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Netatmo expands iOS-friendly Weather Station with Rain Gauge
Netatmo introduced its Weather Station (US$179) to the world in 2012, providing an easy way for iPhone owners to track indoor and outdoor temperatures and air quality at their homes or offices. Since that time, a vast number of users have enjoyed the ease of use of the free iOS app and the ability to see what's going on weather-wise not only in and around their own homes, but across the world through shared data. While I've used the Netatmo Weather Station for almost two years and have been impressed with how it just chugs along sending out data, I've regretted not having the ability to know how much precipitation has fallen at my home. The company has just released a new accessory for the Weather Station -- a $79 Rain Gauge that works with the base station to add precipitation measurement to the mix. Specifications Dimensions: Funnel diameter: 5.0 in (12.7 cm), base diameter 3.5 in (8.89 cm), height 4.5 in (11.43 cm) Weight: 7.3 oz (206.95 gms) Type of rain gauge: tipping bucket Measuring range: .2 mm/hr to 900 mm/hr (.0078 inches/hr to 35.43 inches/hr) Accuracy: 1 mm/hr (.0394 inches/hr) Max. distance between base station and rain gauge: 100 m (328 feet) Power: Two AAA batteries (included) Design Highlights Netatmo's Weather Station is very stylish, with the interior base station being a sleek aluminum cylinder that does all of its work without being obtrusive. Likewise, the Rain Gauge is very attractive and would not be out of place on a patio or veranda. On the bottom of the Rain Gauge is a common tripod screw mount, which means that it can be placed atop a number of widely available mounting options. For my tests, I just put the device on the ground -- not the best location, but it was for a temporary test. The actual rain gauge is located within the body of the device under the funnel area. It uses a very common type of gauge called a "tipping bucket" -- there is a seesaw-like mechanism with two tiny buckets, one on each side of a counter. When a bucket fills with rain, it tips and empties itself while the other fills up. The back and forth motion of the mechanism is counted, which provides a highly accurate measure of just how much rain has fallen. Functionality Highlights The Rain Gauge was quite easy to add to the Netatmo Weather Station network, even without instructions (this was a pre-release unit). The process simply required pressing the top of the base station until the seldom-seen LED on the front of the unit glowed blue, at which point it restarted and added the gauge. Once the Rain Gauge was added to the system, it was just a matter of waiting for rain. Here in dry Colorado, I was concerned that I might have to wait weeks until I'd be able to send the unit back to Netatmo, but fortunately we received a nice downpour last night that started at about 6 PM and dumped rain on and off for about four hours. I own and operate a "professional" weather station, so I was able to make a comparison of the readings I got from both stations. Sure enough, both stations showed the rain starting and ending at about the same time. Looking at the hourly precipitation totals in the Netatmo app showed .06 inches in the first hour, .12 inches in the second hour, .09 inches in the third hour, and .13 inches in the fourth hour for a total of .40 inches. My other station showed .09 inches in the first hour, .15 inches in the second hour, .12 inches in the third hour, and .13 inches in the fourth hour for a total of .49 inches. Upon retrieving the Netatmo Rain Gauge this morning I found out why it didn't measure as much precipitation as the other station -- it was located near some trees that are currently budding out and the funnel had a lot of "tree debris" that was blocking it. For the most part, though, I felt that the Netatmo gauge worked well and accurately measured as much of the rain as it could. Conclusion The Rain Gauge is a welcome addition to the Netatmo Weather Station ecosystem and adds another data point to any personal weather records you may wish to keep. Especially in drier climates, knowing exactly how much precipitation you received at your location can help save water used in keeping lawns and gardens thriving, and you'll always have that information on your iPhone with the Netatmo app. While the Rain Gauge is more pricy than a standard manual rain gauge, just think of it this way -- you don't have to empty the Netatmo Rain Gauge once a day. Rating: 4 stars out of 4 stars possible
Archos previews connected home, health monitoring devices ahead of CES
Archos looks to be getting in on the New Year's resolutions a bit early. The company clearly couldn't wait for CES to spill the beans on its 2014 lineup -- at least so far as connected devices are concerned. The device maker wants to make you a part of its internet of things, previewing a slew of devices, including an activity tracker, scale, blood pressure monitor, weather station and tablet. There is, predictably, not a whole heck of a lot of information on any of the products -- in fact, the company's managed to shove mentions of all of the above into a single press release issued a little more than a week out from the big Vegas event. Archos is collectively referring to the lineup as its "connected objects" -- devices that are monitorable in real-time via Android and iOS apps. There's not much to say about the 7-inch Smart Home Tablet, at the moment. The company's positioning the Android device as a "gateway" to connected home actions, like turning on lights and recording video with a mini-cam when a motion sensor is triggered. CES will also see the debut of a new Weather Station from Archos, offering up indoor and outdoor temperature, humidity, CO2, pressure and other readings, along with national and historic levels for comparison. The company's Connected Self app, meanwhile, was built to work with a handful of new health devices. The list includes a connected scale that tracks body fat, an activity tracker that measures footsteps and burned calories and a blood pressure monitor that comes with an irregular heartbeat detector.
Netatmo Urban Weather Station tells iOS users when it's safe to brave the great outdoors (video)
We haven't seen weather stations garner the same level of clever mobile integration as other pieces of household gear -- like, say, thermostats. Netatmo wants its newly available Urban Weather Station to inject a similar dose of life into a category that some of us still associate with the thermometer by the window. The aluminum tube design certainly gives a fresh look to the WiFi-linked indoor and outdoor sensors, but the real trick is the matching iOS (and eventually Android) app. It's for more than just gauging the wisdom of biking to work: the free app tracks historical trends and shares them with fellow users in a network that Netatmo hopes will provide a better understanding of wider-scale and longer-term trends. The sensors go beyond just obvious air quality, humidity, pressure and temperature conditions as well, flagging noise levels and warning if the CO2 levels are high enough to warrant airing out the house. The $179 price for the Urban Weather Station isn't trivial, but neither is knowing just how well you can cope with your environment.
Oregon Scientific's Remote Weather Access Platform links up weather stations to your phone
Another phone-related product coming out of Oregon Scientific this year is the Remote Weather Access Platform. As the name suggests, this little box acts as a LAN bridge between Oregon Scientific home weather station sensors (via RF) and the web, thus allowing users to monitor home microclimate from a personal website or an app on their smartphones (Android or iOS). Yep, that's pretty much it, and the hub will cost you a dear $149 when it eventually hits the market.
Woodstation acts like a weather station, looks like a dead tree
Usually the intersection of woodcraft and gadgetry consists of little more than taking a piece of gear and putting it in a box. Woodstation may be no different, but at least it does its thing with some style, placing its LED display beneath the surface, allowing it to seemingly display weather data on the wood itself. And if that weren't enough, the device contains a motion sensor (it turns itself on when you enter the room) as well as date, time, and alarm functions. Available in a maple or walnut finish, this bad boy is currently available in the UK for £89.95 (about $147). And unlike the Amazon Kindling, this thing actually works.[Via Pocket-lint]
Oregon Scientific introduces solar-powered +ECO Clima Control weather station
It may not be the snazziest thing to ever leave the labs at Oregon Scientific, but it's still a new take on the average desktop weather station that Ma Earth would certainly appreciate. The sun-powered +ECO Clima Control weather station is equipped with a built-in solar panel and enables users to monitor the current temperature and humidity in up to four locations within the home and outdoors. The device relies on remote wireless sensors, and considering that it can operate for up to three months with just an eight hour charge, even folks under the clouds in Seattle can take advantage. Those interested in bringing one home can do so for $119.99, and if you're still not convinced of the value proposition here, you can look forward to two more +ECO wares this September. Tap that read link for more information on the both of those.
Oregon Scientific Crystal Weather Station brings some flair to the forecast
Oregon Scientific has been busting out some pretty slick gear lately, and its new BA900 Crystal Weather Station is no exception. The acrylic block features three laser-engraved 3-D icons that light up in color to represent sunshine, precipitation, or cloudy skies, while the radio-controlled atomic clock in the base switches to a temperature readout with just a wave of your hand. We're hearing this thing will ship in December for about $60 -- just in time for that rain icon to be rendered totally inaccurate.[Via Red Ferret]
AWS-2000p monitors weather, freaks out neighbours
So you've got your place all decorated but still think it's lacking a bit of a mad scientist vibe? Well, South Korea's Karak Electronics has got a solution for you in the form of the AWS-2000p weather station. Just hook this sucker up to your PC and you'll be able to monitor the weather outside in realtime, without having to look out your window. Out of the box the system will measure the amount of rainfall, direction of the wind, and wind velocity, although with a few modifications it looks like you could use it to harness lightening and power your house, or perhaps turn into a death ray of some sort. Availability and pricing information are a bit hard to come by, but we're guessing that they go something like: "not here" and "more than we can afford."[Via Digital World Tokyo]
