Do you care about Android weather apps?

By Joe Maring
published

Appy Weather Light Theme Greycubes
Appy Weather Light Theme Greycubes (Image credit: Ara Wagoner / Android Central)

If you're a weather nerd, yesterday was likely a frustrating day for you. Apple announced that it was purchasing the popular weather service Dark Sky, and as a result of this, the company's Android app is officially no more.

This resulted in a lot of commotion and chatter on Twitter, along with people on a new hunt to find a replacement for their daily weather info. Going a step further, it also started a conversation about weather apps in general and why some people get so excited about them.

One such conversation began in the AC forums, with it going as follows:

When it comes to quality of the forcast it is the weather model they are using that counts. The apps are only cosmetic display for a weather model. Best on the models are metoffice UK or US Apps only use weather data open for all

kjellf

Yeah, pretty much and usually the source of the info has their own app. But hey, people like the different visuals.

Bla1ze

I think there is a little bit of variation with all weather apps. Personally, I change weather apps a couple of times with each phone I get. I find that some are more accurate than others, too.

Morty2264

I do agree, most weather apps are the same, they get their weather information from the same sources. the only difference is way you access the weather information and the look. the weather app I use is because of the widgets ability to have transparent backgrounds. when I first started using it years ago, it was the only one I could find that had the transparent ability.

me just saying

What about you? Do you care about Android weather apps?

Join the conversation in the forums!

Joe Maring
Joe Maring

Joe Maring was a Senior Editor for Android Central between 2017 and 2021. You can reach him on Twitter at @JoeMaring1.

7 Comments
  • Yes I care. I use AccuWeather and it's a fast way to get forecasts and current conditions for various locations and nice for travel or if you have another house. I also like getting the notifications if there is an alert issued for the locations I care about.
  • Same here, and I mostly like the Minute Cast that gives you a pretty accurate time of when precipitation is going to start. It's useful for me because I often drive a classic car during the summer, and rain is something I'd prefer to avoid, lol. Hourly temperature comes in handy when things hover around the freezing point, though I have not been driving much lately.
  • My usage of this type of apps is rather minimal. I usually ask Assistant what is going on outside...
  • I need a *decent* app with a widget that doesn't disgust me, that's it. I'm British, so it isn't really that important to me. If I lived somewhere like the Floridian or Haitian coast I'd take it more seriously.
  • Surely there must be some widgets that are not terrible for you. Don't most phones have a variety? I have eight stock weather widgets ranging from a 1x1 (single icon size) to the artfully done 5x2 flip clock that includes current weather conditions at a glance.
  • I think there is a reason why weather apps are among the most popular on IOS or Android. The sheer amount of them and the customization alone is where it's at. Obviously, accuracy in its reporting and maps are paramount. A widget that looks good and actually works. Something that doesn't eat my battery. That works for me. I'm using 2 apps. Weather Live and The Weather Channel. Great stuff from both.
  • Damn right I do and I'm not happy about Crapple acquiring Dark Sky!
    Weatherbug Elite will be my only weather app going forward because all of the others suck.