WeatherBug
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WeatherBug for iOS has been revamped with better real-time lightning features
WeatherBug (free) has long been a top choice for people serious about weather. Yes, Yahoo Weather is beautiful and useful, but WeatherBug has always let you dig deeper into weather data. Now, Earth Networks has released an update with enhanced Spark Lightning detection. As before, you'll get a warning when lightning is less than 10 miles away, and now you can zoom out to see lighting anywhere in the world in real time. The look of the map has been improved over earlier versions, too. The company claims its Total Lightning Network is the most advanced system in the world, and it's used by NASA, the National Weather Service and the U.S. Air Force. This latest version now lets you share lightning info with others. Other changes include expansed user-submitted galleries, a cold and flu section, and additions to what are called Lifestyle Forecasts. That includes golf forecasts, outdoor nature forecasts, pollen alerts, and a national flu update. You also get hourly and 10-day forecasts, plus a variety of weather map overlays for radar, clouds, wind speed, pressure, humidity, wind chill and heat index. WeatherBug's look is still a bit busy, but now it lets you choose background colors or a background picture. There are pop-up ads that show up at the bottom of the screen. I looked around for lightning, but when I checked there was nothing going on in the U.S. There were some pretty active storms in South America, and WeatherBug displayed the lightning flashes as they happened. WeatherBug now supports 64 bit operation, and requires iOS 6.1 or later. It's a universal app and it's optimized for the iPhone 5.
Four weather apps, four radar experiences
Other than checking the temperature or the forecast, I often use the radar function of weather apps. I like seeing radar in motion, so I can guesstimate what's going to happen in the future. In the video below, I tried the radar experience in four apps: The Weather Channel, Weatherbug, Yahoo Weather and My Radar Pro. The only app you'll pay for up front is My Radar Pro at US$1.99, and I feel it's worth it. Let me know your favorite weather radar app in the comments.
WeatherBug for iPhone gets new GUI and adds features
There are many weather apps for the iPhone, but I'm a frequent user of the free WeatherBug app. The free version was recently updated to version 2.0 with a completely new GUI and added features such as automatic updating of weather data at your current location, along with pollen and UV data for the sun. The app has moved its settings inside the app itself, which is a plus compared to the way it was done before using system preferences. WeatherBug still has detailed and layered weather maps and a collection of local cameras so you can actually see the current weather, not just instrument readings. You can set multiple locations and check the weather at vacation destinations or just see if Mom is freezing in upstate New York. WeatherBug will alert you to severe weather at or near your location. I found the app to be stable and easy to use. The screens are much improved and prettier, and the app is responsive to scrolling and zooming. WeatherBug is ad-supported, but the ads are kept to a strip on the lower part of the screen. The developers also offer WeatherBug Elite for US $0.99, which is similar to the free version, but there are no ads. WeatherBug 2.0 is a 6.4 MB download and requires iOS 4.2 or later. There is also a WeatherBug app for the iPad which is free, but also has an option for an ad-free upgrade. Some screenshots of WeatherBug 2.0 are below. %Gallery-147074%
Grace Digital adds color displays on new Solo Touch, Bravado X, and Mondo WiFi radios
Can't say we had the best of times with Grace Digital's Allegro, but the dawning of a new year means the dawning of a new effort. Three efforts, in this case. Poised for an official unveiling next week at CES, the outfit's new trio of internet radios have all been upgraded with color displays. Up first is the Solo Touch, a $249.99 device with an expansive 4.3-inch touchpanel, bundled remote, Ethernet connection, RCA outputs and a headphone jack. Stepping down a notch, there's the Bravado X ($179.99), which offers a 2.7-inch color display, RCA in / out and a USB connector. Finally, the $169.99 Mondo packs a 3.5-inch color display, a full-on alarm clock (with snooze!) and a USB port of its own. The whole lot can be controlled via a free iPhone app, and they're each capable of tuning into iheartradio, Pandora, Sirius XM, WeatherBug, CBS Radio, MP3Tunes and more. Now, off to Vegas to see if those user interface quirks have been cleared up...
Dash opens platform up for third-party developers
No need worrying that as much as you'd like to change the Dash Express, you can't. Because you can, savvy? Announced today, Dash Navigation has cracked its platform open for third-party developers and simultaneously launched the industry's first dynamic API program at O'Reilly's Where 2.0 Conference. Dash is hoping that eager devs will spend time crafting DashApps, which would theoretically provide web-based content to consumers while still in the car. The outfit also took the wraps off of the first five partner-created applications, which give Express owners Coldwell Banker Home Search, myFUNAMBOL Calendar, BakTrax Radio, Trapster and MyWeatherBug buttons. Unfortunately, details beyond that were slim, but you certainly tag the read link to learn more about the aforesaid few that are already created.
NFL refs to carry Sprint devices on field for weather updates
Never mind the fact that these guys have to spend sixty-plus minutes every Sunday running up and down 100 yards of Astroturf, risking life and limb standing mere feet away from gigantic men pummeling one another for a little piece of inflated pigskin -- heading over to the sidelines to check the weather is apparently too much trouble for the men in the black and white stripes. Sprint has announced an agreement with the NFL to offer "wireless devices" of some sort to refs preloaded with a WeatherBug-driven alert app to warn them of incoming severe weather during games. You know, tornadoes and the like -- things that are liable to get a game postponed or canceled. That's cool and all, but if they get a Motorola Q9c before we do, we're gonna lose it.
Widget Watch: WeatherBug
Here's a great weather Dashboard widget that makes Apple's Weather look downright anemic. WeatherBug Local Weather by WeatherBug displays your local weather, live radar shots, current news and even alerts and warnings for your area.Click the "Animate" button at the bottom of the screen and you're brought to a web page with the radar animation. It would be cool if this worked within the widget, but it's hardly a deal breaker. Check it out.
