New Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2 smartwatches are now on Kickstarter
New Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2 smartwatches are now on Kickstarter
Fans of the very first Pebble and the Pebble Time smartwatch are in for a treat. Over at Pebble’s Kickstarter page, you will find their successors, the Pebble 2 and the Pebble Time 2, available for pre-orders, along with the Pebble Core – Pebble’s first stand-alone fitness tracking gadget.
The new devices by Pebble embrace the fitness wearable trend (after all, if you can’t beat them, join them). For instance, the Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2 now comes equipped with 24/7 Heart Rate Monitoring (HRM) that tracks both active and resting HR, on top of its existing activity and sleep tracking features. Despite having new sensors, Pebble claimed that their new smartwatches would still have a robust battery life – the Pebble 2 can last up to seven days on a single charge, while the Pebble Time 2 can go on for 10 days before the next recharge.
The new smartwatches also come with an improved suite of health and fitness software. It introduces Adaptive Goals and calendar integration, which provides variation to your evolving fitness habits. Pebble claimed that Adaptive Goal is designed to keep its users motivated enough to exercise, while the calendar integration feature looks out for free hours in your schedule, leaving the user with no room for excuses to skip out on legs day.
Fitness enhancements aside, the new smartwatches also received some physical upgrades. While the Pebble 2 features its iconic 1.26-inch E-Ink display screen, the watch itself shed some bulk by adopting a thinner bezel, which resulted in a sleeker build that measures 39.5 x 30.2 x 9.8mm. The E-Ink display is now under Gorilla Glass, instead of its original plastic window. It also comes with a built-in microphone, a feature that the original Pebble did not have.
The Pebble Time 2 is essentially the premium version of its smartwatch, as it features a stainless steel frame that hugs its 1.5-inch color-paper display. The display is 53 percent larger than the previous smartwatch, at 40.5 x 37.5 x 10.8mm – slightly bigger than the Pebble 2. It ships with a silicone strap, but users have the option to get a leather or metal band separately (they cost an extra US$30 or US$50 respectively). The Pebble Time 2 also has a microphone, and it effectively succeeds both the Pebble Time and the Pebble Steel. After all, the company did indicate that they will need to be more careful with their spread of products after letting go 25 percent of its staff in late March 2016.
The Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2 smartwatches have already surpassed its funding goal in less than a day, achieving more than five times of its pledge target. The Pebble 2 will go for US$129, while the Pebble Time 2 retails at US$199. They are both compatible with iOS and Android OS smartphones.
You can also pre-order the Pebble 2 and Pebble Time 2 via their Kickstarter page at just US$99 and US$169 respectively, but stocks are quickly running out (as of writing, 90 percent were already gone). The Pebble 2 is expected to ship as early as September 2016, while the Pebble Time 2 will ship by November 2016 – if all goes well.