Bought a 'premium' star map app for $14.99 and it was a total bust

Miles Rodriguez · 2026-03-28T12:10:06.856164+00:00

Got the 'Stellar Guide Pro' app because the ads said it would identify any star I pointed my phone at. Tried it out in my backyard in Phoenix last month, and it kept calling Jupiter 'Saturn' and couldn't find basic stuff like the Big Dipper half the time. Wasted that cash on something my free sky chart does better. Anyone know a good, actually reliable app that doesn't cost a fortune?

river_gonzalez665mo ago

Seriously, it's just an app. You're not navigating a ship by the stars. The free one works fine anyway.

4

jason1125mo ago

That's rough, paying fifteen bucks to learn the wrong sky lmao. @grant465 is right, a bad map is worse than no map. You'd have better luck just looking up and guessing.

4

grant4655mo ago

My astronomy professor always said a bad star map teaches you the wrong sky. River_gonzalez66 has a point about free apps working, but wrong info is worse than no info. That's how you end up thinking Jupiter has rings.

3