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(More customer reviews)This product includes three weather instrument packages: anemometer/wind direction vane, temperature/humidity, and rainfall, all wirelessly linked to a large LCD display. It shows those data on the display roughly in real time (seems to update every five/seven seconds or so) and keeps track not only of maxima and minima on most of those statistics but also when they occurred... very nice. Fairly easy to set up, see my review on the National Geographic weather station on how to get their similar wind and temperature packages set up. That's the good news.
The bad news is that the system is grossly inaccurate. The wind speed data always reports wind speeds thirty to fifty percent below their actual values (when compared to a NOAA instrument package very near my house), and temperatures that vary wildly as the day goes on.
I gathered enough data on wind and temperature readings several times/day for several days to see that while the AVERAGE value of the temperature reported over the day is fairly close to the NOAA data, the standard deviation is about 250 percent that of the NOAA data, despite my locating the thermometer off the ground and in the shade. The wind speed data's always significantly under actual wind speed -- the cheaper National Geographic unit with its anemometer sitting within a few feet of the Lacrosse anemometer tracked with the NOAA data very well -- despite the fact that I actually purchased a replacement anemometer unit from Lacrosse. (Both units showed the same biases -- wind direction was correct, wind speed under-reported.) Atmospheric pressure was, however, dead on... once calibrated. So, I thought, maybe there's a calibration procedure for the wind speed?
The true insult, however, was when I contacted Lacrosse looking for some guidance... could they recommend better infrared shielding for the temperature gauge? Was there a way to calibrate and adjust the package's interpretation of the wind speed information? Their Web site warned that they were very busy this time of year so I thought I'd be a nice guy and use their email. No answer for two weeks, so I politely asked a second time; no answer. It's been four weeks and I'm still waiting.
This unit seems basically well-thought-out, save for the lack of calibration opportunities. Without that calibration, though, it's completely worthless. Save your money.
Click Here to see more reviews about: La Crosse Technology Ws-1612Al-It Professional Weather Center - Choose Finish
With its combination of outdoor sensors and a multi-function indoor display, the WS-1612CH-IT professional weather station from La Crosse Technology keeps tabs on everything the local climate dishes up. Using a wireless 915 MHz transmission with a range of up to 330 feet, the unit tracks, displays, and records data for outdoor temperature, rainfall, relative air pressure, and humidity. It also gauges wind direction, wind speed, and wind chill, as well as sounding off alarms for high-wind conditions and approaching storms. A memory feature keeps record of maximum and minimum temperature and humidity readings, and a visual diagram indicates likely weather forecasts. For added helpful reference, the monitor also displays the time, the day, and the date, as well as indicating when battery power is low. The station takes five AA batteries, which are not included, and comes with mounting hardware for the outdoor sensors.
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