The Elevator Pitch
Imagine a weather app so well designed and so informative that you use it even when you don’t even care to know the weather forecast. That’s MeteoSwiss. Redesigned and relaunched in 2017 (by Ubique, the same agency who redesigned the awesome SBB app), this is the only app you need to understand everything to do with weather and climate in Switzerland. It can be highly personalized and customized to give you the information you need on the app home page.
Functionalities and Scenarios
There is so much available in the app and far beyond what could be detailed in a general review like this so I will concentrate on the modules I’ve configured on my home screen. There is also a wealth of notifications you can configure to let you know when storms, high winds, or other hazards are hitting various locations in Switzerland.
Weekly forecast
Beyond just giving me a simple overview of the next 6 days from my location (weather icon, high/low temperature) it is also clickable which takes you to a full country map filled with the various weather icons (sunny, partly cloudy, snow, rain, etc). Often if I see the next week filled with clouds and rain for Luzern I’ll go to the country forecast to see if there is any sun within an easy drive. In that same interface you can check out the mountain information such as the temperatures at various elevations (4000m / 3000m / 2000m) along with wind and the current snow line.
Animations
Do you want to watch the precipitation, wind, cloud or temperature changes over time across the country? Then this little module is for you. Clicking the play button gives you a slow motion animation giving you insight on when inclement weather may hit. I’ve found it to be scary-accurate.
Hazards
Full country maps show dangers related to Severe Weather, Lakes & Airport dangers, Earthquakes, Floods, Avalanches, and Forest Fires. All maps are color coated to explain the danger per area.
Health
Full country maps showing any danger signs regarding Pollen, UV, and Air Quality. As with Hazards, all maps are color coated to illustrate the danger per area.
City Forecasts
The rest of my home screen is filled with individual forecasts for various cities and towns throughout the country that I’ve selected and configured. You are shown in each little box today and tomorrow’s forecast along with any warning signs of extreme weather. Selecting an individual city takes you to another screen which details the weekly forecast, and a timeline forecast in 3 hour increments. This timeline shows sunrise/sunset, any extreme weather warnings, temperature graph, and forecast for participation. Again, I’ve found this to be scary accurate. Any warnings are detailed below in more detail and below that it will list the other weather stations nearby (which you can select to see more details/
User Experience
This app is a dream to use and so easy to customize for exactly the scenarios you have in mind. For me, I want a wealth of information available directly from the home screen or one screen deeper; extreme weather on the horizon, forecast for possible weekend getaways, and if I am bored I can just watch the animation of the wind currents for hours on end (okay, perhaps not hours bit it is soothing to watch especially around mountain valleys). This app is extremely easy to manage and should be on the mobile device of everyone who lives in Switzerland.
Price : Free
