Jordan O'BrienAlexa is quite good at giving the weather forecast, but how accurate is it really? Well, now thanks to a newly released skill from Netatmo – users can be 100% sure that it’s completely accurate.
The Netatmo Weather Station is exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a weather station that can measure everything from the ambient temperature, humidity, air pressure, air pollution, noise level, rain and wind. By tying up with Alexa, Netatmo is now making all that information available through a simple voice command.
This isn’t the first time Netatmo has added Alexa support to one of its products. The company’s smart thermostat can already be ordered around using voice commands, but that’s hardly unique to Netatmo. Support for the Weather Station is a little more significant, however.
There is a downside to the Weather Station’s support. It’s done through a custom Alexa Skill, rather than using the standard smart home commands. That’s understandable, given Amazon hasn’t added native support for weather stations just yet – although it means users will have to remember to say ‘Alexa, ask Netatmo what the temperature is outside’, rather than saying ‘Alexa, what’s the current temperature outside?’ If the latter is said, then Alexa will simply default to a local weather forecast, which isn’t always 100% accurate.
It’s not just temperature that works either. Using the Weather Station accessories, like the Netatmo Rain Gauge or Wind Gauge, commands such as ‘Alexa, ask Netatmo how much it has been raining today’, and ‘Alexa, ask Netatmo how windy it is outside?’ are also supported.
Speaking of the launch of the Alexa integration, Fred Potter, founder and CEO of Netatmo, notes: “Our customers can now benefit from the convenience of using Amazon Alexa voice-control to improve their comfort at home
“Integrating Amazon Alexa demonstrates our ability to provide our customers with the most innovative technologies.”