Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I have a love/hate relationship with these electronic weather stations. Have owned several over the past decade, and if you read enough reviews on Amazon you realize that these generally aren't dependable. They either can't hold a signal, don't report outside conditions reliably, or break within a short period of time. My Mom wanted another station over a year ago when her old one broke. I spent hours reading Amazon reviews and decided it was just not worth spending the money on one of these. When I explained to her the situation at hand, she understood, and opted to put an old-fashioned mercury thermometer on the kitchen counter to keep track of the household temperature. Sigh. So, a week ago, I go to a friend's house. In his kitchen, sitting on a shelf, is this very attractive COLOR weather station. It really caught my attention because the screen was absolutely beautiful. "Where did you buy this?," I asked my friend. "Costco." I asked, "Does it work?" "Quite well," was the response. When I got home, I immediately went to Amazon to see if they sold it. Lo' and behold they did. I decided to take a chance and ordered one to be delivered. I had this weather station up and running within 15 minutes after the package arrived. I just plugged in the color weather station screen and placed it on the counter. Adjusted the time, year/date. Very simple. I put 2 AA batteries into the transmitter. Instructions say to place it in a shady spot so sun does not hit it directly. With a single, long nail that I threaded through the mounting hole at the top of the transmitter, I placed it under my deck approximately 50 feet from the base. Though I was not able to get an immediate signal, I simply long pressed the sensor search button on the base, as instructed, and I got a full 5-bar signal. Please note that instructions do state that the transmitter should not be installed in an area that gets direct sunlight (as it will highly elevate temperature readings) and should be positioned at least 6' off the ground so snow or water cannot accumulate around the device. I have read a few of the complaints within these Amazon reviews about not being able to get a signal connection within a short range of distance. Really, I experienced none of these problems and wonder if people attempted to use the sensor search button as the included instructions clearly suggest doing. Now 3 days in, this Wireless Weather Station is performing like a champ. I realize that perhaps I am not giving this device enough time to fail before writing this review, but thus far (and also based on my friend's longer-termed experiences), I am quite confident that I have a working weather station on my hands. The real selling point of this weather station above all others is its color screen. It's very attractive -- the kind of thing that immediately catches one's eye from across a room. In fact, it's so appealing, I often just stand and stare at the screen for moments on end. It's just a beautiful kitchen accessory for the countertop. No problems reading the screen from any angle. I enjoy this weather station so much that I am probably going to buy a second one for my office. Not certain if I can share a single sensor with two units, but I intend to find out. It's a shame that this device cannot be wall mounted as I don't have much space on my office desk to place it. So, the bottom line is that, at the moment, this turned out to be a highly satisfying purchase for both myself -- particularly when I see the enjoyment my Mother is getting out of it. She finally has a weather station back in her kitchen -- and it's far more modern and attractive than the other devices she has owned in the past.