Comparison

SWList vs PhosphorRTTY

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

Head to head
About

SWList

Discover and identify shortwave radio stations with access to curated EiBi and Aoki lists. Explore stations by frequency, band, or search criteria, and view detailed transmission information, including location on a map.

Highlights
  • Access EiBi and Aoki curated lists
  • Discover stations by frequency or band
  • Search by station name, country, or language
  • Connect to radio receivers via Hamlib
  • Filter for currently broadcasting stations
  • View station transmission details
  • Display transmitter location on map
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

SWList gives you access to the popular EiBi and Aoki lists, helping you easily discover and identify shortwave radio stations. The EiBi list, curated by Eike Bierwirth, is a highly valued resource within the SWL community.  The Aoki list, curated by Shigenori Aoki, is also widely used and recognized for its reliability. SWList offers four convenient ways to explore radio stations: - Enter a listening frequency to display stations transmitting nearby. - Select a specific radio band to view all stations within it. - Search by station name, country, or broadcast language. - Retrieve the frequency manually or automatically from your radio receiver, if connected via Hamlib. You can also filter results to show only stations that are currently broadcasting. For each station, detailed information is available, including transmission location, target area, and spoken language. If the transmitter’s location is available, you can display it on a geographic map and calculate the distance from your location. SWList also supports light and dark modes to suit your viewing preferences.

About

PhosphorRTTY

Decode Radio Teletype (RTTY) signals in real time using your iPhone's microphone. Listen to shortwave radio transmissions and see the text appear on an authentic phosphor CRT display. No internet or external hardware needed.

Highlights
  • Real-time RTTY signal decoding
  • Authentic phosphor CRT display
  • Automatic signal detection (AFC, baud, shift)
  • Manual tuning options
  • Live signal analysis (FFT, waterfall)
  • Session logging and sharing
  • Customizable display themes
Features
Read full description

PhosphorRTTY decodes Radio Teletype (RTTY) signals in real time using your iPhone's microphone. Hold your phone near a shortwave radio tuned to an RTTY signal and watch the text appear on screen, character by character, on an authentic phosphor CRT display. No internet connection required. No external hardware. No account. Just your iPhone and a radio. WHAT IT DECODES RTTY is the oldest digital mode in amateur radio — two audio tones representing mark and space, encoding text via the 5-bit ITA2 (Baudot) alphabet or 7-bit ASCII. PhosphorRTTY handles all standard configurations: Baud rates: 45.45, 50, 75, 100 Bd (auto-detected or manual) Shifts: 85, 170, 450, 850 Hz (auto-detected or manual) ITA2 (Baudot) and ASCII modes USB and LSB conventions AUTOMATIC SIGNAL DETECTION The app automatically finds and locks onto RTTY signals: AFC (Automatic Frequency Control) acquires and tracks drifting signals Auto-baud detection identifies the transmission speed Auto-shift detection determines the frequency separation Squelch suppresses noise when no signal is present Or disable any of these and tune manually for full control. FOUR TABS DECODE — The main teleprinter display. Decoded text appears character by character with an authentic mechanical delay. Status bar shows baud rate, shift, mark/space frequencies, and signal lock state. Clear, pause, and session controls. SIGNAL — Live signal analysis. FFT spectrum display (0–4 kHz), scrolling waterfall, mark/space tone indicators, bit period histogram with baud rate markers, and a paper punch tape visualisation of the decoded data stream. LOG — Session history. Every decode session is saved with timestamp, duration, character count, and the full decoded text. Copy, share, or delete individual sessions. CONFIG — All parameters. Audio input gain, decode mode (auto/manual for baud, frequency, and shift), display theme, font size, bell character handling, and RYRY sequence display options. THE DISPLAY Two authentic phosphor CRT themes: Amber (classic teleprinter terminal) Green (military/commercial terminal) Both feature horizontal scanlines, edge vignette, and phosphor glow effects. Monospaced font throughout. RYRY test sequences can be dimmed or hidden to keep the display clean. DSP ENGINE The signal processing is done entirely on-device using a per-sample I/Q quadrature demodulation pipeline: Biquad low-pass filtered I/Q channels for each tone W7AY Automatic Threshold Correction for bit decisions Digital Phase-Locked Loop (DPLL) with per-transition phase correction for timing recovery 512-point FFT for frequency analysis and AFC Asymmetric envelope detection for robust tone tracking through fading Tested against real over-the-air recordings from 20m and 40m amateur bands. Under 1% error rate on clean signals, 4–5% on moderate HF conditions with fixed tuning. WHERE TO FIND RTTY Amateur radio: 14.080–14.099 MHz (20m band), 7.080–7.100 MHz (40m band), 21.080–21.100 MHz (15m band). RTTY contests run throughout the year — during a contest, these frequencies are packed with signals. Maritime and commercial RTTY transmissions can be found across the HF spectrum. A shortwave receiver or SDR with audio output is all you need. REQUIREMENTS iPhone with microphone iOS 17 or later A radio receiver tuned to an RTTY signal (shortwave radio, SDR, or WebSDR audio played through a speaker) No in-app purchases. No subscriptions. No tracking. No network access.

Screenshots

SWList4 screens
PhosphorRTTY4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: PhosphorRTTY at 100% against SWList's 67%. PhosphorRTTY also leads on price ($0.99 vs $3.99). SWList's advantage is chart position (#198 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 26.2). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

SWList costs $3.99 and PhosphorRTTY $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
SWList versus PhosphorRTTY: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSWListPhosphorRTTY
Price$3.99$0.99 — better
Rating3.8 (4 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings4 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 months—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#198 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.0 — better26.2
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperStefano RampazzoStuart Woolley

Customer experience

SWList

All ratings4 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

PhosphorRTTY

Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

SWList

No in-app purchases

None

PhosphorRTTY

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SWList free?
SWList costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is PhosphorRTTY free?
PhosphorRTTY costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do SWList or PhosphorRTTY have ads?
Neither SWList nor PhosphorRTTY shows ads.

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