HM | DCC vs Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
HM | DCC
Control your model railway system wirelessly with this app. Build your locomotive library, customize their settings, and design your dream layout with untethered control over points, signals, and turntables. Enjoy free sound profiles and upgrade existing systems.
- Wireless model railway control
- Locomotive customization
- On-the-fly setting adjustments
- Layout design tool
- Controllable points, signals, turntables
- Free locomotive sound profiles
- Bluetooth® device linking
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The official app for setting up and controlling your HM7000 range of products. HM | DCC is the new model railway control system that makes it simple to build your library of locomotives and have ultimate control over them in the palm of your hand. Customise your locomotives with images, tinker, tailor & test settings on the fly to perfect your locomotive’s running style. Design your dream layout and manoeuvre locomotives through controllable points, signals, and turntables with untethered control. Easily set up your system. Log in*, link up your Bluetooth® HM devices, power-cycle and away you go. Control your system free of wires. Complete wireless & untethered control of your layout. Upgrade previous systems without ripping out installed controllers and components. Personalise your locomotives. Fill your engine shed with your fleet of locomotives, choose the perfect photo, and programme their settings to see locomotive running styles change instantaneously. Enjoy completely FREE locomotive sound profiles. Connect your HM7000-TXS decoders to HM | DCC and relish a plethora of class locomotive sounds for download. Keep up to date with the latest releases and get more locomotive sound profiles to play with on the day of release. Design your dream layout. Use the in-built Track Builder to draw up and design the perfect layout. Then, export a list easily to know what you need to build it. Everyone’s included. Functions with OO, TT and N scale gauges. Upgrade your previous DCC products to work with HM | DCC. Upgrade “DCC ready” locomotives to HM | DCC app control with HM7000 decoders. Control locomotives fitted with non-Bluetooth® and HM7000 Bluetooth® decoders in parallel. Explore the different ways you can upgrade via the Hornby.com website. *Please note: A Hornby.com account is required for HM | DCC app use. This can be easily created from the Hornby.com website. Internet access is required for device reset, profile download, hardware updates, app updates and app login. Disclaimer: Please ensure that your device is fully compatible with both the HM | DCC app and the HM7000 range of products prior to any purchase. Devices older than 5 years may work but cannot be recommended for control. If unsure, please visit the Hornby.com website or contact Hornby Hobbies customer care.
Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO
This app consolidates 3D model searching, viewing, and slicing from major platforms into a single interface. It allows users to find, preview, organize, and prepare STL files for 3D printing, streamlining the entire workflow.
- Search multiple 3D model sites
- Full 3D preview and STL viewer
- Built-in 3D slicer with G-code export
- Save and organize models into collections
- Manage STL library
- Discover trending models and contests
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3D GO – 3D Printing, STL Viewer & Slicer 3D GO is a fast, all-in-one 3D printing app for finding, previewing, organizing, and slicing 3D models from the biggest sites in the world. Instead of jumping between five different websites, folders, and slicers, you can do everything in one place. Search across Thingiverse, Printables, MakerWorld, Cults3D, Creality Cloud, Thangs, MyMiniFactory and Sketchfab at the same time to find STL files for parts, tools, upgrades, miniatures, home décor, and just about anything else you want to 3D print. Whether you’re printing functional parts or artistic models, 3D GO makes it easy to discover the best files from the entire 3D printing community. Select models with a full 3D preview and STL viewer, so you can rotate, zoom, and inspect it before you download or slice. This helps you avoid bad files, broken geometry, and wasted filament. You can also open any STL from your device and view it instantly inside the app. When you’re ready to print, 3D GO includes a built-in 3D slicer that converts STL files into print-ready G-code. You can prepare files for PLA, PETG, ABS, TPU, and more, then export them for your printer using your normal workflow. It works great alongside Bambu Studio, PrusaSlicer, Cura, and Klipper-based setups. You can save any model from any site and organize them into custom collections. Keep folders for different printers, materials, or projects, search through your saved models, and manage even huge STL libraries without losing track of anything. 3D GO also lets you explore what’s happening across the entire 3D printing world. Browse trending 3D models, check out design contests, and discover new creators without visiting each site individually. No matter what 3D printer you use — Bambu Lab, Prusa, Creality, Anycubic, Flashforge, Ultimaker, and more — 3D GO fits right into your workflow. Key features • Search Thingiverse, Printables, MakerWorld, Cults3D, Creality Cloud, Thangs, MyMiniFactory & Sketchfab • Full 3D preview and STL viewer • Built-in 3D slicer with G-code export • Save models and create custom collections • Search and manage your STL library • View trending models and design contests • Works with all major 3D printers If you’re into 3D printing and tired of juggling multiple websites and slicer apps, 3D GO brings everything together into one clean, fast experience. Download 3D GO and make finding and preparing your next 3D print simple again. 3D GO is an independent app and is not affiliated with any of the sites or printer brands mentioned. All trademarks belong to their owners. Privacy Policy: https://3dgo.app/privacy Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO at 4.7 against HM | DCC's 3.0. Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO also leads on ratings volume (4.1K vs 6) and update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 4 months). HM | DCC's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 15.1). On price, review sentiment, ads 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. Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. HM | DCC asks for nothing beyond the download.
Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO has 4.1K ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 56% of HM | DCC's written reviews are positive against 49% of Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
HM | DCC ships an update every 4 months, Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | HM | DCC | Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.0 (6 ratings) | 4.7 (4.1K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 56.3% of reviews — better | 48.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 6 | 4.1K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 5 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 48 MB | 58 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | Hornby Hobbies Ltd | SimpleDev LLC |
Customer experience
HM | DCC
Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO
Bugs and requests
HM | DCC
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO
Reported bugs
3 issues- Login issues and errors
- Crashing and freezing on various actions
- Incompatibility with certain devices
Requested features
5 requests- Add ability to like/save models
- Improve UI and navigation
- Implement scrolling on welcome screen
- Add more advanced slicer features
- Improve compatibility with older devices
In-app purchases
HM | DCC
No in-app purchases
Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO
- 3D Printing Pro - Monthly$2.991 Month
- 3D Printing Pro - Yearly7 Days trial$29.991 Year
Questions
Is HM | DCC free?
Is Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO free?
Which has better reviews, HM | DCC or Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO?
Do HM | DCC or Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO have ads?
Which is updated more often, HM | DCC or Thingiverse Printables | 3D GO?
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