RoboCat and Taptanium aren't fans of the typical weather app, which tends to bombard the user with numbers when they just need a heads-up as to whether it's warm or likely to rain. Its newly launched Haze, then, is the potential antidote. The iOS app initially shows just the core temperature, humidity and hours of sunlight in different sections, with its namesake haze effect giving a clue as to whether conditions are trending up or down. If you need to know more, a tap expands the details, and a swipe down shows a 5-day forecast. There's also a handful of elements that we seldom see in these apps, such as a direction-relative wind indicator, optional motion-driven navigation and visual themes. RoboCat hints to us that an iPad version might be on the way, although ports to Android and other platforms are more likely to depend on the early response.

We had the chance to give Haze a spin ahead of launch. It's at least a refreshing take: there's an appeal to exposing only the weather we want to see, and in a colorful way that never needs more than one hand to navigate. Compared to Apple's default app, though, it's at once providing more information and less. Haze is much better at supplying the current day's conditions, but its forecasts don't always reveal what's happening -- you'll know the humidity is shifting on Tuesday, but not the likelihood of snow. Consider the app more of a single-day weather specialist in its current form and the 99-cent price ($3 after a promo period ends) is easy to justify.

Gallery: Haze for iOS

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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Source: Haze, iTunes