Comparison

HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal vs Morse Code

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

Head to head
About

HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal

This application helps amateur radio operators log, organize, and edit their radio contacts. It offers a straightforward way to manage QSOs, with plans to add features like multiple logbooks and online service integration.

Highlights
  • Log, organize, and edit QSOs
  • Multiple logbooks for different callsigns
  • ADIF file export
  • Online service integration (QRZ, LOTW)
  • Distance calculations
  • Support for special modes
Features
Read full description

Ham Radio Logbook is a simple yet powerful tool for amateur radio operators to track and manage their QSOs (contacts). Whether you're a beginner or an experienced operator, this app makes it easy to log, organize, and edit your radio contacts. With a focus on simplicity and functionality, you can now keep your logs with you at all times. For now we have a very basic functionality for QSOs tracking, but here are the plans: - Multiple logbooks (different callsigns) - ADIF file export - Online services integration, e.g. qrz.com, lotw, hamlog (will negotiate the usage possibility), etc - Distance calculations based on QTH locator - Special modes - contests, SOTA/POTA, etc Have a good DX and 73 from R1BIA!

About

Morse Code

Features
Read full description

Most Morse code apps hand you a table of 26 patterns and wish you luck. Morse Map hands you the structure underneath the table. Morse code isn't a list. It's a decision tree. From any point, a dot takes one branch and a dash takes the other. E is one dot from the start. A is E plus a dash. R is A plus a dot. Nobody memorises 26 unrelated patterns โ€” they learn one map and walk it. This app draws that map, and lights up where you are on it. SEE THE CODE, DON'T MEMORISE IT Two ideas make the diagram readable at a glance. Every node is drawn as the symbol that reaches it โ€” a circle for a dot, a long bar for a dash. Read the shapes along a path and you have just read the code. No legend. No lookup. And depth runs left to right, so a path reads in the same direction as time. The route to J is dot dash dash dash, which is exactly what J sounds like. The tree is the waveform. Key a dot and a packet of light travels the trace into the next node. The path stays lit while the rest of the map dims, and the two branches you could take next are marked โ€” so you are always looking at the one decision in front of you, not the whole alphabet. DECODE Tap separate dot and dash keys, or switch to a real straight key where the length of your press decides the symbol, with a live indicator showing when you cross into dash territory. A pause finishes the character, with a ring closing around the live node so the timing is visible rather than guessed. Prefer to be deliberate? Turn it off and press Enter yourself. Tap any node to jump there and hear it โ€” exploring is free, and nothing is typed until you ask. Undo works one element at a time, which is what you need most when you are new. SEND โ€” INCLUDING BY LIGHT Type a message and transmit it as genuine Morse, with correct element lengths and correct gaps, on four channels at once: โ€ข Sound โ€” a real keyed sidetone. โ€ข Light โ€” flash the message out of your camera's torch, exactly the way a signal lamp works. Point it across a room, a field, or a valley and it is a working Morse transmitter. โ€ข Haptics โ€” feel each element at its true length. โ€ข The map โ€” watch the tree walk your message as it goes. Copy the encoded string out to share it as text. TRAIN Practice, so the map eventually stops being something you look at. โ€ข The Koch method โ€” start with two characters at full speed and earn the next one at 90% accuracy. This is the method that works. Learning slowly and speeding up later just means un-learning a rhythm. โ€ข Listen: hear a character, name it. โ€ข Key it: see a character, send it on the tree. โ€ข Per-character mastery, experience levels and daily streaks. CODEX All 62 characters โ€” 26 letters, 10 numbers, 18 punctuation marks and 8 procedural signals โ€” each with its code, its spoken rhythm (di-dah-dah-dah), where it sits in the tree, and how well you know it. BUILT PROPERLY โ€ข Real PARIS-standard timing, adjustable from 5 to 30 wpm. โ€ข Farnsworth spacing: keep characters crisp while the gaps stretch. โ€ข A true gated sidetone oscillator with ramped edges, not clicky samples โ€” tune it from 300 to 1000 Hz. โ€ข Core Haptics, so a dash feels three times as long as a dot. โ€ข Mixes with your music instead of silencing it. โ€ข VoiceOver support, including a live spoken description of your path through the tree. Reduce Motion respected. NO ACCOUNT. NO INTERNET. NO DATA. There is no networking in this app at all. No sign-up, no ads, no analytics, no tracking, no third-party code. Your settings and progress live on your device and go nowhere. It works the same in a basement, on a plane, or off-grid โ€” which, given the subject, felt like the point. Whether you are studying for an amateur radio licence, learning CW for the love of it, or you just want to know what the flashing light in the film actually said โ€” start with the map.

Screenshots

HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal4 screens
Morse Code4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Morse Code at none against HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal's shown. HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

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

Scorecard2 real differences ยท 6 level
HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal versus Morse Code: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHAM Radio Logbook, QSO JournalMorse Code
PriceFreeFree
Positive reviews87.5% of reviewsโ€”
Update frequencyEvery 2 daysโ€”
AdsYesNo โ€” better
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationAd-supportedโ€”
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 โ€” better17.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size23 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperVasilii DmitrievMaged Mohamed

In-app purchases

None

HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal

No in-app purchases

None

Morse Code

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal free?
HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Morse Code free?
Morse Code is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal or Morse Code have ads?
HAM Radio Logbook, QSO Journal shows ads; Morse Code does not.

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