Comparison

nRF Toolbox vs ST BLE Sensor Classic

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

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity
  • Demonstrates BLE profiles
  • Heart Rate Monitor support
  • Glucose Monitor support
  • Cycling Speed and Cadence
  • Running Speed and Cadence
Read full description

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

About

ST BLE Sensor Classic

This app connects to ST development boards via Bluetooth Low Energy to access sensor data. It allows logging data to cloud providers and updating board firmware directly from your mobile device.

Highlights
  • Access sensor data
  • Log data to cloud providers
  • Update board firmware
  • Discover board functionalities
  • Supports motion-sensor data fusion
  • Activity recognition
  • Pedometer functionality
Features
Read full description

The ST BLE Sensor Classic application is used in conjunction with an ST development board and firmware compatible with the BlueST protocol to give you access to all the sensor data, which you can log to different cloud providers, and to update the board firmware directly from a mobile device via the Bluetooth® Low Energy protocol. After discovery ST development board, the app shows you a list of available demos and you can navigate through them to discover the functionalities of your board. Demos can be related about environmental, cloud, audio, board configuration, machine learning and and many other functionalities. Cloud side, ST BLE Sensor can communicate with Microsoft Azure IoT Central, Aws IoT and ST Asset Tracking dashboard. The application is built on top of the BlueST SDK library implementing the BlueST protocol and helps you export the data easily via Bluetooth® Low Energy. The application also supports firmware library algorithms like motion-sensor data fusion, activity recognition and pedometer functionality. Both SDK and application source code are freely available at: https://github.com/STMicroelectronics

Screenshots

nRF Toolbox4 screens
ST BLE Sensor Classic4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: nRF Toolbox at every 5 weeks against ST BLE Sensor Classic's every 6 months. nRF Toolbox also leads on rating (2.6 vs 2.3). ST BLE Sensor Classic's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.0). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

nRF Toolbox holds the better App Store score, 2.6 against 2.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 3 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

nRF Toolbox ships an update every 5 weeks, ST BLE Sensor Classic every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
nRF Toolbox versus ST BLE Sensor Classic: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameternRF ToolboxST BLE Sensor Classic
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.6 (8 ratings) — better2.3 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews22.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings8 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 6 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB71 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNordic Semiconductor ASASTMicroelectronics

Customer experience

nRF Toolbox

All ratings8 ratings
Positive37.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative62.5%
Written reviews18 reviews
Positive22.2%
Neutral16.7%
Negative61.1%

ST BLE Sensor Classic

All ratings3 ratings
Positive33.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative66.7%

In-app purchases

None

nRF Toolbox

No in-app purchases

None

ST BLE Sensor Classic

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is nRF Toolbox free?
nRF Toolbox is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ST BLE Sensor Classic free?
ST BLE Sensor Classic is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, nRF Toolbox or ST BLE Sensor Classic?
nRF Toolbox is rated higher. nRF Toolbox averages 2.6 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while ST BLE Sensor Classic averages 2.3 from 3 ratings.
Do nRF Toolbox or ST BLE Sensor Classic have ads?
Neither nRF Toolbox nor ST BLE Sensor Classic shows ads.
Which is updated more often, nRF Toolbox or ST BLE Sensor Classic?
nRF Toolbox ships an update every 5 weeks, and ST BLE Sensor Classic every 6 months. Most recently, nRF Toolbox was updated on October 6, 2026 and ST BLE Sensor Classic on October 4, 2026.

Other comparisons