So Android users today said Goodbye to the Dark Sky – Hyperlocal weather app. The Dark Sky app has become very popular with users over the past 8 years, giving users alerts for impending precipitation with an intuitive interface, which is usually eerily accurate. Today Apple has acquired the developer of Dark Sky weather app . This post will cover some of the details of Apple acquiring Dark Sky Weather App. Including why Android users are now saying bye to the app.
Bye Android Dark Sky Weather App
About the Dark Sky Weather App
Dark Sky is considered one of the best weather app on iOS, and Android. The developers of Dark Sky have long made the same data source used in the iOS app available to developers. In turn, Android developers have integrated the service with various weather apps.
As part of its offerings, Dark Sky Weather App also had an API (Application Program Interface, for those who don’t know Geek Terms), that allowed others to import/integrate data provided by Dark Sky Weather App into their own applications. That also helped make Dark Sky popular.
The Announcement From Dark Sky Weather App
On Tuesday March 31, in a blog post on the Dark Sky Weather App site, they announces that “Dark Sky has joined Apple. There is no better place to accomplish these goals than at Apple. We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to reach far more people, with far more impact, than we ever could alone.”
Apple is not known for its weather app, so acquiring Dark Sky Weather app will be seen as an improvement by the Apple community.
So What About The Non-Apple Existing Products
This is where the Bye Android Dark Sky Weather App title to the post came from. As part of the annoucement Dark Sky Weather App also listed that there will be no changes for the Dark Sky app on iOS. Of course there isn’t since Apple is now your parent company, but for everyone else…..
- Android and Wear OS App
The app is now gone from the app store. If you visit the Google Play app store, it doesn’t exist anymore.
And for those who already have the app installed on Android, service will continue until July 1, 2020. That means Android users have 2 months to find their next favorite weather app.
- Website (Maps/Embeds)
For those who take information from the Dark Sky website and embed that info to their sites, they have until July 1, 2020 as well. After that time, it will be operating in support of API and iOS App users.
- API
Lastly, API users of Dark Sky Weather App, will remain until the end of 2021 at which point, the app becomes completely an exclusive of Apple. Keep in mind that if you continue to use the API, that it now falls under the Apple Privacy Policy which API users may want to take a look at.
Alternative to Dark Sky Weather App
There are many alternatives for Android users, when it comes to weather apps. One that we can recommend and that Google Play App Store has as an Editors Choice is the Windy.com – Weather Radar, Satellite and Forecast app.
Overwhelmingly the app has great reviews (4 or 5 stars) on the Google Play app store. The reviews come from over 170k users.
In addition, the developer seems to want to listen to the user base, as it responds to users comments in the app store asking how they can make things better.
Final Thoughts
Congrats to the Dark Sky Weather App developer, joining a company like Apple is sure to take things to the next level. For Android users of the app, its time to look for your new favorite weather app.
Source(s)
- Dark Sky Weather App Blog – Announcement of Joining Apple
- Google Play Store – Alternative Recommendation of Windy weather app
- Google Play Store – Screenshot of missing Dark Sky Weather App
Bye Android Dark Sky Weather App
