The Pebble was the smartwatch darling of the early 2010s, a glimpse of the future in the form of a microcontroller and screen strapped to your wrist. It was snapped up by Fitbit and canned, which might have been the end of it all were it not for the dedication of the Pebble community. Google open-sourced the OS back in January this year, and since then a new set of Pebble products have appeared under the guidance of Pebble creator [Eric Migicovsky]. Now he’s announced the full open-sourcing of the current Pebble hardware and software stack. As he puts it, “Yesterday, Pebble watch software was ~95% open source. Today, it’s 100% open source”.
If you’re curious it can all be found in repositories under the Core Devices GitHub account. Building your own Pebble clone sounds cool, but perhaps the real value lies instead in giving the new Pebbles something the original never had, an assured future. If you buy one of the new watches then you’ll know that it will remain fixable, and since you have the full set of files you can create new parts for it, or update its software. We think that’s the right way to keep a personal electronic device relevant.
If you want a new Pebble they have a store, meanwhile read some of our previous coverage of its launch.
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Where did the drama end with code ownership and participation? It seemed for a while there was some “thanks for holding the fort; now get out” issue.
I fear this may be an unpopular take, I really don’t care for touch screens on watches and that’s probably going to be the reason I pass on this. Ten years ago, I owned several versions and offen bought replacements if my buttons died or screen tore. I still think it’s a dope watch, i just really don’t think watches need touch screens
From what I saw in the videos, almost all the interaction needed is possible through the 3 or 4 buttons on the sides, the guy in the video barely uses the touchscreen except to show that it is a touchscreen. So it’s kinda touchscreen optional, which is nice if you have gloves on or something
I definitely agree with you there. My original comment is entirely my own opinion, I’m clumsy and bump the screen often. My personal preference would be button-only, like the original, or my current Garmin watch. I really do wish them well, I’ve been a fan for a long time and was really bummed when they were eaten by Google
Oooh I didn’t think of accidentally bumps. Maybe they’ll add a way to lock the touchscreen!
Fingers crossed, yeah. I love the new design otherwise and honestly probably will end up getting one, it just won’t be my every day watch
I almost pulled the trigger on the original Kickstarter, but ultimately didn’t. I’d be tempted again but my Apple watch does everything I need. Still, it’s good to see it come back and I hope it succeeds.
