From your Reddit AMA you said there are no plans to make a more Time-style design since you prefer the original Pebble form factor. Is this just for now or is it a hard no to ever offering a different design? (I never got into the OG Pebble or Pebble 2 myself because it looks very clunky on my fairly thin wrist, but the Time was perfect)
Two new PebbleOS watches
251–260 of 544 posts
Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#252As someone who was a huge fan of the original Pebble series, it's hard to get excited about this offering when compared to the alternatives available today with more features and a cheaper price. I'm currently wearing the BangleJS v2 [0] which has the following going for it, all for $90USD: * 1.3 inch 176x176 always-on 3 bit colour LCD display (LPM013M126) with backlight * Full touchscreen (6H hardness glass) * GPS/G…
The original blog post for the revived Pebble was very clear about the design goals and it drove home something quite clearly: this is not going to deliver a laundry list of features or support all possible lifestyles. It will be focused on doing a few things well because there's a need for a modern Pebble not met by existing watches. I have a Bangle2 and while it's super fun, I think it perfectly illustrates the poi…
As someone who only ever cared about a handful of features (HR, sleep, steps, notifications), the BangleJS is definitely the superior offering imo.
It does everything my Pebble did, it's cheaper, and it's been open source since day one rather than first requiring an acquisition and resurrection.
Obviously different strokes for different folks, Eric is great and I wish him and the team over at Rebble (hi ishot!) all the best, but the smartwatch landscape is very different from what it was in 2014
Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#253Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#254Earlier quoted context omitted.
I came to say Core 2 Duo is a terrible name :/
Same. It neither describes the product nor makes it easier to search for online. For that matter, it doesn't exactly roll of the tongue either...
> nor makes it easier to search for online.
Searching for 'pebble core 2 duo' already comes up with a page of results only related to the watch[1] (including this very comment thread, ironically[2].) Search engines are very good these days.
Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#255Pebble Day at HN?
Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#256Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#257I know battery life is impacted but I really want exactly this with GPS. I want to be able to track my runs. I love the banglejs because it is hackable but the GPS was very difficult to use. But it is such a fun device to hack on.
the option to pair with an external gps would be better all round, apart from having a separate thing to carry. i have a garmin glo 2 that i pair to my android when doing openstreetmap stuff, and its something that you would barely notice in your pocket or clipped onto a backpack
Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#258Earlier quoted context omitted.
Any ideas what the screen refresh rate is going to be at this point? All the screenshots don't have time that includes seconds, and having a watch face that can update at least every second would be a requirement for me. (I know e-ink displays can have fast refresh rates, like the 60Hz / fps Daylight computer - but that may not be cost effective / battery efficient here?)
The Daylight computer DC-1 isn't e-ink it's a reflective LCD by the way. Different screen technology. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40457491
TIL! Thanks for the link - all the demos / videos had me convinced this was just e-ink technology!
Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#259Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have no reason to think that it will not work well for 2 years, but I am not prepared to guarantee that in a warranty. That would be taking on too much risk as a small company.
Your explanation is reason enough to cancel. I have experienced enough hardware fails the day after the warranty to avoid purchasing anything that I do not consider disposable. I still have my Vector watch which suffered the same fate as Pebble. I am curious about the risk of a "at cost" replacement. I have avoided buying a FitBit to replace my existing FitBit because their warranty is also limited to "one year" whic…
> curious about the risk of a "at cost" replacement
You can't tell consumers the raw manufacturing cost because people act weird when they are told it: they usually assume the "markup" is profits. They assume that they're getting ripped off because most people don't understand development costs or overheads and they always argue that any profit is too much. This problem can't be fixed.
Apart from the risk of scammers buying a watch to sell, saying it is broken, getting a replacement at cost and the scammer steals the markup/profit.
You can maybe think of ways to make it work, but they are likely to have excessive support costs or other hidden costs for the manufacturer or consumer.
Re: Two new PebbleOS watches
#260I would buy one but only if I am guaranteed to be able to compile the source code somewhat easily and flash it to the device. Anyone knows if they have made any promises around that?
I can't see why this wouldn't be the case, the firmware will be open source and I have to imagine a developer mode will be part of that.