Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsTakes patience to set up, but once up and running, works great
Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2010
Having only had this for a day, I can't really speak to longevity. But I've set it up and placed the transmitter outside and it's working like a charm.
The instructions included are pretty weird and not well done, as if it were a poor translation from another language, but it does cover everything you'd want to know about the unit.
"Synching" the two units is straightforward and relatively simple. You simply put the two AA batteries into the sensor (the unit that goes outdoors) and then within 30 seconds, place the batteries in the display unit. (It helps to have both battery covers off and your batteries handy so you can do this within the 30 second limit.)
With both batteries in place, the sensor unit sends data to the display unit and an icon shows that it's transmitting and recieving.
But don't make the mistake of thinking this is an instant read thermometer.
Once the units are up and running and communicating, it takes a LONG time for the sensor to finally settle down onto the correct temp and humidity. For me the temp dropped at about 1 degree per minute or longer. Be patient.
It was around 15 degrees when I set it outside and it took probably an hour or so for it to finally reach that temp. I set out a thermometer next to the sensor unit and the readings from the thermometer and the sensor unit was very close if not indentical. (I can't tell how accurate the humidity reading is.)
After a few hours, it arrives at the correct readings and can begin comparing them to get weather predictions based on barometric pressure and humidity changes. The little figure that displays with differing degrees of clothing according to the temp and pressure is pretty useless, at least to me. It's an amusing thing I guess, but really of no use. I mean, when it says it's 5 degrees, you can probably figure out you need to bundle up on your own. (at least I hope so!)
The atomic clock sets itself, and that too can take a long time. Be patient. It may not pick up the signal depending on your location, but for me after maybe 10 minutes, it did pick up the signal and the time and date switched from 12:00 and 1-1 to the current date and time. I have my computer clock synched by an atomic clock as well and the computer and this unit were only 1 second apart.
This is my first weather station gizmo, so I can't compare it to any of the numerous other units available, but it does what I wanted, which is to provide an outside and indoor temp, and it seems to do it well and reliably.
You're not supposed to expose the outdoor sensor to direct sunlight or precipitation, so I wondered how to place it under a shelter but without closing it off to the ambient air and without putting it in a place which would trap air and have artificially high humidity. I needed something with a cover, but which was open. I was trying to devise something along those lines when I spied an old plastic flower pot with the little dish to catch the excess water. I just placed the sensor under the upside down pot and placed the dish on top. This provides complete protection from sun, rain, and snow, while also allowing the outside air to move freely through and hopefully will result in accurate temp and humidity readings.
I can't imagine that the AA batteries will last very long sitting out in very cold weather, but we shall see. It might be practical to get rechargable AA batteries and a charger in order to keep fresh batteries in the units.
As far as range goes, I was a bit concerned as when I moved the sensor maybe 35 ft away from the other unit, the little icon that shows that it's connected disappeared and I thought the signal had dropped. I went through the entire process of taking out the batteries and reinserting them to synch up the units again. But now I see that the transmitting icon does indeed disappear from time to time. Don't assume it's lost the signal, as it usually reappears after several seconds. Of course if it disappears for several minutes, I'd assume that the signal was indeed lost. The display unit is diagonally across the house from the sensor, and it holds a good signal even though there is a lot of wiring, etc. between them, but it works fine. I was concerned as the display unit is near a large computer and two monitors and figured they might interfere, but they don't.
As I said, I've had it for less than 24 hours, but it seems like a fun toy that does what it says it will do. So far, so good.
