[Dr_C]

This is a fascinating debate... and perhaps to keep things in perspective...

Sales of ARC PRO are far outselling the remaining stock of APB C7042. So I agree with Woodcote on that earlier point.

I disagree with Ricks earlier point that ARC PRO is only a toy level product. I find the concept of BLE connectivity to a smartphone app hugely refreshing. And if you want to go further than the Hornby app, Magic has done a great job of adding more advanced features - and we know there is more to come.

For those with detailed knowledge of how the sensors operate in the APB and the ARC pro there are some key differences.

The APB has one ID sensor and one blade sensor per lane.

The ARC PRO has one double ID sensor and a further two blade sensors - its a far more advanced configuration - but I do agree some may prefer simpler solutions.

In moving the APB from v0.085 to v1.009 the requirement for blade reading in digital was eliminated.

For the ARC PRO there is no simple firmware upgrade. There is a grey wire mod and there are differences in how the Hornby app and Magic app handle elimination of double counts.

I ran a quick calculation of max vehicle speed for the new LED-in-blade plate on the ARC PRO. Without the grey-wire-mod the max speed on ID6 for 100% reliable lap counting will be 3m/s which is about half the max speed of a standard SSD saloon car on a small rug racing oval. Removing the grey wire will be key to successful exemplification of the new approach.

The new disk decoder sounds great... but it does play into a fairly complex ecosystem... understanding the details of precisely how the sensors operate and the consequences of re-positioning of IR LEDs will be important in getting a fast enthusiast-level system running reliably.

Good luck team Scorpius!

c