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Kickstarter Pebble Smart Watch
- Thread starter Malcster
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I'd be careful to read too much into their ad.
It reads like the only notifications it actually gets from the phone are incoming calls... plus SMS alerts on Android.
Otherwise, it sounds like it connects to If-This-Then-That (http://ifttt.com/) for triggered notification messages related to mail, twitter, weather, etc.
Perhaps an Android phone can do more, since background tasks are available with access to much more of the OS than iOS allows.
It's also black&white screen only, and apparently uses buttons not touch.
It reads like the only notifications it actually gets from the phone are incoming calls... plus SMS alerts on Android.
Otherwise, it sounds like it connects to If-This-Then-That (http://ifttt.com/) for triggered notification messages related to mail, twitter, weather, etc.
Perhaps an Android phone can do more, since background tasks are available with access to much more of the OS than iOS allows.
It's also black&white screen only, and apparently uses buttons not touch.
I could be wrong. I haven't programmed under iOS in a while.
Perhaps they have come up with some background app on the iPhone that allows them to see all phone notifications and transmits them over Bluetooth to the watch, but it sure seems unlikely.
There's also the WIMM One smartwatch. Like the IM Watch, it runs Android, so you can use the Android SDK to create apps and watchfaces for it.
Smartwatches are much more capable when linked to an Android phone because of the greater access to information via a background service app.
For example, not only can I use my WIMM to send an incoming call to voicemail without touching my phone, but I can also view widgets and launch phone applications from the watch using a third party app called Remoter. E.g. turn on/off the phone's WiFi using a regular widget displayed on the watch.
The main downside of the Android watches is that you have to charge the WIMM every 30 hours or so, whereas the Pebble watch in this thread goes up to seven days. (This is because the WIMM also has compass, WiFi, color multitouch screen, etc.)
Smartwatches are the future. I really hope Apple gets into them, especially since it's likely that they will only allow themselves to write code that interfaces more than just simple stuff between a watch and iPhone.
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It is indeed the way they do it. From some of the (rather limited) answers they have given so far on Kickstarter.
@ Ryan Ziolko - Yes, iOS users will need to have an app running in the background.
Thanks, I didn't look at the comments before. I see that others have wondered the same thing about notifications, and also how they plan to gain background ability for their iOS watch app. Wonder if they'll have their own notification server.
Wow, they're already past a million dollars in less than a day! Really shows how interested people are in smartwatches as a companion to their smartphones.
For me, I'll still take a touchscreen smartwatch instead of the Pebble's four buttons, although their battery life is nicer.
Apple should embrace the iPod Nano as smartwatch paradigm and extend it to talk to phones.
That is overpriced, fiddly, only lasts 24hrs before needing a charge! Whats the point?
Touchscreen control instead of side buttons.
Color display instead of B&W.
Programming via popular OS instead of one that's proprietary.
Speaker and microphone for future voice control; not sure about Pebble.
Magnetometer (compass).
Stuff like that.
But yeah, the I'M watch has a high price compared to others. (People who ordered in advance got it much cheaper.) Of course, it's got Italian style, which ups the cost
The other one, the $199 WIMM, has WiFi and thus syncs up news stories, weather, apps, etc using its own connection instead of the smartphone's like the others. That could be an advantage or a disadvantage.
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Touchscreen control instead of side buttons.
Color display instead of B&W.
Programming via popular OS instead of one that's proprietary.
Speaker and microphone for future voice control; not sure about Pebble.
Magnetometer (compass).
Stuff like that.
But yeah, the I'M watch has a high price compared to others. (People who ordered in advance got it much cheaper.) Of course, it's got Italian style, which ups the cost
The other one, the $199 WIMM, has WiFi and thus syncs up news stories, weather, apps, etc using its own connection instead of the smartphone's like the others. That could be an advantage or a disadvantage.
And they all run out of battery after 24hrs, useless, I'm sorry but when the Swiss have managed to make automatic watches for years and years, plus we have sold tech in a lot of watches, it's a bit rich to sell a watch you need to charge even day if not twice a day!
That's why the Pebble is better as well as more functional. Plus some would not consider Android on a tiny 1.5" as very usable, plus it's £13,000 for the top model is not justified at all! Plenty of other better watches for that much, then again they go up a million these day's..
But it what floats your boat I guess, and I would question weather once anyone got a smart watch if you would use it? But it is nice to see e-ink used in something other then an e reader!
I'm really waiting on the Smartwatch front until I see what Apple ends up doing, assuming they "hopefully" enter that market. However, with the direction the iPod nano is going, I would be surprised if they did not. I currently wear an iPod nano watch and am pretty frustrated with the lack of smart watch options for the iPhone currently, this one doesn't appear to be much different.
The iPod nano has a lot of potential to morph into a iPhone syncing smart watch. I really hope apple makes that move, and soon. The ability to see notifications, send and receive SMS/email, and use Siri from a watch would be very nice. Aside from all that I am a watch junkie and I'd like to see what apple could do here.
I've seen a few promising examples and right now my money is on the pebble. Not literally but I'll see how they fair and if the reviews are good I'd get one. I love e-ink displays and the battery life outweighs the lack of touchscreen or color for me personally.
I've seen a few promising examples and right now my money is on the pebble. Not literally but I'll see how they fair and if the reviews are good I'd get one. I love e-ink displays and the battery life outweighs the lack of touchscreen or color for me personally.
Not long ago, people coming from normal phones said that about smartphones. Yet here we are, hundreds of millions of smartphones later, with many/most of them being charged each day.
So, while I totally agree that longer battery life is very desirable, not having it certainly does not make the watch "useless", any more than it makes smartphones "useless".
Moreover, since a major reason to own a smartwatch is to interface with a smartphone, then I'm okay with them charging together at night. Especially since I have other clocks visible (like my bedroom DVR).
YMMV.
looks cool, the screen being e-ink looks a little too washed up for my taste and SMS are only for android so not yet, for now I will keep using my nano as a watch. They should have used BT 4.0 on this watch, it would give them way more battery life.
$2,640,564 as of right now with 18,759 and 33 days to go I'd say they are on to something at $125 I bit the bullet as well. just to have a different looking watch that doesn't break the bank. they are now saying it will be waterproof and have said 7 days battery life. they are on the way to being one of kickstarters most successful projects.
This project got me really excited so I ended up backing it. I'm really looking forward to seeing what kind of development is done for it! Lots of potential.
Unfortunately the currently available touch screens use a lot of power. There is a lot research into making them more battery efficient but that is still a few years away.
it looks awesome - i just hope they can deliver with the actual product.
i've always thought the nano should have this kind of ios integration and functionality. they could also put in a gps for runners and for a "find my friends" app - if parents take young kids to disneyworld or if they frequently walk home from school, the parents can use it as an extra level of protection to know where the tots are
i've always thought the nano should have this kind of ios integration and functionality. they could also put in a gps for runners and for a "find my friends" app - if parents take young kids to disneyworld or if they frequently walk home from school, the parents can use it as an extra level of protection to know where the tots are