Good but room for improvement
This app and HM6000 box is much better than the horrible plastic standard Hornby controllers. The app has good response, no lag and generally feels good. However, the sounds could be better and as its an app, they could be customised to an exact loco as a HST sounds way different than a diesel railcar, and is possible because Hornby has the sounds recorded for their DCC sound locos and chips. They also appear to be on the upcoming HM7000 DCC version so we know hornby are yet again trying to squeeze more money out of us. The sounds also jump so when you go from idle to half speed the sound suddenly changes which is a bit annoying. It is a good app and I do recommend it but there is a bit of room for improvement. Also it would be great if you could Programm it like wait 5 sec then speed up by 20% or something like that and would be relatively easy to do as it would be entirely software based. this would make the app much more intuitive. I hope they improve this in the future but with the last update being nearly a year ago and their new focus on HM7000 I doubt it.
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Trackbuilder broken
Have been loving this app, but since the latest update, when I try to edit my track, the app (both on my iPad & iPhone) throws a wobbler and fills the screen with spurious pieces of track all over the screen. Please sort.
Excellent fun but a bit unintuitive
It’s great fun to control your train-set with your phone but I found it a little unintuitive to set up. BLE worked well but, although I could ‘provision’ it, I couldn’t get Mesh to connect until I discovered that you need to go back to the settings page, open ’Device Connectivity’ and connect to the unit again. This should bring up an iOS popup as shown in the QuickStart guide. Not sure I understand what the advantage is over BLE though.
It would also be useful if it could run in the background on a phone. As it stands the moment you do something else, the trains stop.
Lastly, the app could do with some tweaking to display better on iPhone 12 and 13s with a notch.
It would also be useful if it could run in the background on a phone. As it stands the moment you do something else, the trains stop.
Lastly, the app could do with some tweaking to display better on iPhone 12 and 13s with a notch.
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Good App
This is an easy app to use and a great step in analogue control.Would like more sounds like station background noise and whistles. Good start by Hornby, but would like to see manufacturing return to UK and not made in China.
Unable to double head
This controller is ok. An upgrade on the sound functions would be good as the running sounds jump. Ie Iddle, then suddenly slow speed then high speed.
Also I recently purchased both Hornby GBRf Class 20’s which in real life run together. Every time I’ve tried to double head a train with them, the track short circuits. Come on Hornby sort this out please 🤷♂️
Also I recently purchased both Hornby GBRf Class 20’s which in real life run together. Every time I’ve tried to double head a train with them, the track short circuits. Come on Hornby sort this out please 🤷♂️
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Very good
This is excellent, though I actually think the app works better on a phone, the size is just much more manageable. Well done Hornby! Keep it up, please continue to develop it. Lots of great ideas have already begun to be suggested, such as simple routines, better sound syncing, etc. Oh, and also, well done for collecting ZERO personal data. If only more companies would follow this lead...
UPDATE
You can use a lower 12V adapter from a BT hub for the hm6000, but you need the full 15v version for the hm6010, or it’s not strong enough to throw the points. I’d guess that if you only wanted it for signals it would be fine.
UPDATE
You can use a lower 12V adapter from a BT hub for the hm6000, but you need the full 15v version for the hm6010, or it’s not strong enough to throw the points. I’d guess that if you only wanted it for signals it would be fine.
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Very good.
This new controller from Hornby has been very good, the control of the trains is outstanding. I think this will be quite popular, especially in sets. I do like the Track Builder but I would love to be able to control more from it.
Loving it
This app paired with the HM6000 Bluetooth controller is a great addition to the Hornby range. For many upgrading to a DCC is too costly, complex and can mean having to start a layout all over again. This could be an inbetween rout between analogue and digital. Obviously it’s not as flexible as DCC but does offer some options a purely analogue system can’t offer. I hope Hornby will go on and develop the app and not consider it the finished item.
In the future could it be possible for small logical programs to be written, ie timer stops loop after 30 seconds blows whistle starts again etc. So that simple stop and goes could be added to the layout. I’m hoping this will be just the beginning for the HM6000 system. I really think this could bring the next generation into the hobby.
The only gripe I have is the pricing. The controller is a very reasonable £29.99 but it doesn’t come with a transformer this is available at £21.99 only £8 short of the unit. This seems to be expensive for a plug in transformer. Why not sell the whole kit as one price then you may not have opened yourself up for this slight criticism.
All in all though I would highly recommend the HM6000 I think it’s a great step in the right direction for analogue control. I can’t wait for further developments and additions..
In the future could it be possible for small logical programs to be written, ie timer stops loop after 30 seconds blows whistle starts again etc. So that simple stop and goes could be added to the layout. I’m hoping this will be just the beginning for the HM6000 system. I really think this could bring the next generation into the hobby.
The only gripe I have is the pricing. The controller is a very reasonable £29.99 but it doesn’t come with a transformer this is available at £21.99 only £8 short of the unit. This seems to be expensive for a plug in transformer. Why not sell the whole kit as one price then you may not have opened yourself up for this slight criticism.
All in all though I would highly recommend the HM6000 I think it’s a great step in the right direction for analogue control. I can’t wait for further developments and additions..
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The kids love it!
My kids have picked this up quickly and love it! Easy to pair up (they didn’t need my help) I’m delighted as the HM6000 was very fairly priced and has provided hours of fun
Chuffing marvellous
This app and the HM 6000 hardware are a monumental leap forward in model rail technology. The app is great, lots of good instructional videos for each step. But even without this, the app alone is worth having for any serious modeller for the free access to Hornby’s trackbuilder, which allows you to design a layout from scratch.
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