Apple World Today fans are probably aware of my addiction to weather. I have my own weather station collecting real-time weather data 24/7/365, and I probably have more weather apps on my iPhone and iPad than any other type. A new, inexpensive, and very innovative weather station and weather camera launched on Kickstarter today from BloomSky. The product is actually two units; the SKY2 — a newer version of the existing SKY1 weather station and camera, and the STORM, a new unit that works hand in hand with the SKY2 providing wind, UV and rainfall data.
The SKY1 already has over 100,000 users worldwide, providing accurate weather data and high-definition photography (and time-lapse compilations) to iPhone and Android users. It transmits temperature, humidity, dew point, air pressure, precipitation and UV data via Wi-Fi to the BloomSky app, along with excellent images taken every 5 minutes with an ultra-wide angle camera. The SKY2 does away with the UV sensor found in the SKY1 and is given additional data — rainfall total, wind speed, wind direction and UV — from the optional STORM unit. For those who already own the SKY1, STORM will be available separately for $139.
Pricing for the SKYPRO kit with the SKY2, STORM, two solar panels, a tripod for the STORM and a mount for the SKY2 will be $299 — that’s about a quarter of the price of traditional weather stations without the HD camera. A SKYLITE kit without the STORM and its accessories will be $249.
The Kickstarter went live yesterday, July 21, 2016, and it was successfully funded in less than 24 hours. The project is currently at 215 percent of goal with 39 days to go. The SKY2 and STORM will both ship to backers in October, 2016.
Apple World Today recently received a BloomSky SKY1 for testing and we’ll have a review soon.
