Oregon Scientific WMR968 Cable Free Complete Weather Station

by Oregon Scientific

Product Features

• More than 20 different weather conditions displayed on touchscreen monitor
• Displays one indoor, one outdoor temperature/humidity
• Completely wireless: outdoor solar-powered sensors simple to install
• PC-link software/cable kit available separately
• Outdoor temperature/humidity sensor

Product Details

Product Manual [688kb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 18.9 x 10.8 x 4.9 inches ; 1.1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
• ASIN: B00005B0BL
• Item model number: WMR968
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (81 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #194,770 in Home & Kitchen (See Top 100 in Home & Kitchen)

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Completely wireless and simple to install, this home weather station tracks and stores data about more than 20 weather conditions and displays them on a touch-screen LCD monitor that measures only 8 inches wide by 5-1/2 inches high. The instruction booklet accompanying the weather station is easy to comprehend, making the station accessible to children, as well as adult hobbyists, gardeners, campers, and fishing enthusiasts. There are three outdoor sensors, each powered by a solar cell: an anemometer that attaches to a building, fence, or roof to measure wind speed and direction; a thermo-hygrometer to measure temperature and humidity; and a self-emptying rain gauge. (At least six hours of sunshine are needed to operate the solar cells for 24 hours. Each sensor has a backup battery-power unit that requires two AA batteries--not included.) A 4-1/4-by-2-3/4-inch baro-hygrometer measures indoor temperature, barometric pressure, and humidity, and mounts on a wall or stands on a desk. (It requires four AAA batteries--not included.)

The touch-screen monitor keeps track of the indoor and outdoor sensors, and also displays local weather/barometric pressure forecasts. Additionally, it has a calendar/clock, an alarm that sounds when sensors detect conditions beyond parameters set by the user, a memory button for retrieving past data, and an AC power adapter. (Its backup battery-power unit requires four AA batteries--not included.) The system can support three additional remote sensors and can interface with a PC. Additional sensors, the PC-link software/cable kit, and a long-term data-memory accessory are all sold separately. --Fred Brack

Product Description

- Oregon Scientific wireless weather station- Large LCD HiGlo backlit touch screen on base- 12-24 Hour weather forecast- 7 Channel capability, accepts up to 3 additional sensors (sold separately) - Solar powered remote sensors- 433MHz wireless transmission upto 328ft.- Memory function for weather measurements with time stamp feature- Weather alarms- Simple touch screen operation- Display all measurements including weather forecast; current temp and relative humidity (indoor/outdoor); memory for min/max temp and relative humidity; barometricpressure history bar; wind speed; compass wind direction; wind direction; rainfall rate- Calendar clock with daily alarm- User-selectable metric or imperial display units- Table stand or wall mount- Low battery indicator for main and sensor units- RS232 serial port for data output- 4 AA batteries required for backup on main unit- 4 AAA batteries required for baro-thermo-hygrometer- 2 AA batteries required for backup on anemometer-thermo-hygrometer-rain gauge (main power on this unit is solar)- Indoor unit is black- Multiple sensors included - WGR968 Anemometer measures wind speed and direction - RGR968 Self-emptying rain gauge measures rainfall - BTHR968 measuresindoor temperature, humidity and barometric pressure and features an on-board LCD screen - THGR968 measures outdoor temperature and humidity - PC Compatible (with optional RS-232 serial cable andsoftware, not included) ORWMR968

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

373 of 377 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Do your homework, May 25, 2004

By 

Mark A. Pearson (Springfield, Missouri United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Oregon Scientific WMR968 Cable Free Complete Weather Station (Kitchen)

The Oregon Scientific WMR968 is a very inexpensive but complex weather instrument. I have been researching home weather stations for over a year now, and just purchased the WMR968 from Amazon.com when the price dropped by half. At the current price it is worth the extra trouble to get it to do what it should do. At this price, you have to expect to do some extra fiddling to get it to perform. If you really want a weather station that is going to perform perfectly, time after time, right out of the box, keep looking. This isn't the one for you. But, on the other hand, for those of you who like me have very little cash to spend on a home weather station, this is a good buy.

Only beware! As is noted in these reviews, and on many other consumer review web sites, the manual that comes in the box is trash! Do not use that manual to set up and tune your WMR968. Please, please, please, go to the Radio Shack website and download the manual for the Radio Shack Cable Free Weather Station with AccuWeather, and use that one, it is excellent! The Radio Shack weather station is identical in all respects to the one sold under the Oregon Scientific brand name, except that, for some reason, it has a real manual written by a real American, and it has all the information you need. Note, that the manual that comes with the Oregon Scientific weather station has 9 pages. The Radio Shack manual has 36 pages.

My advice: if you decide to take the risk and purchase the Oregon Scientific WMR968 from Amazon.com, like I did, read all the consumer reviews, even the nasty ones. You should know what might happen to you. Gather up as much information as you can. I have found several exellent tips on setting up and tuning the WMR968 on this and other web sites. Another suggestion: join and contribute to a weather station bulletin board, such as WeatherMatrix.net. Share your knowledge and experience with others. Finally, don't be tempted to cut corners when setting up your weather station. The sensitive electronics are not tolerant of abuse. Do your best to make sure everything outdoors is weather-tight.

108 of 116 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Your Personal Weather Station, March 10, 2002

By 

Natalie Kilpatrick (Omaha, NE) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Oregon Scientific WMR968 Cable Free Complete Weather Station (Kitchen)

The Oregon Scientific WMR968 is certainly the top of the line weather station next to Davis. Although it may seem that the display is only updating every 30 seconds or so, it probably is. Buying third party software for this station works well if you want a more up-to-date update (certain software can update every 5 seconds or so). One problem that I'm having with my weather station is the rain gauge. With 4 inches of snow, the rain gauge never budged. This kind of ticks me off, since precipitation totals are essential to me. Other than the rain gauge, there seems to be nothing wrong with the weather station. The barometer isn't something that gets calculated on its own, you have to actually set that up to what the barometric pressure is at the closest NWS office to you; otherwise the pressure's WAY off. Other information you can gather from this weather station is indoor/outdoor temperature/humidity, indoor pressure, wind speed, wind gust, rain totals, wind direction (plus min/max/avg for the past 24 hours). There is a setting for an alarm (however, I haven't used this feature so I don't know what alarms can be set).

If using a third party software, you cannot have batteries installed in the monitor, it must be plugged into a AC outlet. So, it is best that you also go out and get a good cheap Universal Power Supply (UPS) for your computer in which to hook up the monitor, tower and weather station if you have quick little power surges. You will also *need* a serial port cable for use in COM1 or COM2. The Oregon Scientific WMR968 does not come with a serial port cable, you will need to order one or pick one up with the purchase of your weather station.

96 of 103 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Beginners only! Serious weather bugs buy a DAVIS!, November 1, 2004

By 

Red Tractor Driver (Jerome, ID United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oregon Scientific WMR968 Cable Free Complete Weather Station (Kitchen)

Purchased unit in july 2004. Has worked good since then. It required 4-6 hours to set up unit and another hour to build a stand to hang weather sensors on(look at buying a weather sensor stand but that was way overbudget on this project)

First the hygrometer both indoor and outdoor sensors work within printed parameters.In my arid climate even during a rain storm do I rarely seem more than 80% only a heavy fog or dew can it hit 95-100% The temperature sensors are within a degree or 2 (found frost one morning when the sensor only reported 34 degrees not 32 or lower).

The rain gauge is pitiful. A small amount of precip will not register on display. Also main unit will tell how much rain fell yesterday but not currently. It keeps a resetable running total but if you get a massive downpour it will say how fast it is raining but not how much until the next day. Also wish it kept a daily total like it rain .25 on Mon and .33 on Tues so on.

The barometer is good as soon as you get your correct reading for your altitude. However I have not been able to find a way to adjust the display on the sensing unit it reads like 22.04 and the the main unit is adjusted to say 29.11 . One good thing is, it is an excellent tool for weather chasing. When the pressure drops rapidly it usally rains. A rain event can be tracked on the bar graph!

The wind gauge may not be working quite right on my system . A very windy day will only be about 17-20mph. However it might be in a bad area where the wind is being blocked somewhat. I will probably move the instrument to a more open spot and see if it will get a more realistic reading.

Finally the clock . A person must manually set the time and date and the unit doesnt adjust for daylight savings. I wish this was an "atomic clock". That never needed adjusted.

Oh yeah two more items "the manual" stinks . Get the RADIO SHACK manual the other reviewers talk about. Print it off and read before your unit arrives. This will save alot of frustration. KEEP the box the unit came with for one year. I read the warranty and they will only accept a warranty repair if it is sent only in the ORIGINAL BOX!

**UPDATE** 1-20-2010 I bought this in 2004 and I still have it in 2010. I have had to replace a couple of parts and a few batteries. I added a mast to this in 2008. I ordered parts from a*bient weather and have some software to record data. I also added an extra console off E*ay. With the extra console in my basement office, I had to have a repeater to get the signals in my basement.I am now, able to keep track of the tempature of my spa, freezer and walk in cooler(storage for our small orchard). This whole unit will go till 2012 or 2014(maybe longer).

Now about the DAVIS comments I am talking about the units costing around 1000 dollars. Not the cheap ones.