inkPad 2 vs Cygnus Astro
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
inkPad 2
This open-source vector illustration app is designed for iPad, offering high performance for complex drawings. It supports a wide range of features including paths, text, images, and unlimited layers, with easy export options.
- High performance vector editing
- Pen tool for bezier paths
- Compound paths, masks, and groups
- Text and image placement
- Unlimited layers
- Multiple export formats (SVG, PDF, PNG, JPEG)
- Snap to grid and path edges
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Inkpad is an open-source vector illustration app. It was designed from scratch for the iPad. It supports paths, compound paths, text, images, groups, masks, gradient fills, and an unlimited number of layers. Inkpad was designed with performance in mind – it can easily handle drawings with hundreds to thousands of shapes without bogging down. Export your finished illustrations directly to your Dropbox or Files App. Features: • Very high performance. Select, scale and rotate hundreds of objects with zero lag. • Create arbitrary bezier paths with the Pen tool. • Create compound paths, masks and groups. • Create text objects. • Place photos from your albums. • Boolean operators on paths (Unite, Intersect, Exclude, Subtract Front) • Powerful scale and rotate tools. • Gradient fills with interactive editing on canvas. • Arbitrary stroke dash patterns. • Unlimited layers per drawing. • Rename, rearrange, delete, hide and lock layers. • Adjust layer transparency. • Snap to grid, points, and path edges. • Isolate the active layer for easy editing. • Email drawings as SVG, PDF, PNG and JPEG. • Send SVG, PDF, PNG, and JPEG directly to your Dropbox or Files App. If any problems, please email: iosuppor@gmail.com License: Inkpad is an Open Source Software. It is distributed under the Mozilla Public License v2.0. Many thanks to the Author and the source code you can find on the Github here: https://github.com/sprang/Inkpad
Cygnus Astro
Control your astrophotography equipment remotely from your mobile device. This app provides a touch-friendly interface to connect, monitor, and manage your N.I.N.A. software and connected gear, simplifying your setup in the field.
- Remote equipment control
- N.I.N.A. software integration
- Mobile touch interface
- Real-time exposure preview
- Open-source and free
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Cygnus Astro Get ready to do astrophotography from your mobile phone! Cygnus Astro enables astrophotographers to use a mobile touch-friendly interface to control their equipment from N.I.N.A. software. No matter if you have a laptop, or a mini PC, you can replace that complex UI with a mobile app. When in the field, you're able to connect, monitor, and control all your astrophotography equipment without worrying about a desktop interface. Turn your PC on, and forget about it! Key features: - Connect your equipment (mount, camera, electronic focuser, etc.) using a simple button - Launch and monitor your advance sequence - Perform your Three-Point Polar Alignment without having to hold your laptop - Preview your exposures in real-time - Fully open-source. This app is, and will aways be free Cygnus Astro uses N.I.N.A. PC software and the N.I.N.A. Advanced API plugin to communicate with your PC. This app is not a replacement for N.I.N.A. or your PC.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Cygnus Astro at 67% against inkPad 2's 18%. Cygnus Astro also leads on price (Free vs $2.99) and rating (4.3 vs 2.5). inkPad 2's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 15.1). On 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
Cygnus Astro is free to download; inkPad 2 costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Cygnus Astro holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 2.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 4 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 18% of inkPad 2's written reviews are positive against 67% of Cygnus Astro's.
inkPad 2 ships an update every 4 months, Cygnus Astro every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | inkPad 2 | Cygnus Astro |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 2.5 (2 ratings) | 4.3 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 17.9% of reviews | 66.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 2 | 4 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 5 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 32 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Stone Studio Co., Ltd. | Christopher Ventura |
Customer experience
inkPad 2
Cygnus Astro
In-app purchases
inkPad 2
No in-app purchases
Cygnus Astro
No in-app purchases









