Lionel iCab vs Train Throttle
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Lionel iCab
Control Lionel TMCC and LEGACY engines, accessories, and trains from your iPhone or iPod Touch. Features include extended locomotive control, speed graphs, and accessory management.
- Control TMCC and LEGACY engines
- Accessory and train operation
- Extended Legacy locomotive controls
- Speed graph with target/actual speed
- Quilling Whistle feature
- Train Builder for unified operation
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Use your Apple iPhone or iPod Touch device to operate Lionel TMCC and LEGACY engines, accessories and trains. iCab includes the most popular features from Lionel's flagship hardware-based LEGACY CAB2 remote including the Train Builder and Quilling Whistle. NOTE: Additional hardware is required to use iCab. iCab includes the operating features of the basic Lionel cab remote plus: - Extended Legacy locomotive control screens - Speed Graph with target and actual speed - Six preset official railroad speeds - Quilling Whistle - Accessory control screen - Special screen for Legacy StationSounds Diner car control - Automatically loads Engine Roster (LEGACY Command Base required) - Train Builder combines multiple locomotives, rolling stock and accessories for unified operation Also available is the Lionel LCS app for iPad. Use this companion app for easy control of layout switches and accessories. iCab app requirements: Lionel LCS WiFi (6-81325) to connect to your layout (up to 15 users can share a single LCS WiFi module). The iCab App works with the Lionel command base model Base-1L; a Legacy command base (v1.52 required) adds additional features. All available from Lionel LLC.
Train Throttle
Control your DCC model trains wirelessly from your Mac, iPhone, or iPad. Manage multiple engines, set turnouts, and toggle routes. A free trial offers core functionality, with a subscription unlocking advanced features.
- Wireless DCC train control
- Control multiple engines/consists
- Set turnouts and toggle routes
- Free trial with core features
- Full feature subscription
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Train Throttle is a fully featured client for the JMRI WiThrottle server, which allows you to control your DCC equipped model trains using your iPhone or iPad and a compatible WiThrottle server. You can control multiple engines or consists, set turnouts, toggle routes, and more. The free trial is unlimited! However, certain features are disabled, including: * Turnout control * Route control * Roster lists * Functions 13-68 * Some Customization features The use of this app is covered by Apple's EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ This app respects your privacy: https://drewhoffman.net/trainthrottle/privacy.html
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Train Throttle at 100% against Lionel iCab's 30%. Train Throttle also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.3) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 4 months). Lionel iCab's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ratings volume (19 vs 2). On price, 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
Both are free to download. Train Throttle sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per year. Lionel iCab asks for nothing beyond the download.
Train Throttle holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Lionel iCab has 19 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 30% of Lionel iCab's written reviews are positive against 100% of Train Throttle's.
Lionel iCab ships an update every 4 months, Train Throttle every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Lionel iCab | Train Throttle |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.3 (19 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 30.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 19 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 7.0 — better | 16.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 15 MB | 6 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Lionel, LLC | Drew Hoffman |
Customer experience
Lionel iCab
Train Throttle
In-app purchases
Lionel iCab
No in-app purchases
Train Throttle
- Subscribe$1.991 Year
- Tip a Coffee$3.99
- Purchase$12.99
