Raindar

Raindar is one of the best weather apps for mobile devices on the market. In this modern day and age, a dedicated weather radar app may seem like an extraneous download. After all, most phones come with a basic weather app built in, and a quick internet search can bring you results weather results from your area in a mere matter of seconds. But Raindar is impressive in the depth of its reporting, and that makes it a much have app for users who want more data than they'd find with just a quick Google search.

Weather radar apps accomplish a simple task, and that means they need to be quick, easy to use, and responsive. Raindar understands that, and it's some of the most elegantly designed software of its kind available for mobile devices. First off, it's incredibly lightweight. It's not going to take up much space on your phone, and you can count on it to load up on most phones or tablets in less than a few seconds. Setup is a breeze too. Raindar makes use of the GPS functionality of your phone, and that means that it will automatically center the radar map directly over your location. The default map size shows a span of around 200 to 300 miles, so you should get a pretty expansive understanding of the weather in your precise area as well as potential weather conditions over the horizon. It also uses an automated update feature that refreshes every 30 seconds, so you can always trust that you have the most up to date information. A dedicated search feature allows you to look up weather in a different area according to city, zip code, or address. That makes it especially useful for travelers who are trying to plan out a trip.

Reading a traditional weather radar map can sometimes feel like trying to translate a foreign language, but Raindar is designed to give you all the information you need with a simple glance. The default settings display weather conditions like tornados, hail, or thunderstorms using colorful icons, and a map legend ensures that you always know what these symbols mean. But you aren't stuck with that format. You have a lot of control over how your map displays. The icons can be switched on and off manually in your settings, and you can also switch between a conventional map and live satellite photography.

That being said, Raindar hasn't been updated in a few years, and it's not exactly packed with features. Instead, it's an app that takes a simple premise and executes it exceedingly well. And you can trust that it will get the job done even when updates are stalled out. That's because it draws from the reliable Weather Underground for all of its forecast information.

Pros:

• Quick, snappy, and easy to use
• Gives users a lot of control over their display settings

Cons:

• Updates are few and far between
• Offers a service you can find elsewhere easily

- Limit radar overlay resolution to speed up downloading and fix Galaxy S4 screen issue

- Added timer that will check every 30 seconds if the location has changed, and update the radar appropriately

- Bug fix considering type cast in preferences (which might fix the crash bug)

- Disabled compass