Comparison

MCU BLE Terminal vs AFK

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

Head to head
About

MCU BLE Terminal

Features
Read full description

McuBleTerminal is a Bluetooth Low Energy terminal app designed for ESP32 development. It allows you to view serial output and send text commands wirelessly from your smartphone. No USB cable, no drivers, no WiFi and no cloud services required. The app works together with the McuBleTerminal ESP32 library and acts like a classic serial monitor, but over BLE. Typical use cases include debugging, viewing sensor data, testing firmware behavior and interacting with ESP32 devices while they are powered in real environments. Features include a clean terminal interface, monospace font, dark and light mode support, multilingual UI and a built in demo mode that works without any hardware. This app is intended as a development and debugging tool. ESP32 library and examples are available on GitHub: https://github.com/dominik-ewers-solutions/MCU_BLE_Terminal

About

AFK

Features
Read full description

Move your AI coding sessions from desktop to phone without SSH, VPNs, or exposing your computer to the internet. AFK streams your live terminal session to your iPhone over outbound WebSockets, so it works in most restricted networks where inbound SSH or remote desktop setups are blocked. Use Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, or any terminal command on your computer. When you step away, AFK keeps the same session in your pocket so you can monitor progress, approve prompts, type replies, and steer the work from anywhere. Try AFK instantly with the free live demo, or connect your own machine in minutes. WHY DEVELOPERS USE AFK AI coding agents can work for hours, but they still need you for tool approvals, error decisions, direction changes, and quick replies. AFK keeps your agent moving without keeping you at your desk. - Start work on desktop and continue from iPhone - Watch terminal sessions live with GPU-accelerated rendering - Approve prompts and tool calls remotely - Type commands or use precision voice input - Get mobile alerts when your agent needs attention - Works without SSH, VPNs, port forwarding, or remote desktop HOW IT WORKS 1. Install the AFK CLI on your machine 2. Run your agent or terminal command with AFK 3. Open the iPhone app 4. Monitor, approve, and respond from anywhere AFK uses outbound WebSocket streaming, so your computer does not need to accept inbound connections. No router changes. No public ports. No messy network setup. BUILT FOR AI CODING WORKFLOWS AFK works with any terminal command, and is designed for modern AI-assisted development: - Claude Code - OpenAI Codex - Gemini CLI - OpenCode - Custom scripts and long-running CLI tools REAL-TIME TERMINAL STREAMING - Low-latency WebSocket streaming - GPU-accelerated terminal rendering with Metal - Full bidirectional I/O - Automatic terminal resize - Push notifications for agent activity - Smooth terminal experience on mobile SECURE BY DESIGN Your terminal data is end-to-end encrypted. The backend acts as a relay and cannot read your session contents. - End-to-end encrypted terminal streams - X25519 key exchange - AES-256-GCM encryption - TLS 1.3 for transport security FREE TO START Free: - 2 concurrent sessions - End-to-end encryption - 20 voice commands per month Pro: - Unlimited sessions - Unlimited precision voice input - Push notifications when your AI agent needs input - Priority support Start with a 7-day free Pro trial. Refer 3 friends to earn a free month of Pro. AFK is built by Thaker Innovations. Website: https://getafk.dev Support: https://getafk.dev/support Privacy Policy: https://getafk.dev/legal/privacy Terms of Service: https://getafk.dev/legal/terms

Screenshots

MCU BLE Terminal2 screens
AFK4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: AFK at fortnightly against MCU BLE Terminal's monthly. MCU BLE Terminal's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads and in-app purchases 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MCU BLE Terminal ships an update monthly, AFK fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 10, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 3 level
MCU BLE Terminal versus AFK: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMCU BLE TerminalAFK
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyMonthlyFortnightly โ€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.0 โ€” better17.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size19 MB36 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDominik EwersTapan Thaker

In-app purchases

None

MCU BLE Terminal

No in-app purchases

None

AFK

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is MCU BLE Terminal free?
MCU BLE Terminal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is AFK free?
AFK is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do MCU BLE Terminal or AFK have ads?
Neither MCU BLE Terminal nor AFK shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MCU BLE Terminal or AFK?
MCU BLE Terminal ships an update monthly, and AFK fortnightly. Most recently, MCU BLE Terminal was updated on October 10, 2026 and AFK on October 25, 2026.

Other comparisons