Ryan Haines/Android Authority
Along with the new Pixel 9 series, Google has released its redesigned Pixel Weather app, which aims to please rain lovers and minimalists alike. Google has a penchant for making copies of pre-existing apps, especially since the older Weather app was only recently updated. However, Pixel Weather will eventually be available on older Pixel models as well.
In addition to the visual changes, the app also introduces Gemini-based summaries that reduce the plethora of weather factors and numbers to a sentence or two that anyone can understand. The idea is to make checking a forecast as easy as possible, without having to comb through numbers and symbols for several hours.
That all sounds great, but what do our readers think of the Pixel Weather app?
Yes, the frog is gone
C. Scott Brown / Android Authority
The app has been largely received positively. In a survey of over 2,600 readers, 45.4% of respondents like the look of the new app despite the changes. However, the doubters follow closely behind. 38.5% of readers dislike the app, which once again shows how polarizing app design can be. The remaining 16% of readers are “indifferent.”
The vote is a hot topic, but the comments explain why that might be. Supporters are happy with the inclusion of some metrics like the Air Quality Index (AQI), while others were won over by the “simple optics.” Still others were more reductionist: “I like it,” writes one reader.
On the other hand, those who don’t like the app seem to focus on two missing features. “Noooo, please let me keep my frog,” cries one reader, while another writes, “I demand the frog stays.” Unfortunately, Google’s favorite frog has been removed from the simplified design, as has its cute, animated, weather-related habitat.
Others lament the lack of a weather radar that would allow them to track weather conditions in real time throughout the day. “As someone who works outdoors, I simply need an easily accessible radar range. I hate the Weather Channel, but I’m forced to use it because it has the best radar I’ve ever seen,” notes one user.
My biggest criticism of the app is the lack of detailed information. Yes, it offers a lot of current and long-term forecast information, but it lacks detailed visualizations of wind, rain, and pressure. The moving widgets are also an odd choice. They don’t display as much information as the previous app’s maps and take up far too much screen space. If minimalism was the goal, these elements suggest otherwise.
This is a new app, so you can expect Google to implement updates and tweaks throughout its lifetime. It will be interesting to see what elements the company focuses on in the future.
It’s worth noting that those using Android 14 devices can also grab the APK and try the app out for themselves. I installed it on a foldable device, and the hourly and 10-day forecasts are surprisingly usable on larger displays. However, due to the issues I addressed in the previous paragraph, I don’t think I’d trade this app for my favorite weather apps anytime soon. It seems many readers feel the same way.
