Comparison

Celestron SkyPortal vs sunClock World Map

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

Head to head
About

Celestron SkyPortal

Explore the cosmos with a comprehensive astronomy suite. Discover stars, planets, and celestial events, and enhance your stargazing with detailed information and audio narration. Connect to compatible telescopes for automatic object location.

Highlights
  • Explore 120,000 stars and celestial objects
  • Simulate night sky past/future
  • Real-time sky synchronization
  • Control compatible WiFi telescopes
  • Animate celestial events
  • Audio narration and object descriptions
  • Night Vision mode
Features
Read full description

Celestron’s newest planetarium app is an astronomy suite that redefines how you experience the night sky. Explore the Solar System, 120,000 stars, over 200 star clusters, nebulae, galaxies, and dozens of asteroids, comets, and satellites—including the ISS. SkyPortal includes everything you need to experience the night sky in an exciting new way. When connected to a compatible Celestron WiFi telescope, you can automatically point the telescope to any object in the database and view it with great detail. Planetarium Features Simulate the night sky and plan your observing session with a custom list of tonight’s best objects based on your exact time and location. Look ahead to see when Jupiter’s Great Red Spot will be visible, animate transits, eclipses, and other celestial events. View hundreds of photos or listen to more than four hours of audio narration to enhance your stargazing experience. •Simulate the night sky from anywhere on planet Earth, up to 100 years in the past or future. •Compass Mode (with compatible devices): Hold your device up to the sky for a real-time synchronized display of celestial objects – from star names, constellations, planets, to nebulae and galaxies. •Control compatible Celestron WiFi telescopes with sophisticated mount modeling for quick and accurate go-to alignment. •Animate transits, conjunctions, eclipses, and other events with SkyPortal's Time controls. •Explore the sky with Night Vision turned on, and preserve your eyesight after dark. •Learn the history, mythology, and science of the heavens with SkyPortal's hundreds of object descriptions. •Browse hundreds of astronomical photographs and NASA spacecraft images •Access over 4 hours of audio commentary to guide you through the best celestial objects. Computerized Telescope Control Pair your device to your compatible Celestron WiFi telescope, align with Celestron’s patented SkyAlign™ technology, and you’re ready to explore! Identify objects instantly. Tap any object and your telescope automatically centers it in the eyepiece. SkyPortal’s telescope alignment incorporates advanced mount modeling, providing better pointing accuracy than other telescope systems which rely on a dedicated computer.

About

sunClock World Map

Visualize global night and day cycles on an equirectangular world map. Get sunrise, sunset, and weather data for any location. Tap the map to view specific place details.

Highlights
  • World map with night shade visualization
  • Sunrise and sunset times
  • Location-specific weather data
  • Tap to view individual location data
  • GPS location access for data
Features
Read full description

sunClock App: to see night shade on an equirectangular-projection of a world map. Additionally the app provides location data as sunrise and sunset as well as weather data. Therefore the app needs a location GPS access. The location data will not be used for any other purpose. With a tap on the map it is possible to display single location data of other places. It is possible to remove the Google advertisement by purchasing this app. Just click purchase in the Settings page.

Screenshots

Celestron SkyPortal4 screens
sunClock World Map4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Celestron SkyPortal at 3.6 against sunClock World Map's 2.2. Celestron SkyPortal also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and review sentiment (32% vs 0%). On price, ads and device support 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. sunClock World Map sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Celestron SkyPortal asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Celestron SkyPortal holds the better App Store score, 3.6 against 2.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Celestron SkyPortal has 354 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 32% of Celestron SkyPortal's written reviews are positive against 0% of sunClock World Map's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Celestron SkyPortal ships an update every 3 months, sunClock World Map every 10 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Celestron SkyPortal versus sunClock World Map: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCelestron SkyPortalsunClock World Map
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.6 (354 ratings) — better2.2 (5 ratings)
Positive reviews31.9% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings354 — better5
Update frequencyEvery 3 months — betterEvery 10 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.6 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size709 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCelestron, LLCStefan von Weihe

Customer experience

Celestron SkyPortal

All ratings354 ratings
Positive62.7%
Neutral11.9%
Negative25.4%
Written reviews188 reviews
Positive31.9%
Neutral17.0%
Negative51.1%

sunClock World Map

All ratings5 ratings
Positive20.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative80.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Bugs and requests

Celestron SkyPortal

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Fails to align telescope
  • Telescope points in wrong direction
  • Disconnects frequently
  • Doesn't show deep sky objects
  • Crashes on startup
Show 1 more
  • Incompatible with iOS 14

Requested features

7 requests
  • Add red night mode
  • Improve focus motor control
  • Integrate weather data
  • Provide RA/DEC coordinates
  • Add more celestial objects
Show 2 more
  • Improve video streaming
  • Enhance user interface

sunClock World Map

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Celestron SkyPortal

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

sunClock World Map

One-time1
  • sunClock world map$0.99

Questions

Is Celestron SkyPortal free?
Celestron SkyPortal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is sunClock World Map free?
sunClock World Map is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Celestron SkyPortal or sunClock World Map?
Celestron SkyPortal is rated higher. Celestron SkyPortal averages 3.6 out of 5 from 354 ratings, while sunClock World Map averages 2.2 from 5 ratings.
Do Celestron SkyPortal or sunClock World Map have ads?
Neither Celestron SkyPortal nor sunClock World Map shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Celestron SkyPortal or sunClock World Map?
Celestron SkyPortal ships an update every 3 months, and sunClock World Map every 10 months. Most recently, Celestron SkyPortal was updated on November 1, 2026 and sunClock World Map on November 3, 2026.

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