Forecast.io has quickly become my go to weather source. Ever since a friend pointed me to the site I refuse to use any other source for the latest outlook. While it’s very iOS-esque and only has an official app for Apple products, the simple clean look works quite well. The interface is not the most user friendly (read: intuitive) thing in the world, but once you get used to it there is no problem. Check the gallery down below to see for yourself.
As far as sources go, Forecast.io pulls from quite a few. It pulls from NOAA, NIMROD, the US Navy and plenty of other sources. All that data gets aggregated and makes for the most accurate forecast I’ve seen so far. For a complete list of sources hit their Data Sources page.
One of the really great things Forecast.io does is allow developers to use their APIs. Since they lack an in house Android app, this allows developers to make them for us. For such folks, the JSON interface should be something familiar and simple to build with. It should be noted they charge after the first 1000 API calls per day. The pricing isn’t horrible, at $1 per 10,000 calls, but it should be noted. They also require a brand badge showing the app is powered by Forecast.io. For more details, visit their Forecast for Developers page.
I tried a bunch of different apps on both my HTC One M8 and my iPad air just to see what they looked like and how they felt. To be honest, none of the third party apps did it for me. The Dark Sky app is the official app but as noted there aren’t any official apps for Android. As disappointing as this may be, there is a workaround. Open Chrome and head over to Forecast.io in the browser. Hit the overflow menu and save it to the home Screen. The web app runs as well as any native apps I have installed on my M8. You’ll get the simple mobile interface for free. If that’s not your cup of tea, check out the apps listed on their Powered by Forecast page.
Thanks to Ken for the tip!