Comparison

LumiWave vs uPlayerLocal

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

Head to head
About

LumiWave

Features
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LumiWave is a music player that lets you see your music, no matter where it comes from. β–  One playlist across every source Files on iCloud Drive, Google Drive and other cloud services, local audio on your iPhone, and Apple Music (including tracks in your library imported from CDs) β€” LumiWave brings them together into a single playlist built around your mood, not around where each track came from. β–  Visualizers that react to sound The playback screen is more than artwork and a play button. Five visualizers move in real time with your music: - CG: reactive particles and waveforms - Bottle: liquid fills as playback progresses - Creature: little creatures gather when you tap - Slide: your chosen photos or playlist artwork slowly pan and zoom - Aquarium: a school of fish swims to the music and gathers when you tap to drop food Pinch out for full-screen mode: nothing but the visualizer and minimal controls, so you can sink into the music. For late-night listening, focus sessions, or just changing the mood of a room. β–  Honest about audio The more striking the visuals, the more the sound has to be trustworthy. LumiWave treats the audio path with care. - Supports WAV, AIFF, FLAC, ALAC, AAC and MP3 (up to 192kHz / 24-bit) - Plays imported files at their original quality - Lossless and Hi-Res tracks are clearly badged, with format, sample rate and bit depth shown - Playback comes first: under load, rendering quality drops automatically to protect the sound β–  Privacy No account, no servers. Imported audio, playlists, photos and settings stay on your device, and audio analysis runs locally. Nothing is collected. β–  Visualizer Pro (one-time purchase) All playback features, the CG and Slide visualizers, playlists and quality display are free. A one-time Pro purchase β€” not a subscription β€” unlocks the Bottle, Creature and Aquarium visualizers and any Pro features added later. You can preview the Pro visualizers for free before buying. Music, set free.

About

uPlayerLocal

Features
Read full description

uPlayer is a simple, fast local music player for your iPhone. It plays the music you already have on your device β€” no account, no cloud, no ads. Everything runs offline and stays on your iPhone. The interface is split into two areas: playback controls on top, and your song list below. Tap a song to start playing and keep your library one touch away. Key features Play your own music. Import MP3 and FLAC files with the + button in the top-right corner. Select multiple files at once β€” title, artist, and duration are read automatically. Full playback controls. Play or pause with the large green button, skip to the previous or next track, and scrub the progress bar to jump anywhere in a song. Shuffle for a change of pace, and cycle loop modes between off, single-song, and full-list. Manage your playlist your way. Use Edit/Manage to delete songs or drag to reorder them. Long-press any song to enter edit mode and drag to adjust its position. Swipe left on a song t delete it or rename its title and artist. Background playback. uPlayer keeps playing when you switch to another app or lock your screen. From the lock screen or Control Center you can play/pause, skip tracks, scrub progress, and toggle shuffle and loop β€” and the app stays perfectly in sync. Settings that remember. Shuffle, loop mode, and song order are saved automatically, so your listening setup is ready the moment you open the app.

Screenshots

LumiWave4 screens
uPlayerLocal3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: uPlayerLocal at none against LumiWave's 1. LumiWave's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. LumiWave sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. uPlayerLocal asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

LumiWave ships an update every 4 days, uPlayerLocal every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on October 8, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences Β· 4 level
LumiWave versus uPlayerLocal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLumiWaveuPlayerLocal
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 4 days β€” betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo β€” better
DevicesiPhone, iPad β€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details β€” not scored
Size28 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPAOSystem晓锐 龚

In-app purchases

1 purchases

LumiWave

One-time1
  • Visualizer Pro$4.99
None

uPlayerLocal

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is LumiWave free?
LumiWave is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is uPlayerLocal free?
uPlayerLocal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do LumiWave or uPlayerLocal have ads?
Neither LumiWave nor uPlayerLocal shows ads.
Which is updated more often, LumiWave or uPlayerLocal?
LumiWave ships an update every 4 days, and uPlayerLocal every 2 weeks. Most recently, LumiWave was updated on October 8, 2026 and uPlayerLocal on October 8, 2026.

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