The essential feature, which I assume is the same as the FSX version, is the degree of finely tuned control over how rough the injected weather is. I don't know if I'd call it essential, because you can get a basic form of real weather injection in the default XP sim, but it's a major improvement on the native weather injector.

I use ActiveSkyX, it's a great weather injector for XP. I should probably mention that my simming PC is far, far, far from state of the art, so any hits to frame rate performance is a concern for me.

So I'm hoping someon here can give me some feedback as to whether ASXP is must-have, and if so, a comment or 2 on what significant improvements it brings to XP11? I'm buying XP11 today and noted that on the same website that ASXP is onsale. I do find ASN's popup X-Gauge app to be very useful, but from the ASXP webpage it doesn't make clear whether it's includes in the XP edition? I'm wondering though, with XP11 being a big step up from FSX:SE, if ASXP is as much an essential product? I've only been flying the XP11 demo and that hasn't given me much exposure to varying weather conditions, so I don't have got a good sense of what's there in the core product. With that flight sim though, due to there no longer being active weather updating with the core sim, ASN is a no brainer and an essential if not mandatory product.

I have Active Sky Next for FSX:SE and consider it top quality product providing significant improvements to the weather simulation.

Com freq active sky xp