In one table
Checked on 2026-11-10 against each product’s own website and store listing. Prices change and features arrive; if something here is out of date, tell us and we will fix it.
| OSCAR | TouchOSC | Lemur | Open Stage Control | OSC/PILOT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, open source (BSD‑3). Pro is an optional subscription for public links. | Paid, one licence per platform | Paid: a subscription or a lifetime licence, bought in the app | Free, open source (GPL‑3) | Paid desktop app, free iPad companion |
| Built with | Web technologies: the interface is a web page, so it fits any screen size, runs in any browser, and can be styled with the most documented toolkit there is | A native app with its own editor and format | A native app with its own editor and format | Web technologies, with scripting | A native desktop app |
| Where you design | In a web browser, in a visual editor on the computer | In the app, on any of its platforms | In a desktop editor for Mac and Windows | In the browser, with a built-in editor and scripting | In the app, on the touchscreen itself |
| What the phone or tablet needs | Nothing: the browser it already has, iPhone, iPad or Android. Scan a QR code. A free Android app adds a kiosk mode; an iOS app follows in the next release. | The TouchOSC app, bought per device platform | The Lemur app, iPhone and iPad; Android announced for late 2026 or early 2027 | Nothing: a Chrome-based browser | The computer’s own touchscreen; an iPad app plays desktop projects |
| Sends | OSC, MIDI, and DMX over Art‑Net, sACN or a USB interface | OSC and MIDI | OSC and MIDI | OSC and MIDI | OSC and MIDI |
| Listens | Yes: controls follow OSC and MIDI coming back from the software | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Several devices on one interface | Yes: one server, any number of phones and tablets, all in sync, with editing lockable for a show | Each device runs its own copy | Each device runs its own copy | Yes, through the one server | One screen |
| Images in an interface | Drop an image into the editor and it is part of the interface, on every device | Supported through its editor | Supported through its editor | Through the editor or scripting | Supported in the app |
| Computers | Windows, macOS, Linux, Raspberry Pi; also in the Microsoft Store | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | iPhone and iPad; the editor on Mac and Windows | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS |
| Visitors on their own data, from anywhere | With OSCAR Pro, through a relay that opens nothing at the venue | No | No | No | No |
| AI assistants | Claude, Cursor and others draft an interface over MCP; they never control the show | No | No | No | No |
Who each one is for
TouchOSC is the long-standing choice for musicians who want a controller on their own phone or tablet, with a mature editor and deep MIDI options. If you are the only person touching the surface and you want it in your pocket, it is excellent. Where OSCAR differs: nothing to install on any phone, so a room full of visitors or a whole crew can open the same interface by QR code; everyone sees the same state; and the same control can drive lights over DMX as well as OSC and MIDI.
Lemur pioneered this kind of touch controller. Its original maker, Liine, discontinued it in 2022; MIDI Kinetics brought it back in early 2025 for iPhone and iPad, sold as a subscription or a lifetime licence, and keeps updating it, with Android announced. So it is not abandoned, but it is iOS-only today and paid per device. Projects made for the old version still open in the new one. OSCAR is for people who want the same idea on any device, with nothing to buy or install on it.
Open Stage Control is the closest relative: also free and open source, also a server on your computer with browsers as clients, with powerful scripting for people who like to build. OSCAR trades some of that depth for a visual editor, nineteen ready templates, DMX output, synced devices with a lock for shows, public links through a relay, and AI assistants that draft interfaces. If you enjoy writing your own logic, try both.
OSC/PILOT is a performance surface for a touchscreen computer, made by a musician for the stage, with an iPad companion that plays its projects. It is at its best when the controller is the laptop itself. OSCAR is for the other case: the computer runs the show, and any phone or tablet in the room becomes a controller.
Why OSCAR is built the way it is
Web technologies. An OSCAR interface is a web page. That is why it needs no app, why the same layout fits a phone, a tablet and a laptop screen, and why it runs on every platform at once. It also means the toolkit underneath is the best documented and most widely known there is: anyone who has touched HTML and CSS can go further than the editor, and an AI assistant can draft an interface because it already speaks that language.
One server, many clients. OSCAR runs on the computer that runs the show, and every device connects to it. That is what makes several phones and tablets share one interface and stay in step, lets you lock editing while a show runs, and keeps the phones from ever needing an address, a port or a channel.
Images without the pain. People who come from other tools tell us that getting images into a layout was the slow part. In OSCAR you drop an image into the editor, and it is part of the interface on every device that opens it.
Apps when you want them. The browser is enough, but a free Android app is on Google Play with a kiosk mode that pins one interface to a tablet behind a PIN, and the iOS app follows in the next release.
Questions people ask
Is OSCAR a free alternative to TouchOSC?
Yes. OSCAR is free and open source, designs the interface in the browser and opens it on any phone or tablet with no app. It sends OSC and MIDI like TouchOSC, and DMX as well. OSCAR Pro, the optional subscription, only adds public links, schedules and a status page.
Can I open my TouchOSC or Lemur layouts in OSCAR?
No. OSCAR has its own format, and interfaces are rebuilt in its editor. The nineteen templates cover the common desks for Resolume, QLab, TouchDesigner, lights and DAWs, and an AI assistant can draft one from a description.
Does OSCAR need an app on the phone?
No. A phone or tablet opens the interface in its browser; on your network that needs no internet. There is also a free Android app for people who prefer one, with pinning for kiosks.
Is Lemur still maintained?
Yes, under a new owner. Liine discontinued Lemur in 2022; MIDI Kinetics relaunched it in 2025 for iPhone and iPad, with a subscription or a lifetime licence, and Android announced for late 2026 or early 2027. The old Liine purchase is sold separately as Lemur Legacy.
Which one should I use for lights?
OSCAR sends DMX directly over Art‑Net, sACN or a USB DMX interface, so a phone can run fixtures with no lighting software in between. The others send OSC or MIDI, which a lighting console or software then has to translate.
Next
Download OSCAR, open a template, and compare for yourself. How it works has the details.