Davis Instruments Vantage Vue vs Vantage Pro2
For those of you who have spent any amount of time on this site should already know that we think both of these Davis weather stations are great. In fact, as you can see here, both carry our 5-star rating. So many people ask about which weather station to buy. I also see inquiries often about the difference between them, or to compare the two weather stations. Let’s discuss further; Davis Instruments Vantage Vue vs Vantage Pro2.
Commonalities: Vantage Vue vs Vantage Pro2
Brief Davis Instruments History
Davis has always been popular among professionals for their weather stations due to the accuracy, ruggedness, and relative low cost when compared to “professional weather stations” that can cost thousands of dollars. Their Vantage Pro2 is absolutely no exception. It’s actually very uniquely positioned in the marketplace. It’s priced lower than the professional weather stations and higher than most home weather stations. Likewise, its features are in the same area and more capable than most weather stations for home use.
Davis is often competing with brands that are making household weather stations. Enter the Vantage Vue. It’s more of an entry-level weather station for home use when compared to the Pro2. As mentioned above though, it is VERY CAPABLE for an all-in-one entry-level weather station model.
Differences: Vantage Vue vs Vantage Pro2
Expandability
Flexibility
Price
Expandability
While the Vantage Vue has all of the basic weather instruments of most home weather stations, the Pro2 is fully expandable with additional accessories like UV and Solar Radiation sensors. Additionally, Davis Instruments also offers an optional 24-hour fan aspirated radiation shield for the Pro2 that is not available on the Vantage Vue 6250. The Vue is only available with the standard radiation shield.
Flexibility
There is an important trade-off between the Vue and Pro2 models. The Vantage Vue 6250 is an all-in-one, or ISS (integrated sensor suite), meaning all of the weather instruments come in a single package. This is great for ease of mounting the weather station. There is only one devices that needs to be sited and mounted and there are no wires that need to be connected or ran.
In contrast, the Vantage Pro2 contains an anemometer and wind vane that is separate from the other weather instruments. While this makes mounting twice as difficult, there’s a reason for it. Per the CWOP Weather Station Siting, Performance, and Data Quality Guide, optimal temp/humidity/rain gauge sensors should be mounted about 5-6 feet above ground level. On the other hand, they state that an anemometer should be free of obstructions and mounted about 33 feet above ground level for optimal readings.
This flexibility is the trade-off. In order to site all of the weather instruments optimally, you’ll want to have flexibility to split them up. By doing this however, you’re required to mount more devices.
Price
Vantage Pro2
As alluded to earlier, the Pro2 is priced between most household weather stations that are a couple hundred dollars and professional models that can be thousands of dollars. If an application requires the features of the Davis Vantage Pro2, you’ll find that it’s priced very competitively amongst other models that have similar features, just over $500 for the standard wireless version at the time of this writing.
Vantage Vue
By contrast, the all-in-one Vantage Vue does compete directly with most of the weather stations for home use. Its advantage of course are all the things discussed above; accuracy, data update frequency, solar-powered weather instrument, and 1000ft wireless transmission distance. Most of these stats put the Vue 6250 as a category leader. At the time of this writing, Davis’ Vue is priced at only about 60% of the cost of the Pro2, just over $300.
So, Which Model is Better, Vue or Pro2?
This is the question isn’t it? The answer is…it depends! What are you going to be using the weather station for? Farmers, emergency response workers, and schools will definitely benefit from the Vantage Pro2. Its capability to have multiple sensors in a network as well as its expandability and flexibility will likely outweigh the relatively small price difference. In addition, the separation of weather instruments will give you the utmost accuracy. Overall, this is definately the better weather station if you don’t consider the price difference.
For the bulk of our audience here at wxObservation.com who will be using this at their home or a second property, we recommend the Vantage Vue when the points in the last paragraph aren’t a concern for you. For the money, you’re getting most of the features of the Pro2 and most don’t household weather stations won’t require those extra features the Pro2 offers. This is the best home weather station for hobbyists.
Final Notes in the Stand-off: Davis Vantage Vue vs Vantage Pro2
Both of these weather station models are “best in class”. Davis Instruments is a leading weather instruments company that has been around for a long time pleasing its customers with high-end, well-built products. You really can’t go wrong with whichever one you choose. For further details on either model, please feel free to read our comprehensive reviews on both the Vantage Pro2 and the Vantage Vue.