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Smartwatch-style notifications are finally coming to Polar's V800
Twelve months ago, Polar announced the V800, a supremely powerful GPS running watch that came with built-in activity tracking. The standout feature, however, would be that the device would offer-up Pebble-esque smartwatch notifications. Unfortunately, the company didn't have the development resources to make good on its promises, so the latter feature was iced in favor of improving the watch's swimming features. A year later, however, and the company is finally ready to make good on its pledge.
My top five products of 2014: Mike Rose
It's been all apps, all the time around here as we wrap up our favorites of 2014. For a change of pace, I thought I'd pull together my favorite five products that don't necessarily require a visit to the App Store. Apple Pay & Touch ID (included with iPhone 6/6 Plus, coming for Watch). It doesn't feel good to skip an iPhone generation, as much as we claim to be "waiting for the next one" or "really fine with the phone I have now." In my case, a work-owned iPhone 5 was holding its own when the 5s premiered, and I couldn't really justify forking over the monthly service costs for a second phone. As a result, my first real Touch ID experience, on my recently upgraded 6 Plus, coincided almost exactly with the launch of Apple Pay. I can't say it strongly enough: Apple Pay is what Touch ID was built for, and it's one of the most vivid examples of Apple's user-first interaction design I've ever had the pleasure of using. Touch ID on its own is dandy; the iOS 8-enabled use of the thumbprint unlock in third-party apps (1Password! Finally!) and in the App Store makes it especially useful, as if unlocking your device at a touch wasn't enough. (I'd only had my new phone a few days before I found myself grumbling as I picked up my iPad -- "What, I gotta put in my passcode? Like a caveman?") But oh my, Apple Pay. Putting the power of the payment network and NFC hardware behind that little fingerprint sensor triggers a seismic shift in the way I think about using my iPhone every day. From prescriptions at Duane Reade to supplies at Staples to rides in NYC taxicabs, I'm constantly looking for new places to pay with a touch. No surprise that Apple's feel-good payment platform is beginning to transform our relationship with the overstuffed old-fashioned wallet. STM Linear for MacBook Air 13" (stmbags.com, about US$60). I'll confess that when I bought myself an STM Linear shoulder bag, it was a consolation purchase; my original object of desire was the elite and often sold-out Tom Bihn Ristretto. I was looking for a shoulder bag in a vertical profile, keeping the laptop upright and providing a lean silhouette as I carried my gear around at trade shows or meetings. Since the Bihn bag wasn't in stock when I went looking, I fell back to the STM -- and I haven't regretted it for a moment (nor did I mind that the STM bag is about half the price of the Ristretto). The Linear has enough space for the MacBook, an iPad, cables cords etc. without feeling cramped or overpacked, and the smaller capacity vs. a messenger bag or backpack keeps me from overloading when I step out the door. The Roost Stand (therooststand.com, $75). After meeting the Denver-based Roost team at Macworld/iWorld in the wake of their successful Kickstarter, I thought this unusual foldout laptop stand would be a great fit for my desk. It's portable, light and tough as a Colorado winter, and can be adjusted as needed to hold most portables securely. What I didn't expect was how viral the Roost would become; at least four co-workers have gone ahead and bought their own Roosts in the months since. If you work in an office, be sure to put your name on your Roost so it doesn't wander off. iMac Retina 5K (apple.com, starting at $2499). Who says the desktop is dead? Apple's jaw-dropping all in one model reset the notion of what a desktop PC should look like, even with a wallet-busting sticker price (in fairness, Dell's 5K monitor alone would have cost as much as the iMac, if not for a price drop after Apple's introduction). The Retina iMac is so delicious that even jaded tech writers find themselves compelled, like the NY Times' Farhad Manjoo, to take one home and give it a prominent place on their desks. I haven't replaced my 2011-vintage iMac just yet, but when I do I'll be saving up for the Big Kahuna. Jawbone ERA (jawbone.com, $99/$129 with charging case). I have never had much luck with Bluetooth headsets; whether it's fit or function, they just don't seem to work for me. Other than LG's Tone Pro around the neck headphones -- which provide great stereo sound at the cost of mediocre phone calls and "looking like a huge dork" -- I hadn't found a solid choice. That's why I've been so pleased with the new-generation Jawbone ERA, which works great for phone calls and conferences without being horribly obvious. Jawbone's noise reduction is adequate to a busy city street, and with the current firmware the hardware button can serve as a mute switch on calls (life-changing). The ERA is not cheap, but if you've struggled to find a headset that works the way you do, it's worth a look. Honorable Mention: Pebble (getpebble.com, $99/$199). It's black-and-white, not color. It's not touchable or speakable. It is decidedly not an Apple watch, but in many ways it's a better first wearable than a yet-to-ship Watch could be. Why do I enjoy my Pebble? Five days or more of battery life, for one thing. Waterproof enough to wear in the shower. Notifications that let me see who's calling, emailing, texting or tweeting at me without having to haul the 6 Plus out of my pocket fifteen times an hour. And a reasonably active app/developer community delivering cool hacks on a regular basis. No, I won't promise not to look longingly at the next shiny device coming from Cupertino soon. But I'll be looking with the benefit of a lot of experience with the first generation of wrist-based tech.
Pebble's smartwatches now support Android Wear notifications
What's a little startup like Pebble to do when there are so many Android Wear smartwatches out there? Two things: cut the price, and make the watches as useful as possible. After recently adding apps for Dominos Pizza and PayPal, the company is updating its Android application so that it's compatible with Android Wear notifications. Which is to say, you can act on notifications directly from your watch. (Think: dismissing alerts and such.) From a developer standpoint, that means that if an app is already Android Wear-compatible, it'll work on Pebble devices too; devs don't have to code their applications twice. The feature is still in beta, but it's open to everybody, so any of you can try out this new feature, starting now. All you need is a Pebble or Pebble Steel watch, with a smartphone running Android 4.0 or higher. And, of course, you need the latest version of the app (v2.3) installed. Have at it!
PayPal debuts mobile payments app for Pebble smartwatch
PayPal today announced that it was expanding its mobile payments app to the Pebble smartwatch platform. The app also is available iOS and other wearables including Samsung's Gear smartwatch series and Android Wear devices. The mobile payments app allows Pebble owners to make PayPal purchases when they visit a store where the payment service is accepted. Pebble owners making a PayPal payment can authorize a purchase with their smartwatch using either a check-in to pay or a payment code option. Users also can receive payment notifications on their wrist-worn device. The app is available now in the Pebble app store and requires an active PayPal account.
Pebble owners can now use PayPal on their smartwatch
Starting today, you will have access to PayPal right from your Pebble. The payments company announced earlier that there's now a compatible application for the smartwatch, which is available free of charge from Pebble's app store. Once installed, it can be used to make payments at any PayPal-friendly location around you, including restaurants and other local brick-and-mortar businesses. There's also support for notifications, allowing you to use the Pebble wearable to easily, and at a glance, keep up with your account. A few months ago, PayPal became one of the first apps to come to Android Wear, so the company has definitely made sure it is well covered in this space.
Track your Domino's order via a Pebble smartwatch
A Pebble smartwatch is handy for a number of things, and now you can use it to keep tabs on your pizza order. Thanks to Domino's app for said gadget, you can monitor the status of your Wisconsin 6 Cheese pie, Crispy Bacon & Tomato Specialty Chicken and Stuffed Cheesy Bread with a glance at your wrist. The app shows updates when food is being made, baking, undergoing a "quality check" and either ready for pickup or on its way to your door. Don't have a Pebble? There are options for ordering via iPad, TV and more, because of course.
Pebble drops prices by $50 and adds continuous fitness tracking
If you've been thinking about getting a smartwatch but haven't been persuaded to plunk down a lot of cash, Pebble's trying to make the decision a little easier for you. The watch maker is lowering the price of its full lineup by $50, which means you can now get the sporty original model (above, right) for $100 and the fancier Steel (above, left) for $200. Usually significant price drops like these are a reaction to slowing sales, but CEO Eric Migicovsky says that on the contrary, sales are still as strong as ever and the ecosystem is growing. The company wants to offer the "right price for the product" and properly represent Pebble watches in light of the swelling competition in this category, Migicovsky said. Indeed, with the debut (and proliferation) of Android Wear this year and Apple Watch next year, Pebble wants to add cost to its list of competitive advantages alongside battery life and cross-platform functionality -- especially as the holidays approach and smartwatch choices become even tougher.
Sound off! How would you make a killer smartwatch?
It looks like the smartwatch is here to stay, and now that Apple has shown off their own attempt at creating some svelte looking electronic wrist candy, you can guarantee more people will be wearing them in the near future. But are smartwatches really useful? Besides showing off your latest notifications, what do they need to become an essential part of our lives? Head over to the Engadget forums and share your thoughts!
Pebble now displays emojis and lets you dismiss alerts from your watch
Do you hate emojis? Too bad, because they're everywhere: they've even arrived on Pebble and Pebble Steel via the smartwatches' latest firmware. The software upgrade allows emoticons to show up on Pebble's monochrome screen -- sure, they're not yellow or animated, but they're better than those blank boxes that typically take their place. More importantly for Apple users, though, this firmware brings iOS 8 compatibility and a really neat notification management feature to their watches. Now, when they dismiss an alert from their Pebbles, it also disappears from their phones' notification centers. (Hey, Android users, the company says it's working on a version for your devices, as well!) Other than these, the firmware also enables the watch's built-in compass and adds a fun Domo-kun watchface to your collection.
The ugly truth about wearable technology
When it comes to putting computers on our bodies, everyone's an armchair Anna Wintour. Take a look at the comments on any story about wearable technology, just about anywhere. Ugly is in the eye of the beholder. And with good reason. While some of us view our PCs, smartphones and tablets as status symbols, our clothing and accessories are more closely tied to our identities than anything else.
Wearable device shipments have soared in the past year
In case you had any doubts that wearable devices were catching on, Canalys just delivered some tangible proof. The analyst group estimates that the tech industry shipped a total of about 6 million smartwatches and fitness trackers in the first half of 2014, or nearly 700 percent more than it managed a year earlier. Not surprisingly, most of the watches were Samsung devices -- the Korean company's rapid-fire Gear watch releases made it almost ubiquitous. Pebble and Sony also did well in this fledgling space. Fitbit and Jawbone, meanwhile, moved many of the simpler wristbands.
Could one of these gadgets upgrade your golf game?
With golf season in mid-swing, is your handicap going down, or just your morale? If it's the latter, a few extra lessons might be in order. Given that I write for Engadget (and not Golf Digest) I can't school you, but I can help you with some technology tips. There's a glut of golf devices designed to help you score better, and I tested swing sensors from Zepp Golf and 3Bays, along with the presidentially-approved Game Golf shot-tracking system. For good measure, I also tried a Pebble watch with the Golf Pad GPS and scoring system -- and even a pair of shoes from Ogio, better known for laptop bags. So, how'd it go? Pretty good, actually -- you'll probably still want those lessons, but these gadgets can get you going in the right direction. Also, and perhaps most importantly, they're kind of fun, too.
Pebble smartwatches get ESPN app just in time for football season
We're a week away from the start of college football season, and to prep for the action, ESPN released a score-tracking app for Pebble smartwatches. The software beams game info from the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL alongside both NCAA football and basketball action to your wrist for easy viewing. Should you find yourself some place other than the living room during the big game, the wearable will vibrate to alert you to game update and score changes, keeping an eye on multiple games simultaneously. Sports fans who already have the gadget can outfit it with the ESPN watchapp via the Pebble's library for both iOS and Android now.
RunKeeper will now bribe you to beat your best
You tell yourself you're gonna go running. You might even have an app that gently prods you to get your lazy keister up off the couch. But let's be honest, the most effective motivator is the good ol' fashioned bribe. That's why RunKeeper is teaming up with Kiip, a company that delivers ads and rewards through games and mobile apps. The idea isn't just to get you casually jogging though, but to actually get you to push yourself. Through the new workout rewards program, RunKeeper will deliver discounts on Propel Water, Secret Deodorant or even a Pebble smartwatch when you reach a personal best in distance or pace for instance. All the rewards are specifically chosen to appeal to RunKeeper's athletic market niche, so you shouldn't have to worry about being offered discounts on Transformers Blu-rays. You won't get bombarded by offers either, they'll only pop up sometimes -- and you'll really have to work for them. But it might be nice to get something at the end of a long marathon than a smug sense of self satisfaction.
Pebble nabs the former interface designers for webOS and First Else
Here's some rather unusual news from Pebble: Former webOS designers Itai Vonshak and Liron Damir have left LG to join the wearable startup, which is a pretty big deal given their unique spin on UI design -- you'll want to check out what they did to LG's smart TVs before they left. In fact, if you recall the ill-fated First Else phone from late 2009, its Splay interface -- now available as a standalone launcher (pictured above) on Google Play -- was also the work of the Israeli duo. Vonshak is now in charge of Pebble's Product and UX team, whereas Damir is joining as the Head of Design; and for those who are interested, they're hiring!
Engadget UK giveaway: win a Pebble Steel courtesy of GeniusFlight
School's out for summer, and many of you are no doubt looking forward to sun, sea, several strong cocktails and a few weeks off work. Foreign lands are always better enjoyed with a trusted travel companion, and in lieu of actual friends, we're giving away a black Pebble Steel to fill that role. The second-generation e-ink smartwatch is smaller, classier and pricier than its predecessor, and comes to us courtesy of GeniusFlight: a flight searching site with a difference. GeniusFlight revolves primarily around your budget, which you specify alongside preferred travel dates and departing destination. The tool then tells you where in the world that money will take you, hopefully with some inspiring options you wouldn't have come up with unaided. As always, any Brits interested in taking a free Pebble Steel on tour can enter up to three times via the Rafflecopter widget below. After they've read the rules first, of course. Winning: congrats to Joel C. from London!
Hacking the friendly skies: creating apps for wearables at 36,000 feet
Few activities are as taxing, time-consuming and mentally draining as air travel, and there are hundreds of thousands of travel-related apps to help us get from point A to point B with as little hassle as possible. But there's always room for improvement, especially now that wearables like Android Wear, the Pebble smartwatch and embedded sensors are growing in popularity. While it's already possible to scan boarding passes or receive flight notifications on smartwatches, there are surely other use cases that would ease the burden of flying. Wearable World, which teaches wearable-related startups the ins and outs of the business, partnered with American Airlines to create what it's billing as "the first in-air wearables hackathon." Teams were asked to come up with the best travel app for wearables, and the finalists got to jump on one of the airline's newest planes to polish their app and show it off to real-life passengers.
Engadget Daily: Google I/O 2014, the deal with Android Wear and more!
Today, we discuss tomorrow's Google I/O conference, review the Galaxy Tab S, take a look at Misfit's new Pebble fitness tracking app and explore the potential of Google's Android Wear platform. Read on for Engadget's news highlights from the last 24 hours.
Misfit's fitness tracker is now available as a Pebble app
We're calling this "wearable-ception." Misfit's Shine is a waterproof fitness tracker. With an accelerometer and 5 ATM rating, so (potentially) is the Pebble smartwatch. Color us surprised then, to find out Misfit and Pebble are partnering to re-imagine Shine as a Pebble app. Misfit's experience and bespoke fitness tracking software is being shoe-horned into a watch-friendly format, and will be available in the Pebble appstore today -- no Shine required. If you already have a Shine, and are an iOS user, an updated app will fold in support for Pebble watches, should you prefer to keep things separate. The updated app also includes some new metrics, such as calories burned, and distance traveled. Pebble already has a number of fitness apps, but the company claims this is the first stage in an ongoing collaboration with Misfit -- so expect even more fitness functionality in the future.
Honeywell thermostat lets you set the temperature using your Pebble smartwatch
Honeywell may now be looking to take on Nest with a new sleek and stylish thermostat, but it's still making sure that users of its other connected systems enjoy updates too. In a bid to make things a little easier for owners of it evohome smart zoning thermostat, the company has extended support to the Pebble smartwatch, offering up room-by-room heating control from the comfort of your wrist. Honeywell's new smart bundle allows you to set the temperature of in each zone (or room) in your home and turn the heating on or off with the push of a button. The app can also immediately enable or disable any of the preset evohome quick actions, which is especially helpful if you've forgotten to shut off the heating before you fly off on holiday. If you've installed Honeywell's zoning thermostat and also own a Pebble, you can grab the new app and watchface from Pebble's app store using either your iOS or Android device.