WinTV Extend vs Swiftfin
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
WinTV Extend
Stream live TV and recorded shows from your PC to your iOS device. Watch your favorite channels and programs anywhere on your home network or the internet via Wi-Fi. Requires a compatible Hauppauge WinTV Extend or PCTV Broadway device.
- Stream live TV from PC
- Watch recorded shows from PC
- Supports Wi-Fi streaming
- Adjustable video bitrate and resolution
- Supports various TV channel types
- HD-PVR and Colossus support
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WinTV Extend enables you to stream live TV and recordings from your PC at home to your iOS device. This easy to use application lets you watch your favorite TV channels and shows across your home network or the internet using Wi-Fi. To use this application, you must have a Hauppauge WinTV Extend installed on your PC with a supported TV tuner, or a PCTV Broadway. TV connections can be roof top antennas, cable or satellite set top box, or a cable TV connection. Features - Supports iPhone, iPad and iPod. - Watch Live TV from your PC - Watch Recordings from your PC - Adjustable video bitrate and image resolution to suit your network connection - Supports Analog, ClearQAM, ATSC, DVB-T, DVB-S/S2 and DVB-C channels - Supports all common digital television codecs including MPEG-2 and H.264 video, and MPEG1, AC3, E-AC3 and HE-AAC audio. - Supports HD-PVR and Colossus, for high definition capture from set top box receivers or game consoles - Auto fullscreen when the device is rotated to landscape Supported devices: iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, running iOS 7.0 or later.
Swiftfin
Stream your video collection from a Jellyfin media server to your iOS device. Enjoy an easy-to-use interface for your media library and watch live TV if you have the necessary hardware.
- Native iOS/iPadOS video player
- Connects to Jellyfin media servers
- Stream video collection
- Easy-to-use interface
- Watch Live TV (with hardware)
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Swiftfin is a fast, native video player that works with Jellyfin, the open source free software media server. To use the app, you must have a Jellyfin server set up and running. Find out more at https://jellyfin.org With a Jellyfin server, you can: - Watch Live TV and recorded shows from your Jellyfin server (additional hardware/services required) - Stream your video to your iOS/iPadOS device - View your collection in an easy to use interface This is an official Jellyfin companion app. Thank you for using Jellyfin!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Swiftfin at 53% against WinTV Extend's 10%. Swiftfin also leads on rating (3.8 vs 1.9) and ratings volume (276 vs 27). WinTV Extend's advantage is update cadence (monthly vs every 3 months) and iOS requirement (7.0 vs 18.6). 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.
Swiftfin holds the better App Store score, 3.8 against 1.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Swiftfin has 276 ratings behind it against 27, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 10% of WinTV Extend's written reviews are positive against 53% of Swiftfin's.
WinTV Extend ships an update monthly, Swiftfin every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | WinTV Extend | Swiftfin |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.9 (27 ratings) | 3.8 (276 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 10.3% of reviews | 53.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 27 | 276 — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV |
| Requires iOS | 7.0 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 186 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hauppauge Computer Works | Anthony Lavado |
Customer experience
WinTV Extend
Swiftfin
Bugs and requests
WinTV Extend
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Swiftfin
Reported bugs
5 issues- Unable to connect to Jellyfin server after recent updates
- Sorting and filtering not working as expected
- Playback issues with certain video codecs and formats
- Home bar not disappearing during video playback
- Sync issues between iOS and tvOS versions
Requested features
5 requests- Add offline media download capability
- Implement Picture-in-Picture mode
- Introduce a shuffle option for episodes
- Integrate e-book and audiobook support
- Allow customization of media library views
In-app purchases
WinTV Extend
No in-app purchases
Swiftfin
No in-app purchases
