CARROT Weather

Review by eFreeware

If you check the forecast every morning and find the usual grid of icons a little dull, CARROT Weather is built for you. It takes the standard current, hourly and daily forecast and wraps it in a running commentary from a snarky AI character, so the same information arrives with a joke attached. The app is free to install, and it is published by Grailr LLC.

What you get underneath the attitude is a fairly complete weather tool. Forecast data comes from Foreca, and the app presents current conditions alongside hourly and daily outlooks. Tapping anywhere on the screen pulls up more meteorological detail, which is a quick way to dig into a specific number without hunting through menus.

The personality is the selling point, and the developer leans into it hard. Dialogue and scenery shift with the weather itself, from fog to heavy rain, and there are more than 6,000 spoken lines. That volume matters: a joke that repeats gets old fast, and a catalog that size suggests the forecast can stay entertaining across a lot of different conditions.

The app has been on Google Play since July 2018 and has passed 500,000 installs, though its average rating sits at 2.4 from roughly 3,050 ratings. That gap between a large install base and a low score is worth keeping in mind as you decide whether the concept appeals enough to try it.

Checking the forecast without the small talk

Strip away the character and CARROT Weather still does the job most people open a weather app for. The current conditions, the hourly breakdown and the daily forecast are all there, sourced from Foreca, and the layout is described as minimalist. If you mostly want to know whether to grab a jacket on the way out, the core screen should cover it.

The tap-anywhere interaction is the part I find most useful in principle. Rather than a fixed set of tiles, the app lets you poke at the display for additional detail, which suits people who like to check a specific reading rather than scan a whole dashboard. It is a small design choice, but it shapes how the app feels to use day to day.

The catch is that the humor runs through everything. Forecasts arrive with commentary attached, and the scenery changes with the conditions. If you want a silent, purely functional readout, the constant voice is going to be part of every check, not something you can set aside.

Ads are present in the free version, and the developer offers a Premium Club subscription that removes them. That is the main structural trade-off: the forecast itself is free, and the character comes with it either way.

Time travel, widgets and hidden places

The features that go beyond a normal forecast sit behind Premium Club. Subscribers also get a weather time machine covering conditions for a chosen place as far back as seven decades or a decade ahead, plus a home screen widget that shows the forecast without opening the app. The most recent update added radar for Premium members.

The time machine is an unusual addition. Looking back seven decades at a location's weather is not something most people need for planning a Tuesday, but it has obvious appeal for anyone curious about how conditions have shifted, or for comparing a date this year against the same date in the past.

Secret locations are a separate draw. The app hides 32 of them, including the Moon, the Pyramids and Chernobyl, and you find them by following clues. It is a game layer bolted onto a weather app, and it gives the personality somewhere to go beyond the daily forecast.

The subscription can be canceled at any time through your Google Play account settings, and the developer notes that premium content stays available until the paid period ends. That is a standard arrangement, and it means trying Premium Club does not lock you in beyond the term you have paid for.

What you need before the first forecast

You install the app, and the forecast for your location is the starting point, with current, hourly and daily views available from the main screen. Tapping the display brings up more detail.

The extras are where requirements appear. Both the widget and the weather time machine sit behind the Premium Club subscription rather than in the free tier. Radar, added in the June 2023 update, is also for Premium members.

The subscription is handled through Google Play. If you decide the personality is not for you, that is the route out, and you keep premium access until the end of the period you have already paid for.

One thing to set expectations on is the rating. With a 2.4 average across roughly 3,050 ratings, a lot of people who installed this app were not won over. That does not tell you why, but it is a signal worth weighing against the concept, especially since the humor is the whole premise.

The audience this forecast was written for

CARROT Weather fits people who want their weather delivered with a side of attitude. If you enjoy the idea of a forecast that reacts to the conditions with a joke, and you would rather have a character talking to you than a plain set of numbers, the premise is aimed directly at your habits. The 6,000-plus spoken lines exist precisely for that kind of user.

It also suits anyone who likes small discovery mechanics in unexpected places. The 32 secret locations, found by following clues, turn the app into something you poke at between forecasts rather than only when you need to know about rain. That layer is unusual for a weather app and gives it a second reason to stay installed.

For people who want the deepest feature set, Premium Club is the version that matters, since the widget, the time machine and radar all sit there. The free app covers the forecast itself, with ads, so the decision is really about whether the extras and an ad-free experience justify a subscription.

The app is rated for Everyone and has been available since July 2018. It is a mature product by install count.

A forecast with a personality, and a price for the extras

CARROT Weather is a straightforward proposition once you separate its two halves. The forecast looks capable: Foreca data, current, hourly and daily views, and a tap-anywhere interface for more detail. The personality is the differentiator, and with more than 6,000 spoken lines and scenery that changes with the weather, it is clearly a major part of the app.

The extras are where the money goes. Premium Club covers the customizable widget, the weather time machine, radar and ad removal, and the subscription can be canceled through Google Play at any point, with access continuing to the end of the paid term. If those features matter to you, the tier is the version to consider; if you only want the forecast, the free app with ads still delivers it.

I would point this at people who find standard weather apps flat and want something with a voice, plus anyone drawn to the hidden-location hunt. The 2.4 average from around 3,050 ratings is a caution worth noting before you commit, since the humor is inseparable from the experience rather than an optional layer.

If the idea of a sarcastic AI reading you the forecast sounds fun rather than tiresome, this is worth installing and trying for yourself. If you want your weather quiet and neutral, the character will be in the way of every check.

What's new in version 2.5.2

This update adds radar for Premium Club members. Lots more coming soon, meatbags!