Topic: Accurate Weather Forecasting App for US Travel

[parkernathan]

Now that I've finally finished my PhD program (plus I'll likely start dating a nice young lady coming up, and since I have a second job), I'll likely get to do a little more traveling across the US (plus I'm also headed to Israel next year).

I'm trying to find a good, accurate weather forecasting app to throw on my iPhone to use when traveling across the US.

If I can use an existing app I already have on there, even better.

Here are the current apps I have on my iPhone:

WeatherBug (uses ENcast): I use it to check my weather station, BreezoMeter's AQ in comparison to my Davis AirLink, and for live lightning maps. I don't really use it for forecasts though since ENcast is pretty wild around my area (even though full disclaimer, I work for AEM).

Sferic Connect (also uses ENCast): I use it to check my weather station as well, but I don't really use it for forecasts for the same reason as WeatherBug.

WeatherLink: I'm not sure what forecast source it's using (I could find out). I primarily use it for AirLinks. I'm supposed to get a test WeatherLink Console now that I work for AEM, so once my Davis data starts flowing into it, I'll probably use it as a weather station app.

Tempest: I check my own Tempest station with this one. I use the forecast section in it daily since it's using data from my own Tempest. The app doesn't show other Tempest stations though, and their website is a bit clunky to use it for travel.

FishWeather: Since I have a Tempest, I get FishWeather Plus. Trying to see what all I can do with it. Still a bit overwhelmed. They gave me a free trial of Pro. There aren't any Pro stations in Arkansas though.

Baron Critical Weather: I believe their forecasts are NWS-based. I use it for my main weather alerts and for radar since Baron's radar is pretty spot-on here (I also have a Baron Threat Net subscription, considering Mobile Threat Net as well if I ever need to frequently travel to areas with weak cell coverage).

Tomorrow.IO: I plan to use this one while I'm in Israel since they're based in Israel. Not sure how accurate their forecasts are in the US.

KATV Weather: My local TV station's weather app. It uses WSI/TWC data, so should be similar to using TWC/WU/TWC Storm.

[ocala]

A PHD and a new squeeze.
Woohoo, good for you.
In my opinion you really can't go wrong with a NWS forecast. The biggest plus is that the mets making the forecast live there. As an example my local office is Jacksonville, FL. If you were to put them in the Boulder,Co office they wouldn't be as knowledgeable as the mets that live there because they know mountain weather and visa versa.

[zipzag]

The apple ios app is just as likely to be as good as the others. I find the NWS to be the worst as the server doesn't always respond to requests.

[parkernathan]

Thanks for the feedback! I don't have Apple's stock weather app installed at the moment. Dark Sky's rain alerts are wild here. It'll say it's about to stop raining, then we'll get a downpour two seconds later.

Baron Critical Weather uses NWS Forecasts I believe. I'll take it for a test drive since I already have it installed.

[parkernathan]

I found out Baron Critical Weather uses their own forecast engine in the app.

Are there any good iOS apps that use NWS Forecasts in the apps?

[cjohlandt]

Nathan, take a look at https://www.forecastadvisor.com/.  Put in a zip code and it will tell you which forecast provider had the most accurate forecasts for that location last month.  I've found that different providers are better in various regions around the country.

-Chris

[parkernathan]

Nathan, take a look at https://www.forecastadvisor.com/.  Put in a zip code and it will tell you which forecast provider had the most accurate forecasts for that location last month.  I've found that different providers are better in various regions around the country.

-Chris

Sounds good. Seems TWC/WU is showing the most accurate for my area.

I'll compare it to FishWeather BLEND since that one isn't showing up on their website.