Spot Assist Skydiving Tool vs VFR Weather Basic
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Spot Assist Skydiving Tool
This app provides skydivers with crucial weather information, including winds aloft and surface winds, along with a satellite map of dropzones. It helps determine the best exit area and recommended parachute patterns based on current wind conditions. Advanced features for canopy range, jump runs, and cutaway location tracking are available via in-app purchase.
- Satellite dropzone maps
- Current wind data (surface & aloft)
- Parachute range display
- Recommended jump patterns
- Cutaway canopy location tracking
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Shows skydivers current weather, winds, the best exit area and pattern in current wind conditions. A tool for parachute pilots. Skydiving. Paragliding. As long as you depend on skydiving weather - you must have Spot Assist. Whats does it do: 1. Displays a satellite map of dropzones world wide. 2. Shows current windaloft and surface winds world wide. 3. Displays a range of your parachute and a safe jump run exit area. (In-App purchase required) 4. When zoomed in to the pattern - displays recommended pattern for your parachute. (In-App purchase required) 5. Helps to find your cutaway canopy: mark cutaway location and app will use windsaloft to calculate where it has landed.(In-App purchase required for past wind data) Cutaway Data Subscription length is 1(one month) and is auto-renewable, which means the following -Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase -Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period -Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period – Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase – Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable – Cost of the renewal is the same as original subscription. http://www.spotassist.com/spotassist-terms-of-use/
VFR Weather Basic
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VFR Weather Basic is a limited version of VFR Weather. It allows you to get the current METAR of an airport (user input of any US airport ICAO code). It will then show the latest METAR report gathered from aviationweather.gov This free version has limitations that the paid VFR Weather app does not: - Only allows METAR, no TAF or Runway information. - Only one airport vs departure, multiple en-route and destinations airports. - Show me button does not show satellite view of airport with wind sock and wind information. - Runway selection for report is disabled (does not show runway details in report page). - Winds Aloft button is disabled.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: VFR Weather Basic at none against Spot Assist Skydiving Tool's 10. Spot Assist Skydiving Tool's advantage is chart position (#189 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 18.6). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Spot Assist Skydiving Tool sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. VFR Weather Basic asks for nothing beyond the download.
| Parameter | Spot Assist Skydiving Tool | VFR Weather Basic |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (142 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 81.8% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 142 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Best chart rank | #189 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 65 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Andrey Kan | Jeff Bieren |
Bugs and requests
Spot Assist Skydiving Tool
Reported bugs
16 issues- App repeatedly crashes on opening
- App unusable after version 2.3.0
- Wind direction inaccurate in real time
- Background colors and lettering hard to read
- Pattern direction stopped working
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- App does not keep home DZ
- App adds paid features to existing customers
- App won't open after last update
- App continues to crash after restoring purchases
- App no longer turns on or works after recent update
- App keeps shutting down
- Error connecting to iTunes Store for purchases
- Email us button opens wrong client
- Features lost after getting a new phone
- App crashes upon startup (iPhone 6)
- App crashes when changing open by/canopy type
Requested features
7 requests- PC or Mac version
- More canopy selection
- Ability to edit/delete canopies
- Set exit altitude
- Set canopy deployment altitude
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- Reset target pad to default
- Calculate exit spot module
VFR Weather Basic
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Spot Assist Skydiving Tool
- Cutaway Data Subscription$0.991 Month
- Ncep NAM Data Subscription$1.991 Month
- Ncep GFS Data Subscription$2.991 Month
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- Ncep All Models Data Subscription$3.991 Month
- Ncep Two Models Data Subscription$3.991 Month
- Exit Area Feature for life$3.99
- Pattern Feature for life$4.99
- All Features for one month$4.99
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- Forecast Feature for life$4.99
- One Month Cutaway Data$5.99
VFR Weather Basic
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Spot Assist Skydiving Tool free?
Is VFR Weather Basic free?
Do Spot Assist Skydiving Tool or VFR Weather Basic have ads?
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