Garmin VIRB vs QRControl
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Garmin VIRB
Control and manage your Garmin VIRB action cameras, including the VIRB 360. Playback, edit, and share your footage, or even live stream directly from your mobile device. Features include remote control, live viewfinder, and advanced editing tools.
- Remote camera control
- Live viewfinder
- Video editing
- 360 video playback and editing
- Live streaming
- G-Metrix data overlays
- Multi-camera control
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Connect and control all your Garmin VIRB cameras with the VIRB app, which now supports VIRB 360! Quickly playback, edit, share, and live stream** directly from your mobile device.*** Also, has playback and video editing support for Speak Plus, Dezl 785, Drive Assist 51, Dash Cam 45/55/65W, and GDR E530/E530Z/E560/S550! Features: • VIRB 360 support – Easily view and edit 360 videos, add 4K spherical Stabilization, watch footage in VR Mode and add Augmented Reality G-Metrix™ data overlays • Frame your shot – See what your camera sees with live viewfinder • Remote control – Full remote control of camera functions and settings • Browse Content – Playback recorded videos and photos • Edit Your Videos – Trim a clip, adjust playback speed, add G-Metrix™ overlays and music • Highlight Detection – Find the most interesting parts of the video quickly using highlights in editor timeline • Share Your Content – Push photos and videos to sharing services • Live Broadcast – Stream from your VIRB live to YouTube or Facebook Live • Manage Your Files – Browse and delete files on your microSD card • Multi-Camera – View, control and access up to 8 VIRB action cameras simultaneously when VIRBs are in Multi-Cam mode, or many more when connected to a wireless router. • Locate Camera – Use the app to help find your lost VIRB • HyperFrame Director Mode - Reframe 360 video content after filming using smooth camera pans, impressively wide angles, and tiny planets Camera Compatibility • App is compatible with VIRB 360, VIRB Ultra 30, Speak Plus, Dash Cam 45/55/65W, Dezl 785, GDR E530/E530Z/E560/S550, Drive Assist 51, VIRB X, VIRB XE, and VIRB Elite cameras only Visit virb.garmin.com to learn more about VIRB. * Available with VIRB 360 **Available with VIRB 360 & VIRB Ultra 30 ***Playback, editing, and live broadcast features not available on VIRB Elite.
QRControl
Control GoPro cameras with custom QR codes, even without an internet connection. Set modes, Protune, preferences, and trigger various capture types. Supports multiple QR codes and saving for sharing.
- Control GoPro cameras via QR codes
- Set video, photo, and time-lapse modes
- Configure custom Protune settings
- Adjust camera preferences
- Trigger time-delayed captures
- Enable motion detection and GPS captures
- Support for multiple QR codes
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This is an unofficial app compatible with GoPro™ Labs enabled cameras. With the launch of GoPro Labs, users can control their GoPro cameras via custom QR Codes. This utility makes that easier on a mobile device, particularly for those without reliable internet connections. QR Codes generated support: 1) setting video, photo and time-lapse camera modes on the MISSION, HERO13, HERO12, HERO11/Mini, HERO10/Bones, HERO9, HERO8, HERO7 and MAX/2 cameras. 2) setting up custom Protune configurations 3) setting camera preferences 4) triggering time delay starts, including sunset and sunrise 5) motion detection video captures 6) GPS speed triggered captures 7) support for multiple QR Codes. 8) saving QR Codes for sharing
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: QRControl at 60% against Garmin VIRB's 16%. QRControl also leads on rating (4.7 vs 1.9). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
QRControl holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 1.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 205 and 115 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 16% of Garmin VIRB's written reviews are positive against 60% of QRControl's.
Garmin VIRB ships an update monthly, QRControl every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | Garmin VIRB | QRControl |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.9 (205 ratings) | 4.7 (115 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 16.3% of reviews | 60.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 205 — better | 115 |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 152 MB | 18 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Garmin | David Newman |
Customer experience
Garmin VIRB
QRControl
User reviews
Garmin VIRB
From 205 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great app for Garmin dashcam
- 👍 Works well with dashcam
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- 🐛 Connectivity issues with dashcam
- 🐛 Unreliable and unstable
- 🐛 Doesn't work with newer iOS versions
- 🐛 Slow video transfer speeds
QRControl
From 115 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- ✨ Impressive functionality
- 💡 Opens creative possibilities
- 👍 QR-code workflow helpful
- 🚀 Game changer for multicam shoots
- 🌟 Revived bricked camera
Room to improve
- 👴 Old style, bad looking interface
- 👴 Outdated interface
- 📱 Not optimized for GoPro Max 2
- 🐛 Sends Hero 7 into spasms
- 🐛 Random photo capture
Bugs and requests
Garmin VIRB
Reported bugs
4 issues- App doesn't detect dashcam
- Can't connect to dashcam via WiFi
- Crashes when trying to view videos
- Dashcam footage not showing up in app
Requested features
4 requests- Live video preview
- Ability to view and download videos directly
- Improved video editing features
- Better compatibility with wider range of dashcams
QRControl
Reported bugs
18 issues- White screen on iOS 16.2 public beta
- Doesn't work
- White screen
- Used to work, now white screen
- Not working, white screen
Show 13 moreShow fewer
- White screen after update on iPad Pro
- No working, white screen
- Doesn't work after updates, white screen
- Stopped working after upgrade to version 1.73, white screen
- White screen at the start, nothing happens
- Scaling of text and boxes messed up
- Attach QR Command in metadata not working
- Issues when enabling Time Date and changing screens
- QR code appears to stop updating with current time
- All profiles were deleted
- Stripped Pro Tune feature
- Text in app does not display correctly with larger font
- Some generated codes do not work
Requested features
15 requests- Night Photo mode with motion/lightning trigger support
- Support for Night Photo mode with motion/lightning-style triggering
- Sync configs across multiple devices
- Add Performance Camera Mode setting
- Instruction pages or info bubbles
Show 10 moreShow fewer
- Option to format SD card with QR code
- Add zoom function
- Rearranging presets
- Create duplicate of current preset
- Update for new Hero 10 features
- Add title for settings when saving
- Make an iPhone version
- Include missing toggles from web page (lens selection, auto settings)
- Add delayed start / timed start codes
- Add missing features
In-app purchases
Garmin VIRB
No in-app purchases
QRControl
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Garmin VIRB free?
Is QRControl free?
Which has better reviews, Garmin VIRB or QRControl?
Do Garmin VIRB or QRControl have ads?
Which is updated more often, Garmin VIRB or QRControl?
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