Hands down, the most buzz-worthy new product introduced on the opening day of Sun ‘n Fun was Sporty’s Stratus wireless weather receiver for the iPad. Designed to overlay color weather graphics and more on the ForeFlight Mobile app, the $799 receiver combines ADS-B and GPS receivers into a single unit that wirelessly streams Nexrad radar images, text weather, TFRs and aircraft position to the iPad. Best of all, there’s no charge to use the ADS-B weather service.
“Stratus delivers exactly what pilots have been asking for — a simple, smart and subscription-free way to view in-flight weather on their iPads,” says Sporty’s Vice President John Zimmerman. “It’s incredibly easy to use, with just one button and virtually no setup.”
The portable unit includes an internal eight-hour battery, a high-gain internal antenna, and a Wi-Fi connection to the iPad, meaning Stratus can be placed on the glare shield and forgotten about.
Stratus is a collaboration between Sporty’s, ForeFlight and Appareo Systems The unit wirelessly streams the full suite of available ADS-B weather products, including: Nexrad graphics, metars, TAFs, sigmets, airmets, pireps, TFRs and winds aloft. Stratus also includes a built-in WAAS GPS receiver that provides high-quality position information to ForeFlight Mobile’s moving map.
The Wi-Fi connection allows multiple iPads to connect to Stratus, making it possible for two-pilot crews to view weather information on separate iPads. Stratus weighs less than 12 ounces, and measures 4.25 inches wide by 5.75 inches deep by 1 inch high.
Look for a review of Stratus in an upcoming issue of Flying.
