AccuWeather, the internet's top global weather information company, recently announced that a new version of its “Weather for Life” app has been released for Windows Phone users. This iteration of the app, which is also available for Android and iOS platforms, includes numerous new features such as a rain forecast feature called 'MinuteCast', which is tailored to each users GPS location. The Windows Phone app is also the first AccuWeather app to take this feature to locations other than the United States, including Japan, Ireland, Canada and the UK.
"AccuWeather is a great example of the kind of rich applications that people will find in the Windows Phone Store, taking advantage of the platform's unique features” Todd Brix
MinuteCast not only tells users when it will rain, but what type of rain is going to fall and how much of it, as well as predicted start and end times for the rainfall. It also offers minute-by-minute precipitation forecasts for the next two hours using AccuWeather's trademark Super Accuracy, meaning it's the perfect app for those of us who like to be a little more spontaneous with our plans. As well as offering MinuteCast, the new app also provides weather alerts with automatic push notifications in the US, Canada, the UK and Germany, accurate current condition data, hourly forecasts for up to 72 hours and 15 day extended forecasts. It will also take advantage of the Windows Phone operating system's 'Tile' format, by including the option to display weather conditions in three different Live Tile sizes for multiple locations that peek and automatically update the forecasts on the Start screen. Users can also set the app to check their current GPS location upon startup.
Todd Brix, general manager of the Windows App Store, says that "AccuWeather is a great example of the kind of rich applications that people will find in the Windows Phone Store, taking advantage of the platform's unique features such as Live Tiles and lock screen notifications, for instant access to the latest weather information." He believes that with the addition of MinuteCast, and the apps use of the operating system's bespoke feature set, AccuWeather is “Even more useful on Windows Phone,” than it is on other platforms, “Providing the most accurate hyper-local weather results."
MinuteCast not only tells users when it will rain, but what type of rain is going to fall and how much of it, as well as predicted start and end times for the rainfall
Steven Smith, chief digital officer at AccuWeather, said the app “Offers a wide range of the most desirable weather content, including AccuWeather MinuteCast for more global locations than any similar attempt on the market." He said the company has a proven track record of successful collaboration with Microsoft, and is pleased to bring the app to the growing platform. He also adds that the app is able to use AccuWeather Photos API to populate each users lock screen with “A beautiful weather photo illustrating the location's current conditions in just a glance." Weather for Life is available now, completely free of charge from the official Windows Phone Store.
Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and musician from Kidderminster in the UK. As a resident of perhaps the wettest region of the wettest country on earth (feel free to prove me wrong), he can't wait to get his hands on MinuteCast.
