nRF Toolbox vs Bluetooth Smart Discover
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
nRF Toolbox
This utility app connects to various Bluetooth Low Energy accessories. It demonstrates multiple BLE profiles, including health and fitness sensors, allowing users to monitor data from devices like heart rate monitors and glucose monitors.
- Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity
- Demonstrates BLE profiles
- Heart Rate Monitor support
- Glucose Monitor support
- Cycling Speed and Cadence
- Running Speed and Cadence
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nRF Toolbox works with a wide range of Bluetooth Low Energy accessories. It contains applications demonstrating BLE profiles: Cycling Speed and Cadence, Running Speed and Cadence, Heart Rate Monitor, Blood Pressure Monitor, Health Thermometer, Glucose Monitor, Continuous Glucose Monitor, Monitoring & Diagnostic and more. The source code of this application is available on GitHub: https://github.com/nordicsemi/iOS-nRF-Toolbox
Bluetooth Smart Discover
Scan and connect to nearby Bluetooth Low Energy devices. Discover services and characteristics, then read, write, or enable notifications. View standard advertising data from BLE broadcasters.
- Scan for BLE peripherals
- Connect to BLE devices
- Discover services and characteristics
- Read/write BLE characteristics
- Enable BLE notifications
- View BLE broadcaster advertising data
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Microchip’s SmartDiscover provides the ability to scan and connect to nearby Microchip Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) peripherals and listen to BLE broadcasters. Once connected to a BLE peripheral, the user can discover all the services and characteristics that are enabled in the peripheral. It lets the user read, write or enable notifications as appropriate for the discovered characteristics. The standard advertising data types included in the advertisement data of the discovered BLE broadcasters can also be checked.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Bluetooth Smart Discover at 3.0 against nRF Toolbox's 2.6. Bluetooth Smart Discover also leads on review sentiment (50% vs 22%) and iOS requirement (8.1 vs 18.0). nRF Toolbox's advantage is update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 8 months) and ratings volume (8 vs 2). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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.
Bluetooth Smart Discover holds the better App Store score, 3.0 against 2.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 2 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 22% of nRF Toolbox's written reviews are positive against 50% of Bluetooth Smart Discover's.
nRF Toolbox ships an update every 5 weeks, Bluetooth Smart Discover every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | nRF Toolbox | Bluetooth Smart Discover |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.6 (8 ratings) | 3.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 22.2% of reviews | 50.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 8 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 8.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 9 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nordic Semiconductor ASA | Microchip Technology Inc. |
Customer experience
nRF Toolbox
Bluetooth Smart Discover
In-app purchases
nRF Toolbox
No in-app purchases
Bluetooth Smart Discover
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is nRF Toolbox free?
Is Bluetooth Smart Discover free?
Which has better reviews, nRF Toolbox or Bluetooth Smart Discover?
Do nRF Toolbox or Bluetooth Smart Discover have ads?
Which is updated more often, nRF Toolbox or Bluetooth Smart Discover?
Other comparisons
