Comparison

TouchCab vs StarEye

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

TouchCab

Control your DCC model railroad wirelessly from your iPhone or iPod touch. Manage locomotives, speed, functions, and switches with a user-friendly interface. Compatible with ESU, Märklin, and Lenz command stations.

Highlights
  • Wireless DCC model railroad control
  • Control locomotives and their functions
  • Manage speed and train routes
  • Operate switches and signals
  • Alphabetical listing of locomotives and accessories
  • Switchable left/right-handed operation
Features
Read full description

You have a model railroad. You have an ECoS or ECoS2 digital command station from ESU, a Central Station from Märklin or a Lenz v3.6 command station. You also have an iPhone or an iPod touch from Apple and a wireless network connected to the command station. Would you like to run your model railroad from the iPhone or iPod? You can - with TouchCab. So what is TouchCab? TouchCab is a handheld controller for your DCC (Digital Command Control) model railroad / railway / train set. With TouchCab you can follow your trains around your layout without having to worry about plugging and unplugging a wired device. You can throw switches/turnouts and set train routes as you move along. Features: - Control all the locomotives defined in the command station. - Access up to 29 functions of each locomotive. - Clear overview of the locomotive’s speed and state. - Easily change the throttle from left- to right handed operation. - Wireless network connection to the command station. - Control all switches/turnouts and signals defined in the command station. - Locomotives and accessories are listed alphabetically, regardless of their order in the command station lists. Supported DCC command stations: ECoS 50000 by ESU (v1.1.3 or higher) ECoS 2 50200 by ESU (v3.2.0 or higher) Central Station 60212 by Märklin (v2.0.4 or higher) Lenz 23151 XpressNet Interface with Lenz v3.6 command stations LZV100 or LZ100 Requirements: -Digital Model Railway with a compatible DCC Command Station - Network connection to the command station - Wireless connection to the iPhone or iPod Touch Instructions: - Tap the speed wedge in either side to speed up and slow down your trains - Change speed gradually by dragging across the speed wedge - Double-tap the halt button to halt all trains. - Swipe the function buttons sideways to access locomotive functions above F7 - Switch between left and right hand operation from the options tab - Control routes and turnouts from the turnouts tab - Control signals and other accessories from the signals tab Want to try before your buy? Try TouchCab Free - a feature limited free version that is built on the same code base as TouchCab.

About

StarEye

Easily configure and manage smart home devices with one-click setup. Access cloud storage for recordings, photos, and videos, and monitor your devices remotely. Receive instant notifications for activity, such as guest arrivals.

Highlights
  • One-click device configuration
  • Cloud storage for records, photos, and videos
  • Remote device monitoring
  • On-demand photo and video capture
  • Push notifications for activity
Read full description

Used to manage Star Eye products The main function: 1. One-click configuration, which is very easy for users to use the configuration for the first time (you can configure nearby devices in configuration mode to connect to the router at the same time); 2. The user logs in to the system, and the device supports cloud storage records, cloud storage photos, and cloud storage videos; 3. Watch the device at any time; 4. Take photos and videos of equipment scenes at any time; 5. When guests visit, they will wake up work video and push notifications.

Screenshots

TouchCab4 screens
StarEye4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: TouchCab at 77% against StarEye's 12%. TouchCab also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 10) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 11.0). StarEye's advantage is price (Free vs $9.99) and rating (3.0 vs 2.1). On ratings volume, ads and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

StarEye is free to download; TouchCab costs $9.99 up front. StarEye sells 9 one-off in-app purchases. TouchCab asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

StarEye holds the better App Store score, 3.0 against 2.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7 and 18 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 77% of TouchCab's written reviews are positive against 12% of StarEye's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

TouchCab ships an update every 2 months, StarEye fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
TouchCab versus StarEye: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTouchCabStarEye
Price$9.99Free — better
Rating2.1 (7 ratings)3.0 (18 ratings) — better
Positive reviews77.3% of reviews — better11.7% of reviews
Number of ratings718 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS8.0 — better11.0
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB158 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMike SutherlandShenzhen Xuanyuanxing Electronic Technology Co., Ltd.

Customer experience

TouchCab

All ratings7 ratings
Positive28.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative71.4%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive77.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative22.7%

StarEye

All ratings18 ratings
Positive44.4%
Neutral11.1%
Negative44.4%
Written reviews77 reviews
Positive11.7%
Neutral3.9%
Negative84.4%

In-app purchases

None

TouchCab

No in-app purchases

9 purchases

StarEye

One-time9
  • 3-day cycle storage (1 Month)$3.99
  • 7-day cycle storage (1 Month)$4.99
  • 30 day cloud storage 1 Month$5.49
Show 6 more
  • 60 day cloud storage 1 month$8.49
  • 3-day cycle storage (3 Month)2 variants$9.99
  • 7-day cycle storage (3 Month)$12.99
  • 30 day cloud storage 6 Month$20.49
  • 7-day cycle storage (6 Month)$24.99
  • 7-day cycle storage (1 Year)$49.99

Questions

Is TouchCab free?
TouchCab costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is StarEye free?
StarEye is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, TouchCab or StarEye?
StarEye is rated higher. TouchCab averages 2.1 out of 5 from 7 ratings, while StarEye averages 3.0 from 18 ratings.
Do TouchCab or StarEye have ads?
Neither TouchCab nor StarEye shows ads.
Which is updated more often, TouchCab or StarEye?
TouchCab ships an update every 2 months, and StarEye fortnightly. Most recently, TouchCab was updated on October 31, 2026 and StarEye on November 3, 2026.

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