Comparison

QSO Central vs Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar

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

Head to head
About

QSO Central

Prepare for amateur radio licensing exams with comprehensive study tools and practice tests. Access essential station utilities, reference materials, and live data features, all designed to work offline for maximum accessibility.

Highlights
  • Offline exam preparation with official question pools
  • Realistic timed practice exams with instant grading
  • Station toolkit for band plans, antenna, and electrical calculations
  • Grid square tools and Morse code trainer
  • Logbook with ADIF/CSV export
  • Live data for callsign lookup and propagation
Features
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QSO Central is the all-in-one companion for amateur radio operators and anyone studying for their license. No account, no sign-in, no ads, no tracking. The study and station tools work completely offline — perfect for the field, a contest site, or a basement shack with no signal. A set of optional Live Data features add real-time information when you're connected. LICENSE EXAM PREP (offline) • Full official NCVEC question pools: Technician, General, and Amateur Extra • Flashcards, browsable/searchable questions, and a realistic timed practice exam with instant grading • Missed-question review and per-subelement progress, saved on your device • Diagrams included for the questions that need them STATION TOOLKIT (offline) • U.S. Band Plan — slide across any band to see mode, common use, and exactly what your license class may transmit, color-coded by privilege • Antenna calculators — dipole, vertical, wavelength, plus SWR, coax loss, feedline impedance, and balun • Electrical calculators — Ohm's Law (voltage/current/resistance/power) and battery runtime & capacity • Grid Square tools — your Maidenhead grid from GPS, plus distance and bearing between grids on a map • Morse Code trainer — characters, random groups, callsign practice, and head-copy with adjustable speed and Farnsworth timing • Logbook — log your contacts and export standard ADIF and CSV files • Contest clock — a live UTC clock over a reference of major recurring contests • Emergency Comms — ICS forms reference, your own frequency plans, local repeaters, and contacts REFERENCE LIBRARY (offline) • The full text of 47 CFR Part 97 (the FCC amateur rules), plus plain-language summaries of common topics — Q-codes, phonetics, repeaters, operating procedures, and more • Everything searchable, everything offline LIVE DATA (optional, needs internet) • Callsign Lookup — U.S. lookups via the FCC database, no account required; optionally add your own QRZ.com or HamQTH account for worldwide results • Propagation — current solar indices and day/night band conditions • Repeater Directory — find and sort nearby repeaters with offset, tone, mode, and a map • On the Air — a live feed of current POTA (Parks on the Air). Each Live Data screen credits its public source and caches its last result so you can still see it offline. PRIVACY BY DESIGN QSO Central runs no servers and has no accounts, ads, trackers, or analytics. Your data stays on your device. Your location is used only on your device — to show your grid and sort nearby repeaters — and is never transmitted; you can skip it and type your grid by hand. The Live Data features send only what's needed to answer your request (for example, the callsign you look up) directly to the public service that provides it. Set your license class and home grid once in Settings, and the whole app tailors itself to you.

About

Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar

Features
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Satellite turns the night sky into a live, interactive map. Watch the International Space Station, Starlink trains, Hubble and thousands of satellites orbit Earth in real time on a beautiful 3D globe — then step outside and actually spot them. Powered by a first-party SGP4 orbital engine and live public data from CelesTrak, NOAA and The Space Devs, Satellite computes exactly what's visible from where you are, the moment it happens. A REAL-TIME 3D GLOBE • A photoreal Earth (NASA Blue Marble) with day/night, drifting clouds and city lights • Every tracked satellite orbiting live at its true position • Tap any satellite to see a 3D model, its orbit path and live telemetry • Multiple globe styles: Realistic, Night Lights, Vector, Minimal — with cloud, ring and orbit layers • Pinch to zoom, drag to spin around the planet NEVER MISS A PASS • Personalised visible-pass predictions for your exact location • Rise/peak/set times, direction, max elevation and brightness • Tiered reminders — a heads-up 30 minutes before, then "go outside" minutes before the pass • Add any pass or launch to your Calendar with one tap • Knows when a satellite is sunlit vs. in Earth's shadow PLAN TONIGHT — IS IT WORTH GOING OUTSIDE? • A Stargazing Score that blends darkness, the Moon and cloud cover into one number • Live darkness countdown — astronomical night start/end, sunset and sunrise • Moon phase, illumination and rise/set times, all computed on-device • Tonight's visible passes and an aurora heads-up when the Kp index spikes LIGHT POLLUTION & DARK-SKY MAP • See the Bortle class, sky brightness (SQM) and limiting magnitude for any spot • Built on a bundled VIIRS-derived world atlas — works fully offline • Pan the map to scout darker skies near you before you drive out SUN & MOON TRANSITS (astrophotographers, this one's for you) • Find when the ISS or any satellite crosses the face of the Sun or Moon from your location • Precise timing and angular separation, computed entirely on-device SKY EVENTS CALENDAR • Upcoming meteor-shower peaks, solar and lunar eclipses, and Full/New Moons • Countdowns so you can plan ahead RED NIGHT MODE • A full-app red filter that protects your dark adaptation at the eyepiece SKY VIEW (AR) • Point your phone at the sky and see satellites as 3D models, labelled, exactly where they are • Identify mode: aim the reticle at a light to find out what it is ROCKET LAUNCHES • Upcoming launches worldwide with live countdowns • Launch-pad maps and Live Activities on your Lock Screen • Track SpaceX, NASA, ULA, Arianespace, ISRO and more SPACE WEATHER & AURORA • Live planetary Kp index with a 3-day forecast and solar-wind speed • Aurora viewing chance calculated for your latitude • Beautiful charts powered by real NOAA SWPC data EXPLORE THE CATALOG • Search 300+ satellites: stations, Starlink, weather, navigation, science and the brightest objects • Notable Objects — jump straight to the ISS, Hubble, Tiangong and other icons in orbit • Find Starlink: see Starlink passes by your location or any coordinates • ISS Live: a NASA live stream plus who's currently aboard the ISS and Tiangong • Favorites and custom Collections, synced across your devices with iCloud BUILT THE RIGHT WAY • Works offline with cached data; refreshes when you're online • Widgets for your next pass and space weather • Apple Watch app and Siri Shortcuts • Your location never leaves your device Whether you're a casual stargazer hoping to catch the ISS, an astrophotographer planning a shoot, or a space enthusiast who never wants to miss a launch - Satellite is your window to everything above. Look up. • For more information, please see our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Terms of use: https://deeplyai.app/terms.html Privacy policy: https://deeplyai.app/privacy.html • Support & Contact Need help? Rate us! Got feedback? info@deeplyai.app

Screenshots

QSO Central4 screens
Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: QSO Central at none against Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar's 4. QSO Central also leads on ads (none vs shown). Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price 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. Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. QSO Central asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
QSO Central versus Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterQSO CentralSatellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 months—
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size7 MB16 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBrickhouse Technologies LLCDEEPLY AI

In-app purchases

None

QSO Central

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar

Subscriptions3
  • Satellite Tracker Premium Weekly$1.997 Days
  • Satellite Tracker Premium Monthly$5.991 Month
  • Satellite Tracker Premium Yearly$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Satellite Tracker Lifetime$39.99

Questions

Is QSO Central free?
QSO Central is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar free?
Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do QSO Central or Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar have ads?
Satellite Tracker 3D Sky Radar shows ads; QSO Central does not.

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