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Bloomberg: Fitbit acquisition will kill Pebble Time 2 and Core
According to Bloomberg, Fitbit is close to buying up Pebble for less than $40 million, which aligns with what we reported when info on the acquisition first came out. Since the fitness tracker maker is only interested in Pebble's software assets and Pebble is neck-deep in debt, though, the Time 2 and Core watches will no longer be released. While Pebble 2 has already started shipping out to Kickstarter backers, the company will reportedly cancel all Time 2 and Core shipments and will issue refunds through the crowdfunding website. Pebble's Time 2 is made of marine-grade stainless steel and has a much bigger screen than the original Time smartwatch, while Core is an Android-powered, non-watch GPS wearable for runners.
Fitbit is reportedly buying Pebble
Pebble might only live on in our memories and Fitbit's devices in the future. According to The Information, Fitbit is buying smartwatch maker Pebble for an undisclosed amount. An anonymous source indicates to Engadget that Fitbit is buying the indie smartwatch maker for only $34 to $40 million -- barely enough to cover its debts to suppliers, which amount to at least $25 million. Pebble has apparently been looking to sell for quite a while now due to financial issues. If you'll recall, the indie smartwatch company laid off 25 percent of its workforce back in March this year because money was "pretty tight."
Smartwatch shipments dropped ahead of new models
The smartwatch market isn't quite as red-hot as it looked in recent months. IDC estimates that smartwatch shipments fell by just shy of 52 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2016, with the biggest names often being the hardest hit. Apple was still the top dog, but its shipments fell almost 72 percent to 1.1 million. Samsung's shipments were virtually flat, while Lenovo and Pebble saw their unit numbers drop sharply. Interestingly, the only company in the top five to see a big surge was Garmin -- its shipments more than tripled to 600,000. Should the industry be worried? Not necessarily.
Pebble 2 review: An affordable smartwatch with a fitness bent
Pebble is in a tough spot. Once a pioneer in smartwatches, it now has to fight off competition from brands like Apple and Samsung, as well as more affordable devices, even ones that feel more like fitness trackers. Earlier this year, the company unveiled a pair of smartwatches designed to occupy that middle ground. They are the Pebble 2 and the Pebble Time 2, both of which retain much of the same functionality as previous-gen Pebbles, but with one key difference: They now have built-in heart rate monitors. Combined with a revamped Health app, the Pebble line is much more fitness-focused than before. At $129, the Pebble 2 is the more affordable of the two, and it's aimed at those who want a no-frills smartwatch with some workout features. Think of it as a fitness tracker with basic smartwatch functionality thrown in -- and priced for people who don't want to spend "smartwatch money."
Pebble's latest update adds quick views and more shortcuts
When Pebble announced its latest Pebble 2 and Time 2 watches earlier this year, it also revealed several software improvements that would roll out not just to the new models, but to most other existing Pebble hardware. Today, the company is finally releasing that update. Now even old-school Pebble users can get Quick View peeks, shortcut buttons, a revamped Health app plus more email features for iOS users.
Pebble's Time Round now comes in polished gold and silver
When Pebble unveiled its latest line of watches for 2016, noticeably absent was a successor to the Time Round, a bummer for those who love its thinner and circular design. To appease Round lovers, the company is releasing a couple of new special Kickstarter editions that come in polished gold and silver. It has that same round color e-paper display as before, along with a marine-grade stainless steel chassis. These particular editions have a black bezel with smoked numbers on the three-hour marks and ship with a 20mm black leather band. It's worth noting that these new Round models do not have optical heart sensors like the recently announced Pebble 2 and Time 2.
Pebble pubs its activity-tracking algorithms and Happiness app
Pebble has a few health-related updates to share following the launch of its crowdfunding campaign for three new fitness-focused smartwatches. In particular, it has revealed how its first native fitness-tracking app works by publishing the algorithms behind it, launched a mood-tracking app and published the results of a sleep study. Nathaniel Stockham, a Stanford U Ph.D. student in Neuroscience and the person who developed the app's algorithms, wrote about their details in a blog post. He explained that one of them detects and measures motion while the other counts steps and can distinguish if you're walking or running.
Pebble adds Alexa's voice controls to its upcoming Core wearable
Pebble announced its 3G-enabled Core device just last week, and even though the gadget won't ship until 2017, the company is already adding features. Amazon's Alexa virtual assistant will be available on the wearable exercise accessory, bringing voice controls to the iPod Shuffle-esque device. With the Core, Alexa can still handle tasks like playing music, reading news headlines, shopping on Amazon, ordering food, controlling smart home tech and more. In terms of more Pebble-specific chores, the virtual assistant can read your Pebble Health summary to keep you up to speed on your daily stats.
Pebble's first non-watch is basically a next-gen iPod Shuffle
One of Pebble's big goals for 2016 was to focus its efforts on health and fitness. It updated its Health app to provide more-meaningful stats, and just today, it announced two new smartwatches with built-in heart rate monitors. But that wasn't quite enough. The company also wanted to make something that would let people run without their phones: It needed to have GPS and be able to play music. Unfortunately, bundling all of that functionality into a watch would make it very expensive, so Pebble didn't want to go that route. Instead, it built something entirely different. This is the Pebble Core, the company's first-ever non-smartwatch. It's an Android-powered wearable designed for runners. It has GPS so you can track your runs and -- here's the interesting part -- a built-in 3G modem that lets you stream music over Spotify. Think of it as a next-generation iPod Shuffle.
Pebble's new smartwatches focus on fitness
Way before there was Android Wear or the Apple Watch, there was Pebble. It was arguably one of the more successful smartwatches on the market, raising a whopping $10 million on Kickstarter with its simple e-paper design. The company has faced quite a few challenges since then, but it came back fighting last year with the Time, a revamped version of the Pebble, complete with a color e-paper screen and a redesigned user interface. Still, Pebble wanted to take it further. So this year, it has. Say hello to two new Pebbles: The Pebble 2 and the Pebble Time 2. The big new addition to both? Built-in heart rate monitors.
Pal smart strap turns your Pebble Time into a fitness tracker
The Pebble Time smartwatch (and Steel variant) launched with the promise of extended functionality via "smartstraps" connected to the magnetic charging port. So far, however, there are very few bands out there, and the extra functionality is limited to NFC payments, wireless charging and mid-air hand gestures. A company called Powerstrap wants to make something a bit more useful with the Pal, a smartstrap that effectively turns the Pebble Time into a sports tracker.
Pebble watches are now better fitness trackers
After years of relying on third-party activity trackers, Pebble finally introduced its own homegrown version last December. Simply called Pebble Health, the native fitness app tracks your steps and sleep patterns and has a built-in coach to keep you motivated. Today, however, it's getting a massive update to give you an even more holistic view of your overall health and achievements.
Pebble's Time Steel smartwatch gets a £60 price cut in the UK
When were first introduced to the Pebble Time Steel, we loved the way it looked but weren't sure whether it justified its £200 price tag. The company has stuck to its guns and kept with its pricing strategy for more than 8 months, bit now it's joining its wearable-making rivals in slashing the cost of its premium smartwatch, reducing it by £60 to £140.
Pebble brings text replies to iOS users on Verizon
Back in November, Pebble unveiled a Text Reply feature for iOS, finally letting iPhone users respond to incoming text messages on their Pebble smartwatch with a voice note or a canned text response (Custom messages were enabled in February). Unfortunately, the feature was only available for those on AT&T. Now, however, iPhone users on Verizon can enjoy the same benefit as well, thanks to a new Version 3.11 update. The Text Reply feature is available for all Pebble watches, though voice reply is restricted to just the Time models.
Pebble cuts 25 percent of its staff (update: clarification)
It's not easy being an indie smartwatch maker in a sea of tech giants. Pebble CEO Eric Migicovsky has revealed to Tech Insider that his company is cutting 40 jobs, or 25 percent of its workforce, this week. Simply put, the "money is pretty tight" -- while Pebble has raised $26 million over the past eight months, the investment cash isn't as forthcoming as it has been in the past. Migicovsky is quick to stress that Pebble is in it "for the long haul," though, and has an idea of where wearable tech is going within 5 to 10 years.
Pebble drops price of Time and Time Round by $50
If you've been holding out on getting your very own Pebble Time, congratulations, because your patience has been rewarded. Today, the company is dropping the price of two of its Time smartwatches -- both the Time and the Time Round -- by $50, which means they're both now $149.99 and $199.99 respectively (the Time Steel remains the same at $249.99). Also of note is that the Time Round (arguably the better looking of the two) is now available at several retail locations in the UK and the EU. Oh, and that price drop should be reflected in those countries as well.
Smart strap brings payments to your Pebble smartwatch
Right now, you have slim pickings if you want to pay for things from your wrist: there's the Apple Watch, an upcoming Swatch model, eventual Samsung Gear S2 support and... that's about it. However, Fit Pay might just widen the field a bit. It's crowdfunding the Pagaré smart strap, which brings NFC-based tap-to-pay support to any Pebble Time smartwatch -- yes, including the Round. It should work at most shops that accept Apple Pay or Android Pay (it uses a similar, token-based system), and it shares familiar security measures, such as disabling access when you remove your timepiece. You don't even need to bring your phone once you've set things up.
Pebble adds custom messages and more in latest update
One of the benefits of owning a Pebble smartwatch is that the company is continually adding new features to the e-ink smartwatch, thus improving it over time. Today, the company has announced a slew of new additions which include even more messaging options for both iOS and Android. Those on iOS can now finally reply to incoming texts with custom messages instead of canned responses (only if you're on AT&T), while Android users can reply to incoming calls with texts, voice notes or even an emoji. If you have a Time-series watch and an Android phone, you may also try a new SendText app that lets you send out a message or voice note right from the watch itself.
Pebble smartwatches get a built-in fitness tracking app
If you've wanted to use your Pebble smartwatch as an activity tracker so far, you've had to grab a third-party app -- unlike Apple or Google, you didn't have anything built-in. Well, that won't be an issue after today. Pebble is rolling out a firmware update to the Time, Time Steel and Time Round that introduces Pebble Health, a native fitness tracking app. It continuously tracks your step counts and sleep, like the earlier apps, but you now have coaching (built with help from Stanford University) to see where you need improvement. Your results won't exist in a vacuum, either, since they plug into Apple's HealthKit, Google Fit and (soon) third-party watch apps.
Pebble Time watches can reply to texts on iOS (if you're on AT&T)
Some Pebble users that link their smartwatch to an iPhone will now be able to reply to text messages straight through their devices. We say "some," because this is a beta release, and the feature's available to a pretty limited number of people for now. To be able to access the capability, you must have a Pebble Time, a Time Steel or a Time Round model, all of which were launched just this year. Plus, you must be an AT&T postpaid subscriber. If you somehow fall within the intersection of that Venn diagram, you'll be able to reply to texts either with a voice or a preloaded message. Pebble says its devices are the first non-Apple smartwatch "to bring voice and text replies to... iPhone users" and that it's working to roll the feature out to more carriers.
