“Pebble, the famed Kickstarter smart watch project that raised well over $10 million, has been enjoying a huge amount of media hype thanks in no small part to its tens of thousands of backers,” Victor Marks reports for AppleInsider. “The buzz is well-founded; Pebble is good and getting better by the minute.
“The Pebble may not be elegant in the way that traditional wristwatches can be, but it’s well-designed, minimalist and waterproof down to 165 feet,” Marks reports. “The screen is an easy-to-read 1.26-inch backlit e-paper display with a resolution of 144-by-168 pixels. Despite the relatively low pixel density, the screen had no trouble displaying details like an envelope message indicator or small status bar icons like musical notes. Unlike displays in other portable devices, the panel on the Pebble is easy to read in sunlight, while the backlight can be activated in dark environments with a flick of the wrist thanks to the built-in accelerometer.”
Marks reports, “Because Pebble is almost like having a tiny computer on your wrist, developers can take advantage of the platform to create a number of apps custom made for various features not included in the stock software package… At $150, Pebble is one of the most affordable smart watches available, and you can’t go wrong with it.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: All well and good, but, obviously, you can go wrong with it if Apple drops an iWatch later this year, immediately takes every last developer along with them, and instantly turns your $150 into an investment in a one-off museum piece.
To us, right now, this thing fairly screams “Joojoo!“
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Wow. The only thing wrong with this thing is wearing it. Nothing screams, “hey look at me, I’m a need/geek/dork!” more than this.
If and when Apple makes an iWatch, it will be an actually be cool.
It looks like a x-ray machine on a wrist.
Dear God, what an eyesore. Who would walk around with that on their wrist?
Perhaps the greatest advantage of the iWatch will be that it’s something Jony Ive would actually wear.
The real question is: Can you take your iPhone down to 165 ft. And is there cellular data that deep?
That review seemed WAY too positive for AI. The pictures of the watch look fairly awkward and ugly and the interface looks like it needs to return to the 90s.
With Cook being the fitness maniac, I’m guessing the iWatch will be completely integrated with heart-rate, pedometer, maybe blood pressure/sugar options.
Pebble received a lot of free press and goodwill for this kickstarter project. And while I give them props for effort and understand this is a low budget affair, the reality is a terrible product.
The basic principle is great, and I have no doubt these type of devices will find a market, but I can only praise this watch in the same tense I praise a child’s drawing pinned to a refrigerator.
For $150 bucks it is a dreadful product. I rather buy a nice regular watch for that kind of money.
Egads! It’s so ugly.
Even if the design is lacking, this won’t stop Samsung. Wanna bet that Samsung new smart watch will be rip-off of the Pebble.
Before all you neysayers Work yourselves up into a lather could I suggest you take a look at Apples first attempt at a computer mouse. The Pebble is at the start of the iWatch design cycle not the middle or end so comparing it to the design refinement achievable by Apple is frankly nuts. I bet Apple employ more people in the canteen than Pebble have in their entire company.
Yes, $150 is not cheap but the early generations of any tech product are always pricey for what you get.
If their relative success has pulled the big boys into designing something better we all win.
My Pebble came yesterday. It’s fine, not that bulky And not as ugly as the above comments would have you believe. Having said that, there’s lots of room for improvement and I expect an I watch to be a lot better.
My experience with mine exactly. That and I wish the battery would last linger.
The delay has been massive (haven’t got my Red one yet) enough to put me off Kickstarting anyone.