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| Reviews Summary for Davis Vantage Pro (wireless) |
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Reviews: 25
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Average rating: 4.3/5
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MSRP: $595
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Description: Vantage Pro weather stations for monitoring barometric pressure, temperature, humidity, rainfall, and wind speed and direction.
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More info: http://www.davisnet.com
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write your own review of the Davis Vantage Pro (wireless).
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KC8TEP
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Rating: 5/5
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May 6, 2004 13:12
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Totally satisfied
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have had my Vantage Pro Wireless for a little over a year now, have not had any problems and the system works great.
I have a house with aluminum siding; the transmitter is near ground level, on the opposite side of the house from the receiver. No problems with reception.
The anemometer is on a chimney-mounted mast along with my VHF antenna, the rain gauge/sensors/transmitter unit is on a mailbox post in the back yard. It's easy to extend the wire connecting the two, it's just regular RJ-11 flat phone cord.
I did a lot of homework before choosing this model and still think I made the best choice.
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N7ZM
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 8, 2004 20:30
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A little pricy, but excellent station that's worth the money.
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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Have had the Davis Vantage Pro Wireless Weather Station now a few months. At first you think it's a little pricy in cost but after using it, it's well worth the $. Easy to setup and works great! Neither my Alpha Amp, radios, cordless phone, or computer, cause the wireless signals to malfunction. I have the weather Suite in back about 40 feet from house and it's another 40 feet or so to my tower.
Works Great and was everything Davis advertising claimed to be.
If you have any further questions I can help you answer you can contact me at: n7zm@charter.net
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K8FFO
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 28, 2004 16:24
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Great Product
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have had the Davis Vantage Pro (wireless) for two months now. The remote is mounted on my second story roof about 40 feet from the inside unit which is in the shack sitting next to my Drake L-75 amplifier. I operate 160-2 meters. My dipoles run within ten feet of the remote sensor. I have had no problems with RF getting into the Davis and have not had any RFI from the Davis. I highly recommend this unit for the weather enthusiast.
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W2MSK
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Rating: 3/5
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Dec 10, 2003 17:07
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Weak wireless signal
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I purchased a Vantage Pro Wireless station and had a great deal of trouble receiving a signal approximately 40 feet from the transmitter. After spending much time with Davis tech support, who were helpfull, they suggested a repeater accessory. I ordered that and no effect! After further discussions I was told that the signal will not penetrate aluminum sided houses. Well, a good number of homes in the northeast are sided and I thought that was a poor excuse. The signal strength spec is less than 1 mw at 916.5mhz. Not sure what is the maximum allowed by the FCC (100mw?) at that freq. but it needs way more power. I guess if you have direct line of sight close to the transmitter you may be ok but if you need to place the receiver inside a sided home and above the transmitter, regardless of distance, think twice and purchase the cabled unit. I returned the wireless for the cabled version and all is now 100%. In addition, I did have a failure of the temp/barometer module within the first 20 days and Davis replaced that without question. Good customer support but a poor and anemic wireless design.
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W4KRR
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 12, 2003 21:55
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Works well, good customer support
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I purchased the Vantage Pro wireless station in late 2001. A little over a year later, It started to act strange, like constantly losing the signal, showing very high amounts of rainfall even on rainless days. Then the ISS battery went dead. I contacted Davis, and after explaining all the problems I was having, they said there was a retrofit kit for the ISS. They said after I install it, just return the old one in the shipping box. They even sent me a free replacement battery. All this and my unit wasn't even under warranty anymore!
The new ISS kit includes new temp. and humidity sensors and circuit board assembly. It is a different design than the old one; when re assembled you only have to remove the hinged bottom cover to access the battery, no disassembely needed.
It now works great again, no problems. All it cost me was the price to ship the old parts back to them, a small price to pay considering it was out of warranty, and, in essance, I got a new ISS unit along with new temp and humidity sensors. However, I see that some others have not had a good experience with Davis like I did.
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PHANTOM
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 28, 2003 11:34
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excellent product
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have found this station to be excellent in every respect. Easy-to-follow instructions, quick installation, and the console is easy to read and operate. I have checked the accuracy of the unit with other instruments in my home (barometer, rain gauge, etc.), and with local weather instruments, and have found it to be extremely accurate. I am also impressed that the unit receives wind speed and direction signals every 2 1/2 seconds (as compared to other lower cost units)--this allows me to track wind gusts and wind variations easily. I also purchased the Weatherlink software and am impressed with how easy it is to install and use. I have thought about getting this unit for quite some time and have not regretted the decision.
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ZPAK
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Rating: 4/5
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Apr 16, 2003 22:48
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Mediocre, Part 1
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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Bought the vantage wireless pro for xmas in 2001. Had it for one year and the battery needed replacement. They told me to replace 3.5v battery and it costs $8.50. Lasted three days and the signal still lost. Called Davis and they said there is a retrofit for that unit. $275.00 or otherwise send the old sim back. Received retrofit..followed directions and on pg 7, sect.5 pt.4 , says to snip off the solar connector..called Davis after I did what it said
the tech support said I shouldn't have snipped off the end. Come to find out, after 1/2 hr. on the phone..there was an error in the direction, and it SHOULD NOT have said to cut off connector. Now he says send the entire retrofit back with the ISS and everything to the repair dept. I asked about the $30.00 shipping and boxing and insur. and he said to put a slip in the box requesting that the customer service reimburse me. Well, the unit went out today. Will let y'all know what happens..Look for mediocre part 2.
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CW0879
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 11, 2003 15:16
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GREAT PRODUCT!
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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I have nothing but great things to say about my Vantage Pro!! I selected it because it contains much more functionality/features than other stations that sell for twice as much (Texas Instruments, etc.). They didn't sacrifice quality to do this; my station has performed very well against other control instruments I've brought in from time to time and Davis is able to offer NIS certification. The display console is clear, well organized, intuitive to operate, and gives you full parameters (high, low, graph) for just about every variable. I use my station (a Vantage Pro Plus with an fan aspirated radiation shield) with a Weather Envoy and Weatherlink software (crappy Win 95' era graphics but infinitely customizable display/output) to upload APRS packets to APRSWXnet. The Vantage Pro has a very rugged look and feel compared to many other products (Oregon Scientific for example) and is clearly designed for a long life. Although you do have to disassemble the integrated sensor suite (ISS) to install the rechargeable batteries, its a relatively straightforward operation (from box to fencepost in a couple hours time). I've had no problems or issues in the four months I've owned my station. My experience with Davis' service department have been very positive. When I first bought my unit the console had a dud barometer circuit, not a good first impression. But, I called Davis and they immediately overnighted a new unit without requiring the defective unit be returned first. The unit has functioned perfectly since. In my other interactions with Davis staff (including a visit to their Hayward facility) it's clear that they believe in the product they are selling. Quite frankly, I'm very baffled by two of the other reviewers experiences described on this page. In my opinion this is the best home weather station that's out there, and its very competitive with other "professional" grade commercial or research stations. You won't regret this purchase!
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KG4LRU
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Rating: 2/5
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Mar 22, 2003 06:54
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Their our better choices!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Davis has had this market I was never a big fan the factory people talk to you like their do you a favour, warranty with them is pain and the best thing is i called them on a new station wheather wizard II they sent the new station they also sent a few things that I did not order and they had not charge me I called to find out about these other parts that were sent and they threat me that they were going to charge my card I called to let them know that there order system is screw up instead they pissed me off i will never buy their product again and they have treated everyone the same, I sent the extra parts back at my expense you think they would offerd me a discount on their mistake . Look at the Lacrosse wheather station 2010
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N4ZW
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Rating: 1/5
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Sep 26, 2002 19:00
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BUYER BEWARE
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I purchased a Vantage Pro late last year. After just six weeks of use, the unit failed. When I contacted Davis, they informed me: "Oh, yea, we know about that. A number of units with bad circuit boards went out in Nov./Dec." Okay, so they already knew they had sold bad units and didn't contact customers. (Strike One!) When I asked them to replace the defectve part, they said "Sure, but we will need to charge you $177.50, just to insure you will send the defective part back." Okay, said I, send it on. (Strike Two!...Why bill me for your defective part under warranty???) Finally, the unit was already mounted on a tower that requires someone else to climb, take the unit off the tower, bring it down so I can disassemble it, put in the new board, etc. etc. So, I started getting nastygrams from Davis. Send back the defective board or pay up. So, I called and explained the situation. Okay, we understand, they say. Time passes. Today I get a collection notice. Call the collection company, explain (again!!), they call Davis, Davis says "Tough." Call the Davis executive offices. Get shuffled to a polite secretary. She checks into it. Calls back. Three options: return the new unit, return the defective unit, or pay up. I bring up the possibility of poor customer service and their warranty responsibility. Tough, she says. So, I ask to return the whole darn thing. (Strike Three!!! And they're out!!!) Before anyone purchases a Davis unit, I strongly advise you to look at PEET (ham friendly) or another provider. Davis may make an OK unit, but if they aren't willing to back-up their warranty in a friendly, and customer-helpful way, you are on your own. BUYER BEWARE
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