Thankfully, gone are the days when the only way to predict the weather was to gaze up at the sky, put your palms out in front of you, and say, “I think I felt a drop of rain just there.” Or, the equally unreliable practise of gauging the day’s forecast by what kind of sunrise had occurred at its beginning.
Technology, however, has changed the way we predict the weather and greatly increased our chances of getting an accurate forecast, with mobile applications being a prime example of the benefits of such technology.
Once you have a wireless or cellular signal, then you can gain an updated weather forecast on your Android device in a matter of moments.
Below are ten of the best apps that I have come across while I was researching this particular application.
The Weather Channel
Available for: Android, iOS or Windows Phone.
The Weather Channel’s free weather app supplies users with an abundance of metrological data that ensures you know what Mother Nature has in store for you on any particular day. Interactive maps and extended ten day forecasts are just two of the great features. Social sharing is also a prominent feature on this app so that you can share your forecast with the world.
WeatherBug
Available for: Android, iOS or Windows Phone.
The free WeatherBug app provides users with a wealth of weather related information. Great features of this app include interactive maps, visual forecasts, live cameras across differing locations and also social media capabilities.
Yahoo! Weather
Available for: Android and iOS.
A recent winner of Apple’s 2013 Design Awards, this free app boasts an interface that is as equally appealing to the eye as it as informative to the mind. A detailed five day forecast and the ability of matching your current location with time and current weather conditions are two of the prominent features of this app. If truth be told, there are other apps that offer more features, but there are none that have the same level of quality user interface as the Yahoo! Weather app.
AccuWeather
Available for: Android and iOS.
Another free app, AccuWeather delivers hourly, daily and even a fifteen day forecast if needed. A recently added “MinuteCast” feature supplies hyper-local minute-by-minute forecasts for the next two hours. This app also includes warnings for approaching severe weather such as snow or high winds.
Solar
Available for: Android
This free app has a super clean and colourful design that displays the current temperature and conditions. It’s a fun app which allows you to swipe up and hold your finger on the screen to see what type of temperatures you are in store for later on in the day. It does lack some of the advanced features that can be found on other more sophisticated weather apps, like radar, severe weather warnings, and long term forecasts. All in all, while it is a decent app for gauging temperatures and conditions, it wouldn’t be suited for people who were trying to get in-depth weather forecasts.
1Weather
Available for: Android
1Weather is a free application that is very neat and tidy in design, while also being packed with great features. Whether you are looking for an hourly forecast of your local area, or a seven day extended prediction, this app delivers on all fronts. Another handy feature of this app is the dash lock integration which literally puts the weather into the lock screen of your phone for the quickest reading possible.
Arcus Weather
Available for: Android
The Arcus Weather application is unique as it taps into the same database that powers arguably the best weather app for the iPhone – the Dark Sky app. Capable of minute-by-minute and hour-by-hour forecasts, this app can also deliver weather reports to you notification tray and home screen widgets.
Weather Underground
Available for: Android and iOS.
Primarily focusing on local weather, this app is quite unique at it relies upon a network of 30,000 personal and amateur weather stations to supply its forecasts. A crowd reporting feature allows verification of reported forecasts and thus permits you to also post your own predictions.
RadarScope (Paid $9.99)
Available for: Android and iOS.
Coming in at $9.99, this app is by far the most expensive choice of my top 10. However, the price is well justified if you take into account that this app is packed to the brim with excellent features and has a very powerful radar. Primarily aimed at people who dapple in meteorology and or else who are weather enthusiasts, RadarScope provides users with NEXRAD Level 3 data from radio stations from all across the USA, Puerto Rico and Guam. While this particular app may just be a little bit OTT for someone looking to simply see if the weekend is going to be sunny or not, it’s the supreme weather gauging toll for weather fanatics.
Swackett
Available for: Android and iOS.
One of the quirkier apps available, Swackett uses a unique infographic method to make your weather forecasting experience more entertaining. Employing things called “peeps” – characters dressed in clothes that represent the local weather conditions – adds a little bit of fun to the whole process. Swackett also has a feature which shows how the upcoming weather might affect certain activities that you could be intending to pursue.
Here ends my review of the top 10 weather apps available for android users that are looking to see what Mother Nature has in store. While the weather will always remain unpredictable in a whole, applications such as the ones that I have just spoken about at least give us a fighting chance of predicting what we might be faced with in the future.
