You can find train times, check out the various seat classes (like first, second, and business), and see the number of tickets available for a given train. One of the exceptions is China Trains, which is both useful and foreigner-friendly. There are quite a few apps for Chinese trains, but many won’t let you register without a local phone number or ID card. The app is fairly limited in features (you can’t book tickets, for example) but is still a useful tool for travelers in places where other, more general services aren’t up to the job.
