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By Sam Collentine, Meteorologist Posted 4 years ago January 20, 2020

OpenSnow iOS App January 2020 Updates

We're back in 2020 with a fresh update to the OpenSnow iOS app!

This update is based on feedback from OpenSnow users during the past year, along with ideas from our employees and forecasters because, like you, we are obsessed with finding great snow.

Love the new design? Please share your love by taking a moment to rate it with a 5-star review on the App Store under 'Ratings & Reviews'.

Hate the new design? Please take a moment to think about why and what could make it better, and then email your thoughts to [email protected]. Joel Gratz or I will reply to you within 1-2 days.

And if you're an Android user, don't worry, we are working to bring this update to you and hope to release a new Android version very soon.

What's New

This article will provide a quick overview of what's new in the update, what's been removed compared to the previous version, and our favorite new features.

Favorites

The Favorites screen is by far the biggest change that you'll encounter when you first log into your Free or All-Access account. We heard your feedback loud-and-clear regarding the previous layout and this update addresses all of your concerns.

The first tab under Favorites is 'Mountains'. This scrolls vertically, with horizontally scrolling chips that provide easy-to-compare Summary, 10-Day Forecast, 10-Day History, All Cams, Snow Report, and Temperature cards for each mountain. 

The next tab is 'Daily Snows'. Simply scroll to find the latest update for your favorite mountains from our team of local forecasters. 

The third tab is 'Cams'. This is available to All-Access subscribers, so if you're looking for the convenience of following your favorite Snow Stake Cams, upgrade to All-Access for $19/year.

The fourth tab is 'Passes'. The Top 5-Day Forecast and Top 24-Hour Report will always be updated to quickly give you an idea of where the snow is stacking up on your pass(es).

The fifth and final tab under Favorites is 'Trail Maps'. This feature was added to the website in the fall and we couldn't be more excited to bring Trail Maps for nearly all major mountains to the app. Simply favorite any Trail Map to easily access from your Favorites screen.

Mountains

Upon initial load of any individual Mountain, we provide a quick Snow Forecast Summary graph and value for expected snowfall over the next 5 days, followed by the next 6-10 days, under the Forecast tab.

The next section is labeled as 'Coming Up' and it provides a preview of the hourly chance of precipitation and mid-mountain temperatures for the next 6 hours. Free users can see 6 hours of the hourly data, while All-Access subscribers can see the next 3 days. The hourly data was added to OpenSnow during the 2018-2019 season and it is currently only available for mountains in the United States.

Clicking the 'Full Hourly Forecast' button provides access to the chance of precipitation (including precip type), temperature, wind speed, wind gust, and cloud cover %. Use this data to time the next storm and dress appropriately for changing conditions on the mountain.

Further down any Mountain under the Forecast tab, you'll find the 1-10 Day Forecast under the section titled 'Next 10 Days'. You'll notice an increased font size compared to the previous version.

Tapping the 'Full 10-Day Forecast' button provides access to the latest snow forecast for each day and night for the next 10 days, alerts (powder days, mixed precipitation, rain, high winds), temperature, snowfall trend, snow level, wind speed, wind gust, and cloud cover %. 

Looking for the latest Snow Report, Cams, and Daily Snows? They're still here and even better than before. Simply tap each tab at the top of the screen and scroll through to find the latest updates.

As previously discussed on the Favorites screen, we've added a top-level tab for Trail Maps. Simply scroll horizontally to find the Trail Map for nearly every major mountain listed in the app.

And last but not least, we've moved the Mountain Information into its own tab titled 'Info'. Here you will find links to the Mountain's website, Social Media, Nearby Mountains, and Driving Directions.

Driving Directions is another new feature for nearly all major mountains in the app to help you plan your next trip. Simply click and choose between Apple Maps, Google Maps, and if downloaded on your device, Waze.

Explore

Top Forecasts? Check. Deepest Reports? Check. Snow Stake Cams? Check. Just browsing for Nearby Mountains or States? It's all still here in the latest update, along with the ability to customize, view, and sort by your preferences.

Daily Snow Forecasts & News

The final rearranged items that you'll notice are the swapped locations of the 'Daily Snows' and 'News' sections. Daily Snow Forecasts are now the fourth tab in the bottom navigation, while News was moved to the top spot in the Explore tab.

For Daily Snow Forecasts, you can now filter by All, Continental, Regional, State, Mountain, and Travel, along with sorting by A-Z, Closest, Last Updated, and Forecaster.

For News, you can now filter by All, Media, Snowpack, Trip Reports, Guides, Company News, and Other.

Feedback & Support

Your feedback is incredibly important to us so again, please reach out to [email protected] and Joel Gratz or I will reply to you within 1-2 days.

Love the new design? Please share your love by taking a moment to rate it with a 5-star review on the App Store under 'Ratings & Reviews'.

Thank you so much and let it snow!

SAM COLLENTINE

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About The Author

Sam Collentine

Meteorologist

Sam Collentine is the Chief Operating Officer of OpenSnow and lives in Basalt, Colorado. Before joining OpenSnow, he studied Atmospheric Science at the University of Colorado, spent time at Channel 7 News in Denver, and at the National Weather Service in Boulder.

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