Comparison

Deep Sky Scanner vs Planet Pointer

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

Head to head
About

Deep Sky Scanner

Features
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Point your phone at the sky and know instantly what’s worth imaging. Deep Sky Scanner turns your device into an aiming tool for the Seestar S50, scanning your field of view and ranking every galaxy, cluster, and nebula by altitude, brightness, and how well it’ll actually fit your frame. No more guessing what’s up, no star-hopping, no wasted setup time on a target that’s too big or too faint for tonight’s sky. FEATURES β€’ Live sky scan β€” see every object in view as you move your phone, tracked with full 3D orientation for steady accuracy even near the zenith β€’ Ranked target lists β€” sorted by altitude trajectory, brightness, or best overall fit for your Seestar S50 β€’ Frame-fit scoring β€” know before you start whether an object will actually fit the frame, not spill past the edges β€’ Ascending/descending badges β€” see whether a target is climbing toward better altitude or already past its peak β€’ Planning mode β€” drag the time slider to preview the sky at any hour and plan your session in advance β€’ Per-object imaging notes β€” integration-time guidance by magnitude, edge-on galaxy detection, and nearby-companion flags β€’ Full OpenNGC catalog with offline fallback β€” works even without a signal β€’ Additional catalogs are available and can be optionally selected on the settings page β€’ Supports the Seestar family of telescopes Built by a Seestar owner, for Seestar owners.

About

Planet Pointer

Features
Read full description

Planet Pointer turns your phone into a pocket sky guide. Pick one target β€” a planet, a star, a constellation, a satellite or a deep-sky object β€” and an on-screen arrow guides you until your phone is aimed right at it. Or point the camera at something you don't recognise and let the app tell you what it is. Simple, focused, and accurate. POINT AT THE SKY Choose what you want to find and follow the guide arrow. When you're locked on target, the phone confirms with a gentle vibration. The live camera view helps you line up the guide with the real sky. WHAT'S THAT? IDENTIFY MODE Point the camera at anything in the sky and tap it to identify it. A phone compass is only accurate to about 5Β°, so the app never hands you a confident answer it cannot back up: you get the most likely object with a match percentage, plus anything else near enough to be a real possibility. Ask which star that is and get an honest answer instead of a guess. WHAT YOU CAN FIND - The Sun, the Moon and all 7 planets - 33 of the brightest named stars - All 88 constellations, drawn as connect-the-dots figures over the live sky - Deep sky: nebulae, galaxies and star clusters β€” Orion, Andromeda, the Pleiades and more - Live satellites β€” including the ISS, Hubble, Starlink and more β€” tracked in real time with upcoming pass predictions ACCURATE & OFFLINE Positions are calculated on your device using a precise astronomy engine, with true-north correction from the World Magnetic Model. No internet needed for the core features. MORE TO EXPLORE - Sky Events (Pro): eclipses, meteor showers, planet conjunctions and the next ISS pass β€” tap to jump there - Time Travel (Pro): shift the sky forward or back in time to see where everything will be - Info cards with facts, figures and mythology for every body and constellation - Favourites, brightness/magnitude data, and a search you can filter to "visible now" SPEAKS YOUR LANGUAGE 13 languages built in, and 66 more available to download with Pro β€” 79 in all, with translated planet, star and constellation names. BUILT FOR STARGAZING - Night-vision red mode to protect your dark-adapted eyes - Spoken sky: hear your target and aim guidance read aloud - Choose km or miles, set your location manually, and more FREE & PRO Free, forever: the camera pointer, the Sun, the Moon and all 7 planets, identify mode for the planets, and a few famous stars, constellations, deep-sky objects and satellites to try. Planet Pointer Pro is a single one-time purchase β€” no subscription β€” that unlocks every star, constellation, deep-sky object and satellite, Time Travel, Sky Events, unlimited favourites, the full night-vision options and every language download. PRIVACY FIRST No account. No ads. No trackers. Your location and camera are used only on your device to point you at the sky β€” they're never recorded or sent anywhere. Look up. Point. Find it.

Screenshots

Deep Sky Scanner3 screens
Planet Pointer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Deep Sky Scanner at none against Planet Pointer's 1. Deep Sky Scanner also leads on device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads 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. Planet Pointer sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Deep Sky Scanner asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Deep Sky Scanner ships an update every 3 days, Planet Pointer every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Β· 4 level
Deep Sky Scanner versus Planet Pointer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDeep Sky ScannerPlanet Pointer
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 3 daysEvery 2 days β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo β€” betterYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod β€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 β€” better16.4
Further details β€” not scored
Size2 MB55 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChris EddyHaviv Tarazi

In-app purchases

None

Deep Sky Scanner

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Planet Pointer

One-time1
  • Planet Pointer Pro$4.99

Questions

Is Deep Sky Scanner free?
Deep Sky Scanner is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Planet Pointer free?
Planet Pointer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Deep Sky Scanner or Planet Pointer have ads?
Neither Deep Sky Scanner nor Planet Pointer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Deep Sky Scanner or Planet Pointer?
Deep Sky Scanner ships an update every 3 days, and Planet Pointer every 2 days. Most recently, Deep Sky Scanner was updated on October 7, 2026 and Planet Pointer on October 12, 2026.

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