design goals in mind: 1. Make it simple, slick, and easy to use with a fun interface. It should "just work." 2. Pack it with the innovative features of iOS and Apple devices that I would expect from a great app. 3. Make it metal. Make it fun. Hopefully I've achieved that and more. Let me know in the reviews. If you find any bugs or have any suggestions please send me feedback directly from the app. I want to hear from you! Just hit the menu button in the header and select "Send Feedback" Features: - Aggregates content from the world's top sources of metal news in one convenient app. - Innovative "My Bands" feature figures out your favorite metal bands from your Apple Music and iTunes libraries and then surfaces stories about them to the top of your feed. You can also Blacklist the ones you don't want to get news about. - Explore new metal releases and top selling albums. Open them directly in Apple Music or Spotify. - Concert Tickets! Heavy Headlines automatically finds upcoming shows in your area featuring your Favorite Bands and even lets you purchase tickets for them right through the app. - Full background fetch integration refreshes your metal news automatically for you in the background so it's ready for you every time you open the app. - Automatically receive notifications when new stories about your Favorite Bands are detected! - Have multiple devices? No problem. The app uses iCloud to automatically synch your settings and to keep track of the articles you've already read across all your devices. - Don't like the default look of the app? Heavy Headlines comes packed with over 20 different themes inspired by iconic metal album covers. - Sleek fullscreen reading experience. Simply scroll the article you're reading to enter fullscreen mode. - Lots of other little fun "metal" touches throughout to warm even the blackest of hearts. Please note: The notifications will only work if you allow Heavy Headlines to refresh content in the background. You can do this by going to iOS Settings > General > Background App Refresh and turning it on for Heavy Headlines.

About

TechPulse by CNET Group

Stay informed with the latest tech news, expert reviews, and product recommendations. Make smarter purchasing decisions with in-depth analysis and video guides. Get breaking alerts and discover the best deals on technology.

Highlights
  • Featured tech stories
  • Latest technology news coverage
  • Product review galleries
  • Breaking news alerts
  • Extensive product reviews
  • Best product recommendations
  • Product search functionality
  • Video product reviews
Features
Read full description

TechPulse helps tech enthusiasts follow trusted industry insights with a customizable, algorithm-free feed. Welcome to the new CNET app. TechPulse gathers world-class journalism from the internet’s most respected technology and lifestyle publishers. Instead of managing multiple sources or fighting unpredictable feeds, you can customize your daily dashboard to display exactly what matters to you. Stay informed with unbiased video, analysis, news and reviews curated by human experts. Main features: • Filter the publication sources you want to appear in your unified feed for easy navigation. • Make tech buying easy with lab-tested reviews from CNET and PCMag experts. • Get the latest breaking tech news from reporters who share objective takes on what you need to know. • Stay ahead of internet innovations with trending digital culture and entertainment news from Mashable. • Streamline your daily routine and unlock practical hacks and science-based productivity tips from Lifehacker. • Track disruptive professional tech breakthroughs and emerging industry trends from ZDNET. • Get the most from your tech and gadgets with CNET’s product updates and troubleshooting guides. TechPulse is built for readers who value journalistic integrity and direct sources over cluttered news streams. Backed by decades of independent editorial experience from trusted industry names, TechPulse is built for readers who value journalistic integrity and direct sources over cluttered news streams. Your feed remains transparent, accurate and free of bias. Download TechPulse today to control your technology news and explore what matters to you. Our Privacy Policy: https://www.ziffdavis.com/ztg-privacy-policy Our Terms of Use: https://www.ziffdavis.com/terms-of-use

Screenshots

Heavy Headlines4 screens
TechPulse by CNET Group4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Heavy Headlines at 92% against TechPulse by CNET Group's 17%. Heavy Headlines also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.3). TechPulse by CNET Group's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and update cadence (monthly vs every 5 months). On price, ads and iOS requirement 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

Both are free to download. Heavy Headlines sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. TechPulse by CNET Group asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Heavy Headlines holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1.1K and 3.4K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 92% of Heavy Headlines's written reviews are positive against 17% of TechPulse by CNET Group's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Heavy Headlines ships an update every 5 months, TechPulse by CNET Group monthly. Both last shipped on October 14, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Heavy Headlines versus TechPulse by CNET Group: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHeavy HeadlinesTechPulse by CNET Group
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (1.1K ratings) — better4.3 (3.4K ratings)
Positive reviews92.4% of reviews — better17.2% of reviews
Number of ratings1.1K3.4K — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsMonthly — better
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV — better
Requires iOS16.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size25 MB53 MB
Age rating9+17+
DeveloperNativity Mobile, LLCCNET Media, Inc.

Customer experience

Heavy Headlines

All ratings1,064 ratings
Positive96.2%
Neutral3.0%
Negative0.8%
Written reviews131 reviews
Positive92.4%
Neutral1.5%
Negative6.1%

TechPulse by CNET Group

All ratings3,442 ratings
Positive83.1%
Neutral3.7%
Negative13.1%
Written reviews180 reviews
Positive17.2%
Neutral13.3%
Negative69.4%

User reviews

Heavy Headlines

From 1.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Convenient one-stop shop for metal news
  • 🚀 Efficient and user-friendly app
  • 📰 Wide range of articles and news coverage
  • 🤘 Great for keeping up with the metal scene

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and freezes
  • 💰 Intrusive and excessive ads
  • 🔄 Outdated content and lack of updates

TechPulse by CNET Group

From 3.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great source for tech news and reviews
  • 👍 Reliable and trustworthy content
  • 🚀 Excellent for researching tech products

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy and unstable app
  • 🤔 Too many non-tech related articles
  • 🤔 Constant requests to update the app
  • 🤔 Ads make the app unusable
  • 🤔 Outdated and repeating content

Bugs and requests

Heavy Headlines

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Login screen freezes
  • Incompatibility with newer iOS versions

Requested features

3 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Customizable news feed
  • Better ad management

TechPulse by CNET Group

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Crashes and freezes frequently
  • Notifications don't lead to the correct article
  • Videos fail to load consistently
  • Login issues and account syncing problems

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to filter content by category
  • Improved search functionality
  • Better organization and navigation
  • Syncing of bookmarked articles across devices

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Heavy Headlines

One-time4
  • Flip the Horns$0.99
  • Head Bang$2.99
  • Odin's Blessings$4.99
Show 1 more
  • Blood Sacrifice$9.99
None

TechPulse by CNET Group

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Heavy Headlines free?
Heavy Headlines is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is TechPulse by CNET Group free?
TechPulse by CNET Group is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Heavy Headlines or TechPulse by CNET Group?
Heavy Headlines is rated higher. Heavy Headlines averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.1K ratings, while TechPulse by CNET Group averages 4.3 from 3.4K ratings.
Do Heavy Headlines or TechPulse by CNET Group have ads?
Both Heavy Headlines and TechPulse by CNET Group show ads.
Which is updated more often, Heavy Headlines or TechPulse by CNET Group?
Heavy Headlines ships an update every 5 months, and TechPulse by CNET Group monthly. Most recently, Heavy Headlines was updated on October 14, 2026 and TechPulse by CNET Group on October 14, 2026.

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