As I was looking at the initial data in the BloomSky app on my iPhone, I decided to try on my iPad.  The app installed but it wasn’t iPad native.  It has been many years since seeing an app do the 2x thing.

Later, on my iPhone, I tried to rotate to landscape and nothing happened.  Again, haven’t seen an app in a long time not support both orientation.

These aren’t deal breakers but just observations.

I charged up the BloomSky overnight.  I then followed the instructions to turn it on and do the setup via the app.  That was all straightforward.

I went out to position the mount on a post of my patio trellis.  I decided to get some longer screws to make sure it would be secure.  The screws took a long time to screw in but that was my fault.  The mounting template was nice to have and I was thinking of using my cordless screwdriver but didn’t.  Once I had the screws at the needed length, I put the mount over and went to tighten them.  It was very hard to get the screwdriver into position.  I started ruining the top of the screws but got them snug.  The bottom screws went a little better but still hard to get screwdriver into position.  It would have helped if all the screws could have been done first and then put the mount over.

Finally, I put the BloomSky in and waited for images in the app.  When they appeared, I realized I didn’t like the position because the top of the trellis went almost half way into the view.  The fish-eye lens is great for coverage but too much for this position.  I also knew I would have an issue with the solar panel because it would be pointed west so time to find a better position.

After some confusion on the shipping date, my package arrived.  Inside were three boxes for the mount, solar panel and Sky2.  There was a quick start manual but that was it.  The manual said to download the app on to my smartphone and follow the instructions.  But before I did that, I wanted to figure out the mounting.  There was a picture on the solar panel box on how the mount worked but it was small and not easy to understand.  I watched some videos and did some web searching and was able to figure out everything but that was more effort than I should have to do.

Here are the missing instructions:

• Charge the device before attempting to turn it on.
• Without the mount, the BloomSky is supposed to be stuck in the ground via a post.  This is fine installation but I have dogs so not an option.
• The solar panel has some legs that go back and it just rests on the ground too.  There are a couple of items which are meant to be stakes.
• The solar panel connects to the mount via 4 screws but the mounting plate needs to be removed from the mount first.
• Once the solar panel is on the mount, the BloomSky post goes through a series of holes in the mount.  Very clever.  However, the power cord is in the way and I was afraid I would smash it.

Overall, it was a very clever assembly but better instructions would have helped.  If they wanted to avoid the printing costs, better videos could have been put on the website and not require searching other people’s videos.

I did some research on the BloomSky weather camera system.  They are just releasing a new model called SKY2 that has new features along with another station that does rain and wind called STORM.  Since I have my current Davis Instruments VantageVue system, I am only interested in the camera station.  The SKY2 was able to purchase on Indiegogo for a $80 off at $169.  So, I ordered one.

I saw a blog post on GeekDad about the BloomSky weather station.  What was very interesting to me, since I already have a weather station, was it integrated a camera in the outside sensor unit.  Additionally, the camera was a fisheye camera which I thought would give a very interesting view.  I am going to research further.