June 30, 2014 at 12:01Smart watch Pebble. Personal experience using
In this article, I will talk about all aspects of life with Pebble and summarize all the knowledge about this smart watch, whose $ 10 million collection is still a record on Kickstarter.
If this is your first time hearing about this watch, I advise you to watch our video review first, and if you have already read about Pebble, I hope that the video can help visualize your thoughts about this gadget.
Pebble now comes to customers in a more compact and stylish box. If earlier it was elongated (as in this review ), now the box with a clock looks more like a cube.
The kit comes with several instructions and a USB cable that connects to the magnetic connector on the watch. To be honest, until I read on the Internet that it often falls off, I did not experience any problems with the cable. By the way, the charging cable was changed for the new generation of Pebble Steel watches (they differ only in appearance and cable), and according to reviews, the new lace is much stronger on the watch while charging.
It is clear that smart watches have hundreds of uses. At this point in the article, monitors with frames in gray tones should turn on, where strange people cannot get their phones out of their pockets, break meetings, break their lives. And then all this is crossed out with a red cross and each of the screen losers is given a Pebble watch that changes life for the better.
Of course, in reality this is not so. Therefore, at first I will talk about those functions that are used every day, then about those that I rarely use, and at the end I will outline the most gorgeous features of a watch that each owner will definitely test, and then delete and forget about them.
A watch is a thing that is always on our wrist that peeks out from under the sleeve of a jacket or jacket. For many men, watches are the main, and sometimes the only decoration. Of course, to put it mildly, Pebble look youthful. Different colors, plastic and rather thick body. Some say that they look like children's Chinese watches, but many like their design, and I am one of the latter. It is also worth recalling that now there is also Pebble Steel on sale, which look already much more stylish and presentable.
Another important aspect is the strap. Pebble immediately equipped with a long strap of Soft Touch rubber. It is pleasant to the touch, sits well on the hand. But if it is tightly tightened on the wrist, then the hand will begin to sweat. As far as I can tell, in case of discomfort, the strap changes just like on any other watch.
From the appearance we turn to daily use.
Let's start the game with small cards. Watches really know how to show time and do it creatively and in hundreds of different ways. You can drop up to eight different dials (Watchfaces) on the watch and switch between them. Two things to note here.
We continue to follow the standard functions, because no matter what - they are still in demand!
Pebble does not have its own speaker, so they can wake up with vibration, and that's great. I have never woken up an alarm clock and I like that it does not wake everyone who sleeps in the same bed or even a room, but only his master. This opens up space for romantic breakfasts or, for example, quiet departures for morning walks, workouts, work, if your family has a different schedule. Also, the alarm will be a good and polite notification. It is really impossible to miss the bracelet vibrating on the wrist. At least I can’t.
But this is a trump card. All notifications that are allowed on the associated smartphone will appear on the watch’s screen. That is, messages from VK, mail, skype, as well as SMS and calls immediately get to the screen. You can accept or disconnect the call if a headset is also connected to the smartphone. The ability to receive notifications on the watch is very convenient. Now you don’t need to go into your pocket if another spam about stretch ceilings, a taxi or a super profitable loan fell on your phone. It’s especially cool that SMS confirmation codes that I often enter when paying for services via the Internet are conveniently displayed on the watch’s screen. And if the work involves communication with people and many business contacts, like mine, then this will allow you to instantly respond to important letters. I saw an important letter on Pebla - I took out a laptop or tablet to answer. Fast response impresses business partners and makes correspondence more productive. After all, if a letter arrived from the United States to answer after a few hours, then the answer can be expected only the next day because of the time difference.
This is the second trump card from the creators of Pebble. Smart watches fully take on the functionality of a small compact player. The watch is always on hand, it is waterproof and they can pause a song, scroll through tracks in both directions, display the name of the song and artist, as well as the progress bar of the song playing. I generally advocate free hands. I do not like briefcases, bags, bags on one shoulder. Therefore, a gadget that allows you to once again not get on the phone is the most for my lifestyle and my habits.
Personally, all of the above would already be enough for me to tell everyone and everyone that I am satisfied with the purchase and that I do not think that they look like a children's toy. But Pebble really can do a lot of things, though I use a little of this every day. In general, the Pebble Store already has a lot of different kinds of applications. They are so different that finding an interesting application is a problem, since there are a lot of repetitive, very similar and simply useless programs. It is worth noting that at the same time on the watch there can be only eight third-party objects, whether it be dials or applications. And on the phone there can be as many applications as you like and they can be downloaded at any time into Pebble, replacing unused programs. Nevertheless, I am sure that in the Pebble Store everyone can find something suitable for themselves.
Yes, these are not standard applications. They will have to be downloaded through the Pebble Store. Functionality is trivial, but in demand. On the watch, you can start several stopwatch, put them on pause, cancel. In general, all that is needed from these two applications. Of course, these things belong to the basic functions of an electronic clock, but their absence among a set of standard applications is a bit surprising. And the need to occupy 2 of the 8 slots available with such simple applications does not please either. I hope that in the future these programs will appear among the preinstalled ones.
This downloaded dial, which shows the time, date, degrees on the street, has taken root on my watch. That is, the question again is not that only Pebble will give you this information, but that Pebble will do it instantly. Wrist movements in order to see how many degrees to change the track to read SMS. This is not to say that it saves time, we all very often do not value our time, but this watch makes things more convenient. This, again, is exactly what I expected from them.
At one time, I often glanced at an application that shows the forecast for the coming days and builds a graph of temperature changes. But it seems to me that I still deleted it.
And here I’ll already list what I set, tried, tried to convince myself that it was convenient, but suffered a fiasco.
Even from the clock, you can make the smartphone take pictures, you can use the clock as a pedometer, you can throw pictures from the photo gallery on them, but all this did not last a day. Although someone may like it. In general, it is worth saying that for 3-4 days Pebble will take almost any man. This is a great adult toy, which even after the end of the wow effect will delight its owner with its not very wow, but very useful features.
Here, at the beginning, it is worth noting that the Pebble developers have an interesting policy. The watch is already three years old, and the only change presented is only cosmetic improvements to the watches in Pebble Steel and improved grip on the watch by the charging cable. But this is justified not by the laziness of the authors of smart watches, but by the fact that they want to develop the infrastructure of smart watches at the beginning, fill the store with useful applications, teach users how to use them, and not drive developers and buyers in a line of watches that differ in hardware.
Since it is high-quality applications and the development of new areas of Pebble application that are put at the forefront - the so-called online development environment is available for watches. It does not need to download libraries and configurators, it does not need to be configured, it only requires an Internet connection. Everyone can program for Pebble, and it is well written about this in the following articles:
And for lovers of something tougher - a photo of disassembled watches from Ayfiksit.
Pebble connect to the smartphone via Bluetooth. If the phone or tablet works with Bluetooth 4.0, then the constantly supported bluetooth connection will practically not affect the life of the smartphone without recharging. And previous versions of the bluetooth modules can already consume precious percentages.
At the moment, I have found evidence of Pebble working with almost all mobile platforms. The clock will make friends with iOS and Android. Also came out applications for Blackberry and Windows Phone (a free application for Windows Phone ).
It is time to take stock and summarize the shortcomings that I noticed during the use of these smart watches:
For me, Pebble has become not just a toy, but a really useful gadget. The first days I was completely immersed in the possibilities of hours. Constantly installed and removed more and more new programs, read forums in search of new opportunities for watches and tried to use them always and everywhere, even if it was inconvenient. By the end of the first week, my furious onslaught on Pebble weakened, and after a week I did not install new applications at all, getting used to the fact that I already had it and gradually removing everything that I did not use at all.
After the first few days, I noticed for myself that it was much less likely to get the phone, and moving my wrist in order to read the message became familiar. I particularly appreciated the fact that SMS confirmation codes are conveniently displayed on the watch screen, which I often enter when paying for services via the Internet.
And then I gave the watch to be appreciated by my friend. Of course, I did not miss letters, do not get up on the alarm clock, or dress out of weather. But on my phone again began to accumulate unread messages and letters, to which I could no longer quickly respond during the day.
Summing up, I would like to say that for me Pebble was not just a toy, but a really useful device, which is now closely connected with me not only with a wrist strap.
PS You can buy a Pebble smart watch here , and pre-order Pebble Steel here at the Madrobots store already known to the habrasociety , who sent me this gadget for review.
If this is your first time hearing about this watch, I advise you to watch our video review first, and if you have already read about Pebble, I hope that the video can help visualize your thoughts about this gadget.
Introduction
Pebble now comes to customers in a more compact and stylish box. If earlier it was elongated (as in this review ), now the box with a clock looks more like a cube.
The kit comes with several instructions and a USB cable that connects to the magnetic connector on the watch. To be honest, until I read on the Internet that it often falls off, I did not experience any problems with the cable. By the way, the charging cable was changed for the new generation of Pebble Steel watches (they differ only in appearance and cable), and according to reviews, the new lace is much stronger on the watch while charging.
It is clear that smart watches have hundreds of uses. At this point in the article, monitors with frames in gray tones should turn on, where strange people cannot get their phones out of their pockets, break meetings, break their lives. And then all this is crossed out with a red cross and each of the screen losers is given a Pebble watch that changes life for the better.
Of course, in reality this is not so. Therefore, at first I will talk about those functions that are used every day, then about those that I rarely use, and at the end I will outline the most gorgeous features of a watch that each owner will definitely test, and then delete and forget about them.
Pebble - watches for every day
A watch is a thing that is always on our wrist that peeks out from under the sleeve of a jacket or jacket. For many men, watches are the main, and sometimes the only decoration. Of course, to put it mildly, Pebble look youthful. Different colors, plastic and rather thick body. Some say that they look like children's Chinese watches, but many like their design, and I am one of the latter. It is also worth recalling that now there is also Pebble Steel on sale, which look already much more stylish and presentable.
Another important aspect is the strap. Pebble immediately equipped with a long strap of Soft Touch rubber. It is pleasant to the touch, sits well on the hand. But if it is tightly tightened on the wrist, then the hand will begin to sweat. As far as I can tell, in case of discomfort, the strap changes just like on any other watch.
From the appearance we turn to daily use.
This watch can show time
Let's start the game with small cards. Watches really know how to show time and do it creatively and in hundreds of different ways. You can drop up to eight different dials (Watchfaces) on the watch and switch between them. Two things to note here.
- Firstly, there are dials that are simply original or beautiful, but there are functional ones that, in addition to time, will display the temperature, the number of missed calls and unread SMS and something else.
- Secondly, since the dial will be displayed on your watch 90% of the time - its choice directly affects the life time of the watch without recharging. If you choose your favorite watch in the community now with monsters, the watch will last 3 days. If you choose any dial with seconds, then 4 days, but the watch face with only hours and minutes will give your watch up to 7 days of life.
The clock has an alarm
We continue to follow the standard functions, because no matter what - they are still in demand!
Pebble does not have its own speaker, so they can wake up with vibration, and that's great. I have never woken up an alarm clock and I like that it does not wake everyone who sleeps in the same bed or even a room, but only his master. This opens up space for romantic breakfasts or, for example, quiet departures for morning walks, workouts, work, if your family has a different schedule. Also, the alarm will be a good and polite notification. It is really impossible to miss the bracelet vibrating on the wrist. At least I can’t.The clock displays all notifications from the phone
But this is a trump card. All notifications that are allowed on the associated smartphone will appear on the watch’s screen. That is, messages from VK, mail, skype, as well as SMS and calls immediately get to the screen. You can accept or disconnect the call if a headset is also connected to the smartphone. The ability to receive notifications on the watch is very convenient. Now you don’t need to go into your pocket if another spam about stretch ceilings, a taxi or a super profitable loan fell on your phone. It’s especially cool that SMS confirmation codes that I often enter when paying for services via the Internet are conveniently displayed on the watch’s screen. And if the work involves communication with people and many business contacts, like mine, then this will allow you to instantly respond to important letters. I saw an important letter on Pebla - I took out a laptop or tablet to answer. Fast response impresses business partners and makes correspondence more productive. After all, if a letter arrived from the United States to answer after a few hours, then the answer can be expected only the next day because of the time difference.
The clock can control the music
This is the second trump card from the creators of Pebble. Smart watches fully take on the functionality of a small compact player. The watch is always on hand, it is waterproof and they can pause a song, scroll through tracks in both directions, display the name of the song and artist, as well as the progress bar of the song playing. I generally advocate free hands. I do not like briefcases, bags, bags on one shoulder. Therefore, a gadget that allows you to once again not get on the phone is the most for my lifestyle and my habits.Phase 2 Applications
Personally, all of the above would already be enough for me to tell everyone and everyone that I am satisfied with the purchase and that I do not think that they look like a children's toy. But Pebble really can do a lot of things, though I use a little of this every day. In general, the Pebble Store already has a lot of different kinds of applications. They are so different that finding an interesting application is a problem, since there are a lot of repetitive, very similar and simply useless programs. It is worth noting that at the same time on the watch there can be only eight third-party objects, whether it be dials or applications. And on the phone there can be as many applications as you like and they can be downloaded at any time into Pebble, replacing unused programs. Nevertheless, I am sure that in the Pebble Store everyone can find something suitable for themselves.Stopwatch and Timer
Yes, these are not standard applications. They will have to be downloaded through the Pebble Store. Functionality is trivial, but in demand. On the watch, you can start several stopwatch, put them on pause, cancel. In general, all that is needed from these two applications. Of course, these things belong to the basic functions of an electronic clock, but their absence among a set of standard applications is a bit surprising. And the need to occupy 2 of the 8 slots available with such simple applications does not please either. I hope that in the future these programs will appear among the preinstalled ones.Weather forecast
This downloaded dial, which shows the time, date, degrees on the street, has taken root on my watch. That is, the question again is not that only Pebble will give you this information, but that Pebble will do it instantly. Wrist movements in order to see how many degrees to change the track to read SMS. This is not to say that it saves time, we all very often do not value our time, but this watch makes things more convenient. This, again, is exactly what I expected from them. At one time, I often glanced at an application that shows the forecast for the coming days and builds a graph of temperature changes. But it seems to me that I still deleted it.
Phase 3 Applications
And here I’ll already list what I set, tried, tried to convince myself that it was convenient, but suffered a fiasco.
- The watch can be used as a navigator and it is very inconvenient. There are two options - either the watch displays textual prompts of the form: “After 300m turn left”, or you can view a map with the route on them. Perhaps if I find myself without clothes, but with Pebbles in an unfamiliar city, I will climb into the navigator on the watch with a fright. But then I remember that they work only in conjunction with the phone and, if he is with me, I will open the navigator on the smartphone.
- On the clock you can read books and it looks strange. The position of the hand with which you have to read and the hand that will have to switch pages is not very convenient. So this option will be good for notes on the likeness of a shopping list, or short cheat sheets, but it is hardly suitable for normal reading.
- From the clock you can send response messages in the messenger. What can I say, typing SMS with three buttons is not so simple. Especially if there is a phone nearby, which beckons with its full keyboard.
- Games. Tetris held out all day on my watch. It's cool, but playing it with a watch on is uncomfortable. Anyway, using a watch to play is at least strange.
Even from the clock, you can make the smartphone take pictures, you can use the clock as a pedometer, you can throw pictures from the photo gallery on them, but all this did not last a day. Although someone may like it. In general, it is worth saying that for 3-4 days Pebble will take almost any man. This is a great adult toy, which even after the end of the wow effect will delight its owner with its not very wow, but very useful features.
Native Applications
Here, at the beginning, it is worth noting that the Pebble developers have an interesting policy. The watch is already three years old, and the only change presented is only cosmetic improvements to the watches in Pebble Steel and improved grip on the watch by the charging cable. But this is justified not by the laziness of the authors of smart watches, but by the fact that they want to develop the infrastructure of smart watches at the beginning, fill the store with useful applications, teach users how to use them, and not drive developers and buyers in a line of watches that differ in hardware.
Since it is high-quality applications and the development of new areas of Pebble application that are put at the forefront - the so-called online development environment is available for watches. It does not need to download libraries and configurators, it does not need to be configured, it only requires an Internet connection. Everyone can program for Pebble, and it is well written about this in the following articles:
- Well pebble wait
- We program under Pebble. Lesson One: Silly Watches
- We program under Pebble. Lesson Two: The Answering Stone, Dice, and Sex Cubes
And for lovers of something tougher - a photo of disassembled watches from Ayfiksit.
Compatible devices
Pebble connect to the smartphone via Bluetooth. If the phone or tablet works with Bluetooth 4.0, then the constantly supported bluetooth connection will practically not affect the life of the smartphone without recharging. And previous versions of the bluetooth modules can already consume precious percentages.
At the moment, I have found evidence of Pebble working with almost all mobile platforms. The clock will make friends with iOS and Android. Also came out applications for Blackberry and Windows Phone (a free application for Windows Phone ).
Disadvantages of pebble
It is time to take stock and summarize the shortcomings that I noticed during the use of these smart watches:
- For me, the first is still the need to charge them. Yes, they will have to be charged no more than once every 3-4 days, but still have to.
- The old problem with Russification has not received a solution "out of the box". Having ordered a watch, you will have to install Russian firmware yourself. This is done in three clicks in 1 minute ( there is a guide ), but this is unpleasant. Especially when a new firmware comes out and crack has to be re-rolled.
- Design. Whatever you say, this watch is not suitable for everyone with its appearance.
- Display. This watch does not have an EInk display, as they say in advertising brochures, but a Memory LCD. It is good, but sometimes at certain angles you can notice stains on the screen, as if someone had pressed on the display. This is not striking, but once a week you can notice this unpleasant picture. It is worth adding that the stains do not appear from the screen, but from the protective glass and in Pebble Steel you will not see this anymore.
- Many substandard apps at the Pebble Store. In pursuit of the number of uses, and, accordingly, applications, we get many completely useless programs, among which it is difficult to find something worthwhile. Systematization by popularity and number of downloads helps a little, but at the bottom of these ratings it is very difficult to find highly specialized pearls. I hope that soon the criteria for getting applications into the store, as well as their moderation, will seriously harden.
Pebble Strengths
- The most important thing is to transfer the notification center to the watch screen. It is very comfortable.
- The life expectancy without recharging in the region of 7 days is still pleasing against the background of not very long-lived competitors.
- Useful basic and downloadable applications also bring convenience to everyday life. Here I highlight music control, stopwatch, timer, weather forecast.
- The watch is waterproof.
- This is the only watch that fits almost all existing mobile operating systems.
- New firmware is actively coming out, which will activate new functions in the watch and add new chips for already used ones.
- Design. You can choose a black, gray, white, orange, red or steel watch. And yes, I like the way my red and white watches look. Thanks to their design, Pebble stand out well and you will immediately notice one more pebble driver =)
- Open and convenient online SDK
Conclusion
For me, Pebble has become not just a toy, but a really useful gadget. The first days I was completely immersed in the possibilities of hours. Constantly installed and removed more and more new programs, read forums in search of new opportunities for watches and tried to use them always and everywhere, even if it was inconvenient. By the end of the first week, my furious onslaught on Pebble weakened, and after a week I did not install new applications at all, getting used to the fact that I already had it and gradually removing everything that I did not use at all.
After the first few days, I noticed for myself that it was much less likely to get the phone, and moving my wrist in order to read the message became familiar. I particularly appreciated the fact that SMS confirmation codes are conveniently displayed on the watch screen, which I often enter when paying for services via the Internet.
And then I gave the watch to be appreciated by my friend. Of course, I did not miss letters, do not get up on the alarm clock, or dress out of weather. But on my phone again began to accumulate unread messages and letters, to which I could no longer quickly respond during the day.
Summing up, I would like to say that for me Pebble was not just a toy, but a really useful device, which is now closely connected with me not only with a wrist strap.
PS You can buy a Pebble smart watch here , and pre-order Pebble Steel here at the Madrobots store already known to the habrasociety , who sent me this gadget for review.