Kestrel 4500 Weather & Environmental Meter w/Compass

Overkill for most people but an awesome device. I will be honest this is my first portable weather station. I looked at many others and the entire range from Kestrel and I chose this one for several reasons. I plan on using it for storm hunting, hiking and skiing condition checks and to keep track of the weather here in New Mexico. I observed 38 mph gusts two days ago with 20-25 constant (The joy of New Mexico in the spring!) I passed on many other named devices simply because they where not water resistant. Sorry I can't see how that makes sense. My weather station at home sits outside.....to check the weather. How else can you check windspeed in the rain yet have to put your device under an umbrella???ProsMADE IN THE USA-NOT CHINA LIKE THE RESTIt comes with a warranty and trade up option that no other brand offers, read up for yourself:"The five-year warranty period paired with satisfaction guarantees and lifetime trade-in/trade-up privileges provide Kestrel customers with the best product support available.": [...]Under Creative Commons License: Attribution Non-CommercialFollow us: @kestrelmeters on Twitter | KestrelMeter on FacebookSmall and lightweight (3.6 oz can you believe it??)Works right out of the box with only a little setupAppears to be very accurateBluetooth data transferUser replaceable wind fanCover on device protects wind detector when not needed (Can still check other vitals like temp and dew point with cover on) The wind cover is flip up and is not pictured here for some odd reason. It stays fully open or closed with a quick flip.Water proof and appears to be durableNight vision light is greatEasy to read displayCome with a Lithium battery that lasts forever, don't go cheap. If you can afford almost $400 for a portable weather station go ahead and buy good batteries. You get the bonus of having a much less chance of leakage and the shelf life is outstanding.ConsNo software for Macs and limited software online for PCs therefore I have not used the Bluetooth option.No case for almost $400 device?? Comes with a bag.....nobody will use that in the field where this is suppose to be used. The case that Kestrel makes is by far the best option, it has holes in the case for the sensor to continue to take readings even in the bag (No wind of course) Read more

Received it on this Friday (4/8/16) all seemed good, put the batteries in, started going through the settings getting acquainted with the system and then noticed a scratch on the screen. At first i thought it was lint or some kind of small fiber but it was a nick/scratch. It was small, but one of those that you cant help but notice when the screen is on and seems to direct your attention to it. So, i boxed it up and sent it back. The screen is small enough you'd think they would put a protective clear sheet like they do with cell phones but, nope. I'm fine with the size of screen but, considering the small screen and the cost of this unit, i expect perfect glass. Also, i noticed while blowing into the little wind blade, that it was not balenced very well, like it had a heavy bottom to it. So that's another reason i sent it back as I believe it might cause an inaccurate reading for the wind. I could be wrong but it'd be nice to have one with a balanced wheel. Considering these two issues is why i give it 3 stars. I bought one with the bluetooth feature, and it synced up just fine with my cell phone. The program itself is rather easy to navigate and almost intuitive. The instruction manual is fine print but straight forward. The people who are complaining about the user interface or navigating thru the unit and setting it up either dont follow directions well or their too use to having someone else set things up for them. If you've ever hooked up a VCR or DVD player, this is nothing. That's all i can say about that. We'll see how this next one pans out as it's suppose to be here today. Will update post once i've evaluated the unit.OK, I received my other one and and updating this review (04/13/16) and making the review 5 stars. This second one came in a box that had tape over the pullout tab to open it, plus had the screen protector on the screen.So, this means the one I received first with the scratch on the glass was a return someone else sent back and Amazon apparently just put it right back into circulation. That box also didn't have any tape on that pull out tab which was another indicator to me it was a used/returned unit.

I just purchased it, I wouldn't have purchased a model without Bluetooth (I hate carrying 20 cables for all my stuff)Battery autonomy is amazing, the little magnetic protection to carefully place between the batteries to reduce magnetic disturbance on the compass is NOT a burden, it just takes a few more seconds to replace the batteriesThe setting of Altitude and/or Atmospheric pressure at a known point is great, greatly improves accuracyThe setting of magnetic compass by slowly turning it is funny but not very practical in the field, luckily you only have to do it when changing the batteriesI have not explored all options but I already love the product, well built, very light but durableWould love a little GPS receiver that works with it to automatically set magnetic declination based on your location, and a way to aim at an object (house, tree) to read compass with better accuracy, like you do with a good old compassI strongly recommend this one if you spend some time outdoor in the mountains where the weather can change fast or anywhere you cannot get a forecast easilyMy backpack is no more than 10kgs but this Kestrel made my list, better be safe than sorry with the weather

Well designed, everything you need to reduce your shooting variables

Ein Gerät, was keine Wünsche offen läßt ... es gibt alle meteorologische Werte aus, die man benötigt. Es ist sowohl wüsten- als auch tropentauglich (in nördlichen Gefilden über dem Polarkreis mit Minustemperaturen war ich noch nicht).Absolut empfehlenswert !!