Lionel LionChief App for iOS ( iPhone, iPad)

[GalacticVoyager]

I have 5 LionChief plus locomotives which I like very much but the growing number of remotes make them a little clumsy to manage. 

When I discovered that Lionel has realeased an iOS appplication for iPhone and iPad I jumped on it. After the free download, I fired it up on my iPhone 6 and found the user interface quite easy to understand. 

Unfortunately the app doesn't detect any of my LionChief plus engines. Does anyone have any experience with the app? There don't applear to be any instructions other than "turn it on." Of course I have Bluetooth working on the phone, it connects to my Apple Watch. 

I am sure I am missing something. All of the locos are fairly new, i.e. less than 2 years old. I have tried a number of permutations, e.g. Starting the app first and then turning on the loco, starting the loco and then turning on the app, turning on the app with the remote control on or off. 

[GalacticVoyager]

Thanks for the recommendation to check the OGR Forum. I found a lengthy thread discussing the Universal Remote and the LionChief App

http://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/topic/lionchief-bluetooth-app

It appears that the situation is fuzzy as to whether the App will work with pre 2017 engines. After wondering for several years why there was no way to control Lionel products through an off the shelf computer, I thought iOS would make a lot of sense. I hope that is an upgrade path for the 2016 models. 

If however, only 2017 Locos will work (remember we are only about 3 weeks into 2017), I will be very disappointed. My most recent LionChief Plus investment was only back in October of 2016 and it appears that the onboard electronics may already be obsolete. It may mean that all the stock of LC+'s at dealers is now obsolete. 

I am glad that my circa 1930 steam engine still works just as well as it did 87 years ago.

[Bob Keller]

This was my interpretation from the blurb in the new catalog "Compatible with new Lionel ..." just as the new universal remote won't work with some LionChief starter set locos.

 

[GalacticVoyager]

I received a definitive answer from Lionel Support. Only the newly released Lionchief Plus Locomotives (2017 Catalog) have the blue tooth technology installed and consequently they are the only ones that can utilize the Lionchief app for iOS. This means that almost nothing the hobbyist already owns can be used with the app. To Lionel's credit, the new catalog lists quite a few blue tooth enabled sets and individual locomotives.

For what it is worth, there is an opening for a clever third party developer to offer a "blue tooth box" which responds to the blue tooth signal and converts it to the RF signal used by the varius Lionchief locos. 

Another option would be for Lionel to offer a retrofit which replaces the circuit board in a Lionchief loco with a new board that has blue tooth on board. 

[Brian Sheffield]

You can use Universal Remote with you 5 locos. It will run any 3 at one time. Very easy to use and change locos. It is a huge improvement over the 5 remotes.

 

[GalacticVoyager]

Thanks for your feedback. I am pleased to hear that the Universal Remote is working well. I had been planning to purchase one (they aren't very expensive) when I noticed the announcement about the iOS app. 

All things considered, I think that the Universal Remote and the App are good ideas. The long term value of the app is that as features are added to locos in the future, Lionel can issue a new version of the app to adapt to them and the hobbyist can simply download the new version. 

In addition to adding a Universal Remote to my collection, I will likely purchase one of the Bluetooth enabled Lionchief Plus locos when they are available. 

Now that Lionel has entered the digital era, they will need to prepare for continuous change in the on-board computer technology. I would like to see them make a generic Lionchief chasis which would accomodate the shells from past era locomotives. For example, I have restored a prewar tin plate steam engine with its great copper and brass trim but the electric motor that drives it still works the way it did in the 1930s. If I could put the shell on a Lionchief frame, I would have the best of both worlds. The flashy trim together with hill climbing and continuos speed operation.  Of course I could by one of the MTH tin plate reproductions but what's the challenge in that. 

[dougdagrump]

The universal remote will not work work with first generation LionChief locos.