Comparison

WLED vs Pinlights

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

Head to head
About

WLED

Control your smart LED lights directly from your iPhone or iPad. This app automatically discovers your WLED devices on Wi-Fi, allowing you to manage power, brightness, colors, and effects. It also supports voice commands and one-tap software updates for your controllers.

Highlights
  • Automatic Wi-Fi Discovery
  • Live Status & Controls
  • Home Screen Widgets
  • Siri & Shortcuts Integration
  • One-Tap Device Updates
  • Customizable Device Organization
Features
Read full description

Take full control of your WLED light devices from your iPhone or iPad. This is the official companion app for devices running the free and open-source WLED firmware (such as ESP32 and ESP8266 controllers). The WLED app automatically finds your lights on your home Wi-Fi and brings them together in one simple, fast dashboard. Toggle power, adjust brightness, pick colors and effects, or keep your lights up to date in just a few taps. Key Features: • Automatic Wi-Fi Discovery: Finds your WLED lights on your local network automatically with no complicated setup required. • Live Status & Controls: See your lights' current colors, brightness, and online status update instantly right from the device list. • Home Screen Widgets: Turn lights on or off, see their current state at a glance, or jump straight to a device from your Home Screen. • Siri, Shortcuts & Action Button: Toggle your lights or set their brightness using Siri voice commands, the Shortcuts app, or your iPhone's Action button. • One-Tap Device Updates: Get notified when new WLED software is available and update your controllers directly from the app (supports official WLED, QuinLED, and MoonModules). • Made for iPhone & iPad: Adapts cleanly to any screen size with a split-screen layout on iPad, plus Light and Dark modes. • Easy Organization: Give your lights custom names and hide seasonal or offline controllers until you need them again. Completely free and open-source.

About

Pinlights

Read full description

Control your Pinlights-enabled lighting in your pinball games with the Pinlights app! With Pinlights, you can dial in your exact lighting needs to make your playfield art pop! The app allows you to dial in the following features: - Cool White Color Temperature - Warm White Color Temperature - GI Blend (UV color mix) - Tournament Mode - Flip this switch for a distraction free, well-lit playing experience! - GI Ducking - Want more "flash" in your life? Flip this switch and it'll multiply the flasher effect! - GI Minimum Brightness - Tired of being blinded during points in your game where the GI rapidly flashes? Flip this switch and take control of the situation! - GI Smoothing - Eliminate GI flicker with a single slider! This is the player's choice in Pinball lighting!

Screenshots

WLED4 screens
Pinlights3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is device support: WLED at 2 against Pinlights's —. Pinlights's advantage is iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.0). On price 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

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

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
WLED versus Pinlights: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWLEDPinlights
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (12 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews50.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings12 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 months—
AdsNo—
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — better—
Requires iOS18.014.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChristophe Gagnier86Pixels LLC

Bugs and requests

WLED

Reported bugs

42 issues
  • Unable to connect to LEDs
  • Lights randomly turn on
  • Connectivity issues, needs re-pairing
  • App doesn't work, glitchy
  • Brightness control issues
Show 37 more
  • Lights flicker after update
  • Cannot find discover lights option
  • Not connected to iPhone, setup issues
  • App won't load, vanishes
  • None of my devices show up
  • Shows up blank, manual add only
  • No longer finds WLED devices
  • App doesn't work, no devices showing
  • Confusing app, turns off
  • App is unusable after update, errors
  • App stopped picking up signal
  • Only connects when at home
  • Doesn't pick up esp8266
  • Sound react option missing
  • Time and macros section not working
  • Update won't update
  • Goes offline from time to time
  • Update breaks app, beta works
  • Drops connection, cannot adjust lights
  • Latest release freezes, unstable wifi
  • Loading WLED UI stuck
  • Inconsistent connection after new update
  • Lost all config after update
  • Lost all presets after update
  • Devices missing and disappearing
  • Update ruined everything, random disconnects
  • App constantly crashes, won't load
  • Stopped working after update
  • New upgrade feature killed device
  • Inconsistent, can't find boards
  • Cannot connect lights, IP address doesn't work
  • Missing schedule function
  • App doesn't work at all
  • Doesn't work properly with WLED 0.14
  • App won't allow changing anything, freezes
  • Hidden devices reappear
  • App goes offline and never connects again

Requested features

6 requests
  • User-friendly interface
  • Simple interface with advanced option
  • Widget features for Home Screen
  • Sound react option
  • Remote control when away from WiFi
Show 1 more
  • Timer or schedule function

Pinlights

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

WLED

No in-app purchases

None

Pinlights

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is WLED free?
WLED is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Pinlights free?
Pinlights is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

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