Comparison

xSky vs StarBook Wireless

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

Head to head
About

xSky

Explore the cosmos with a virtual telescope. Point your device at the sky to identify celestial bodies. Zoom in for detailed views and use a search function to locate specific objects.

Highlights
  • Virtual telescope functionality
  • Identify Sun, Moon, Planets, Stars, Galaxies
  • Zoom up to a million times
  • Screen lock to stop motion
  • Object search arrow
  • Soft music and sound effects
Features
Read full description

xSky is a simple to use virtual telescope app. Just look at the sky through your device. Lock the screen and zoom in to explore in more detail. Features: • Sun, Moon, Planets, Galilean Moons, Stars, Constellations and Galaxies. • Pinch the screen to zoom up to a million times. • Use lock button to stop motions. • Search arrow will help to locate any object in the sky. • Soft music and sound effects.

About

StarBook Wireless

Control your equatorial mount wirelessly from your smartphone. Navigate the stars with automatic GO-TO functionality and intuitive touch controls. Update your device's firmware and adjust screen visibility for nighttime observation.

Highlights
  • Wireless equatorial mount control
  • Automatic GO-TO celestial navigation
  • Touchscreen telescope movement
  • Star chart selection
  • Telescope alignment
  • Firmware updates
  • Nighttime screen visibility
Features
Read full description

STAR BOOK Wireless is an app for a smartphone that allows for radio controls of the equatorial mount with a Wireless Unit attached. The wireless LAN connection between the smartphone and the Wireless Unit makes you operate the equatorial mount with no cables and enables you to use celestial navigation functions, including automatic GO-TO navigation. Applicable equatorial mounts:SX2、SXD2、SXD2-PFL、SXP、SXP-PFL、SXP2、AXJ (Encoder cannot be used together)、AXD2、AXD、AP Functions Available with the App Moving the Telescope in X-Y Directions Swiping on the screen of star charts with your fingers will move the telescope in the corresponding direction. Also, fine movements are available by enlarging the screen. Zooming in or out of the screen is ready with the zoom slider. Celestial Navigations You can select celestial objects you desire to see from the lists of different celestial objects (Stars / Planets / Messier objects, NGC objects, IC objects / Comets, and so on) and introduce them into your telescope automatically. (SCOPE MODE) In this mode, swiping motions on the star chart are linked to a movement of the telescope. The telescope can be slewed in any direction freely. (CHART MODE) In this mode, you can select the celestial objects you want to introduce into your telescope from the star charts on the screen. You can choose a named celestial object seen inner the center green circle or bring a field of view of the telescope to the center of the star chart. Alignment* After introducing the target celestial object in the center, you can match the direction of the telescope's field of view to that celestial object by tapping "ALIGN" for alignment. You can view and delete alignment logs by pressing "ALIGN" a little longer. *The alignment is the work of matching the position information from the celestial coordinates stored in the app with the location of stars visible in the sky. Firmware Update You can update the firmware on your Wireless Unit with the application. Nighttime Visibility You can secure the visibility on the screen during nighttime use by changing the screen illumination to red

Screenshots

xSky4 screens
StarBook Wireless3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: xSky at 79% against StarBook Wireless's 43%. StarBook Wireless's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.0). On price, update cadence, 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

xSky ships an update every 3 months, StarBook Wireless every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
xSky versus StarBook Wireless: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterxSkyStarBook Wireless
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (80 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews79.4% of reviews — better42.9% of reviews
Number of ratings80 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size60 MB22 MB
Age rating4+9+
DeveloperOleg SurVixen Co.,Ltd.

Customer experience

xSky

All ratings75 ratings
Positive74.7%
Neutral13.3%
Negative12.0%
Written reviews155 reviews
Positive79.4%
Neutral5.2%
Negative15.5%

StarBook Wireless

Written reviews7 reviews
Positive42.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative57.1%

Bugs and requests

xSky

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • App keeps crashing
  • Location services not working/picking a country
  • App closes immediately upon opening
  • App is glitchy and moves by itself
  • Search button not working in horizontal position
Show 4 more
  • App not working on iPhone 12
  • App out of sync with reality
  • Sun located incorrectly at noon
  • Mercury in retrograde causing app to not open

Requested features

9 requests
  • Camera feature for high-quality photos
  • Ability to turn down exposure for photos
  • Facts read aloud about celestial objects
  • Traditional constellation names (e.g., Virgo, Taurus)
  • Show International Space Station or other satellites
Show 4 more
  • Option to turn off constellation lines
  • Improve search button size and usability
  • Fix search button in horizontal mode
  • More mythological graphics and information about stars

StarBook Wireless

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

xSky

No in-app purchases

None

StarBook Wireless

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is xSky free?
xSky is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is StarBook Wireless free?
StarBook Wireless is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do xSky or StarBook Wireless have ads?
Neither xSky nor StarBook Wireless shows ads.
Which is updated more often, xSky or StarBook Wireless?
xSky ships an update every 3 months, and StarBook Wireless every 2 months. Most recently, xSky was updated on October 20, 2026 and StarBook Wireless on October 27, 2026.

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