# Photon Player vs Crucible for Plex

The clearest difference is device support: Photon Player at 5 against Crucible for Plex's 3. Crucible for Plex's advantage is iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Photon Player sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Crucible for Plex sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly daily. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Photon Player | Crucible for Plex |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/photon-player/id6804291311/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1** | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Daily | Daily |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 37 MB | 18 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **17.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, Vision Pro** | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV |
| Age rating | 4+ | +4 |
| Developer | [Oliver Walton](https://appshunter.io/developer/6797878404) | [Midgar Oy](https://appshunter.io/developer/1484270247) |

## What reviewers say

### Photon Player

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/photon-player/id6804291311)

This app consolidates your media library from various sources like servers, cloud storage, and live TV subscriptions into a single, unified interface. Enjoy seamless playback with support for advanced features like Dolby Vision and HDR, and download content for offline viewing.

**Highlights:** Connects to Plex, Jellyfin, Emby, Photon, and Silo servers, Supports SMB, NFS, FTP, WebDAV, and UPnP shares, Live TV playback with M3U and Xtream Codes, Dolby Vision and HDR support, Offline downloads with Pro subscription, Handoff and Spotlight integration, Cross-platform compatibility (iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS)

**Features:** SharePlay, iPhone Duo support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Photon Pro Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Photon Pro Yearly | $14.99 | per year |
| Photon Pro Lifetime | $49.99 | one-time |


### Crucible for Plex

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/crucible-for-plex/id6822066419)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Crucible Pro Annual | $7.99 | per year |
| Crucible Pro Lifetime | $17.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Photon Player free?

Photon Player is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Crucible for Plex free?

Crucible for Plex is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Do Photon Player or Crucible for Plex have ads?

Neither Photon Player nor Crucible for Plex shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Photon Player or Crucible for Plex?

Photon Player ships an update daily, and Crucible for Plex daily. Most recently, Photon Player was updated on November 6, 2026 and Crucible for Plex on November 1, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*