The Pebble has been my favorite smartwatch for over a year, despite more advanced contenders. What other smartwatch can last more than a few days on a charge? Can worn while swimming? Has an always-on screen? The Pebble always had that appeal; it was more of a regular watch than most smartwatches, and didn't have to be charged every day.
I've been wearing Pebble's latest, the Pebble Time, for a week. It lands in a world of Apple Watches and Google watches, and is finally being shipped to those who supported it on Kickstarter. For those who didn't, it'll cost $199 (UK and AU prices not currently available). This isn't the only new Pebble watch, by the way: the all-metal Pebble Time Steel will arrive this summer, with a longer promised battery life, for $100 more.
In some ways, the Pebble Time feels like a fine-tuned version 1.5 than a whole new 2.0 version of the Pebble smartwatch. It still doesn't have a touchscreen. Its new color display looks more like a Game Boy's than a high-quality mini-smartphone's. And it can't be used to make phone calls.
After spending several days wearing Pebble's latest, however, I've come to like it, especially because it's low-key. In the long run, surrounded by fancier watches with higher-profile apps, the appeal of the Pebble Time may wane. (And, if you haven't already pre-ordered via Kickstarter, the aforementioned Time Steel is definitely worth waiting for before committing to this model.) But in the current smartwatch landscape, the Pebble Time's advantages are still unique, making it a worthy alternative to the Apple Watch and Android Wear competition.
