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ZTE's BlueWatch brings Pebble-like features to China (hands-on)
Trends rule at CES, and one of the biggest themes we've noticed before the show even officially begins is wearables. Smartwatches, HUDs/glasses and fitness trackers are popping up all over the place, and ZTE is hoping to be part of the excitement by showing off a prototype of its upcoming smartwatch known as the BlueWatch. It's due in the first half of this year in China, but the company isn't ready to discuss details on expanding it outside the country yet. The early model we saw was admittedly not a final unit, so we won't make final judgments on the device just because of a few tweaks that still need to be made (as you can see in the above image, the unit we demoed suffered from bleeding lights underneath the display and wasn't as bright as we'd like). There was, however, one particular thing that stood out to us when we played with it. While we're not going to call it a Pebble clone, the BlueWatch at least has quite a few similar traits. It uses a small e-paper display, tethers via Bluetooth, it features the same trio of buttons on the side to help you navigate the UI and it boasts three watchfaces and a menu setup that Pebble fans will feel eerily at home using. Additionally, you'll notice a home button on the left, next to a magnetic charger port. Of course, it's not all alike; the BlueWatch uses a different build and non-detachable wristband. Since the device doesn't have a SIM, it doesn't take calls; however, you'll be able to receive notifications, use the pedometer and check on your social networks like Twitter and Facebook. We're still awaiting word on more opportunities for third-party developers, but at the moment it doesn't seem quite clear. As we're currently seeing a beta product, we have a feeling that we could see a few enhancements in several areas as the project develops.
Daily Roundup: Samsung Galaxy Camera 2, LG WebOS TV, ZTE BlueWatch and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
ZTE comes to CES with voice-savvy Grand S II smartphone, fitness-ready BlueWatch
ZTE clearly wants to make its presence felt at CES this year; it's coming to the show with no less than seven devices. The Grand S II headlines the pack as the company's first smartphone with "high-precision" voice commands, which let you both unlock the phone and trigger the camera. The company is shy on other details, although we'd expect the Grand S II to have the best (grandest?) performance of ZTE's range. The company is also launching the 5-inch Nubia 5S and 4.7-inch Nubia 5S mini; just what they offer beyond the Nubia 5 isn't clear, but the larger 5S will have the horsepower to capture 4K video through its 13-megapixel f/2.0 camera. Frugal Americans will want to check out the Sonata 4G, a 4-inch budget phone launching on Aio Wireless with a 1.4GHz Snapdragon 400 chip, 1GB of RAM and a 5-megapixel shooter. An unnamed "iconic" 5.7-inch handset is also coming with a dual-core chip and wireless charging. A trio of accessories will debut at the same time. The company's promised smartwatch will launch as the BlueWatch, with support for both remote phone control and a built-in pedometer. ZTE is also promising a 4G-equipped hotspot and an AT&T Wireless Home Base that connects landline phones to the carrier's cellular network. Ship dates and prices aren't available for any of the CES introductions at this stage, but you can be sure that we'll get more details on the show floor.
