After wearing an analog watch for two years, I'll never buy another smart watch.
I do not need to be so connected to my phone that my wrist vibrates when someone texts me. The little reminders to stand up are ignored. The guilt at the end of a day when I didn't get enough steps in is gone. And I have a newfound appreciation for the pure craftsmanship that goes into making this tiny analog device on my wrist that is powered by tiny springs and gears and somehow crafted well enough to be accurate within seconds per day. It's also the one piece of jewelry that is socially acceptable for every single man to wear and can be a fun expression of self given the sheer variety of watches in the world.
I'm surprised that the article even said "but you don’t always have the luxury of sitting down to set the time and get the watch ready for the day".
I wear an automatic all the time, in fact I collect them, and most automatic watches will happily keep ticking for 36-48 hours. If you take it off to sleep it won't need adjusting the next morning.
Even if you did need to fiddle with a watch in the morning (which I do, as I switch watches every few days) it takes seconds to whirl the hands to the correct time. Certainly not a significant timesink.
100% agreed. I wore an apple watch daily for almost 10 years and have switched back to automatic watches. The notifications caused me to be way too connected to my phone, and the "tracking" aspects of it were kind of useless to me. I know intuitively if I got enough exercise in a given day (did I go to the gym? Did I go on a long walk?), I don't need a computer to tell me that. Same thing with sleep tracking: do I feel like shit in the morning? I probably didn't sleep well!
The one thing it's good for is run tracking, I'll still put it on for that activity.
I've been tempted to go that route: I used to have a transparent self-winding watch and I miss it.
The thing is, I really like seeing text messages on my watch out of the corner of my eye. I don't read them, but I know that so-and-so texted me, and if it's important I figure out how to read the text safely.
Otherwise, I turn off almost all watch notifications very aggressively.
---
I also really enjoy using my watch as an alarm clock and to track sleep, but I could just wear it at night if I wanted to wear a mechanical watch.
- I don't want EVERY SINGLE notification from my phone to go to my watch
- I also don't want zero notifications b/c it's very useful to get notifications from my kids, important calendar reminders, my boss sends me a slack etc
Also, the watch allows me to still be "connected" for important events but not distracted by my phone.
(I should add that Apple watches give you a LOT of control over the notifications from your phone to your watch. Not sure if that's true with other watches)
I set expectations with my team that it's only an emergency if I call or page them. I don't have Slack notifications on in my personal time, I don't expect my team to either.
When I had a Pebble Time (dead, waiting on PR2) I basically had notifications turned off. For that matter, I have very few notifications enabled phone too.
It's great as a watch that can tell you if it's going to rain, give you TOTP authenticator codes, and control music playback.
The tiny springs and gears are neat though, in a different sort of way from tiny transistors, can't argue with that one.
Cannot relate. I do not have notifications enabled on my Pebble.
I don't have any guilt over not having enough steps at the end of the day. But I am walking more thanks to my smartwatch.
I can start a timer in seconds when I am meditating, when I am cooking, when I am starting the watching machine. Also I have made a little app that shows me the weights and reps and sets I need to do for my powerlifting programme. I don't have to bring my phone to the gym. Lastly, I made a little app that shows me one thing I need to be doing for my morning routine or the next TODO on my todo list. A god send for someone suffering from ADHD.
It is pretty damn useful to track your progress if you do any kinds of endurance sports like running or cycling, but yeah I turned those notifications off right away.
Does anyone use their oxygen sensor on their wrist device? I have a garmin vivosmart 5 with an oxygen sensor but turned it off because its reading seems to wholly be related to how tight I have the band.
With the o2 sensor off my battery lasts a couple of weeks. With it on only a couple of days.
I have a good fingertip sensor for this that I bought during Covid.
My $10 Casio is infinitely a more reliable timepiece. It doesn't need charging so it can be taken off-grid for months at a time, easy to read the digits when half asleep and your eyes aren't working, has a built-in little light if needed, and if for some strange reason I need to replace it, it'll cost me $10.
When I need something more akin to a piece of jewelry, I reach for my Citizen eco-drive ($99), or my Seiko automatic ($150), both of which don't need recharging. ;)
Maybe this pebble will finally fit into a cost-conscious, and reliable model that existing timepieces already fill, but I'm not convinced through the quality of this article.
I've tried a handful of smartwatches, and own a Pebble 2 Duo. While I'm interested in picking up a newer Pebble device (hopefully with a bit nicer build quality), I've found my sweetspot to be a Garmin. I bought a Forerunner 165, have never needed to pair it to my phone so I can be happy in the data privacy department. Additionally the battery life is fantastic and it gives me all the data I need for my health and fitness goals.
For those who do not want notifications, of course you can disable it (all/per app). On my side i need agenda notification, and that brillant. Never miss a planned event, so i'm not going back to analog watch. Since the watch has memory, event if you are disconnect with the phone, you have most of them synched on your hand.
The only issue I had with Pebble Time Steel was the battery, even after changing it, was up for maximum a week. Now with a almost a month + a keychain charger type C adapter, i can't but stuck with an empty battery.
Looking forward to use "find my phone" feature on Ubuntu Touch (I think it's already here on Android)
I have been using a "withings" smartwatch for the last 8 years. The battery now last 3 weeks instead of a month. It has all the features I need spite of being an oldy: heartbeat, steps, calories, countdown, sport mode, etc. The newer ones even have gps and more.
But the thing is: it looks analog, the smart is almost hidden away, that's how I like the tech, because the watch looks really cool. It can receive messages, but I never enabled that feature.
I've taken it deep under water, clashed against climbing walls, kettle-bells and it has a few scratches on it. I'm not a pro at anything so I don't need the garmin precision. I only had to change the wrist thingy once. I don't want another screen in my life. I recommend it as an alternative to all these "wrist-phones"
I immediately went down the preorder track, but found that I had an existing pre-order for May (purchased Jan), which I never got a single update about.
On one hand, super glad they caught that, but otoh, why not let me know it was delayed so severely?
I think the battery life of a smart watch cannopt be underestimated. I have all the old pebbles which I love darely but then I got a Amazfit Bip and I stayed with it until today. One month (!) of battery time with a HR sensor and notifications is all I need so why ever change.
I dont know why apple, samsung and google are not getting it. But I would not even touch one of their products with a 2 feet long pole.
Just my experience and 2 ct.
And one thing: Pebble2 is really really nice, but 200 euro? The Amazfit Bip is (was) 40 euros. Why the price difference?
> I dont know why apple, samsung and google are not getting it.
I know nothing about smart watches other than the fact that the Pebble company failed and that I see Fitbit/Apple Watch everywhere. I’m not convinced that Apple/Google don’t get it.
Between the Apple Watch kind of watches on one side, and Pebble kind of watches on another side, there's the whole Garmin ecosystem, a mention of which is notably absent from the article. They are a nice technological middle ground (though maybe not always a price middle ground), especially the classic models with non-OLED transflective screens. Granted, they are more sports/fitness oriented, but that's hardly a drawback honestly.
I’ve found Coros to be great too. I’ve used my Vertix to track GPS for 48 hours continuously during a race. It’s been beaten up against rocks, soaking wet and filthy for extended periods and still works 100%. Just yesterday it saved me from a minor emergency when I got lost on a new trail and needed to backtrack. After years of use it still has weeks of battery life for tracking daily workouts. I don’t use any of the smartwatch features like notifications though and wear a mechanical watch as my daily driver.
Before owning a Garmin watch (Epix Pro Gen 2 in my case) I had no idea just how useful always having a flashlight* with you is. I'd put this feature near all the health/digital features in terms of usefulness. I have it set to red light mode by default and double-pressing the light button gives me instant and unobtrusive night vision. I have also turned on the Red Shift mode for the display which makes the watch itself much more pleasant to use.
Yeah I love my forerunner 945. Got it used in 2020 and when it died in 2023 Garmin replaced it for $150 including tax and shipping. Couple friends have got the new fancier touchscreen models but I like the simplicity of my watch. I blocked most texts from coming through as a buzz except immediate family or 2FA but it would be nice if Apple's focus modes worked better with it automatically. Been wondering if Pebble would be a good move to get even further away from proprietary software though as someone who runs or hits the gym monday through saturday
I have the Forrunner 955, and also love it. It has actual push buttons all the features I need in one watch with the running, biking, swim, golf, and hiking modes.
4-week battery life, if you don't go outside. Solar charges the watch relatively slow (e.g. it takes 3 hours of just sitting under the sun to charge a day), but if you get out frequently it just pushes the battery day just a little further. Funny experience, when I charged it the first time and got outside in the sun, it showed infinity days battery remaining :D
I also appreciate that most of the data is available right there on the watch (although sometime buried). And I even used the torch a couple of times!
The torch is super underrated. I use it regularly, like when getting out of bed in the middle of the night. The best torch is the one you always have on you.
I came here to say this. I had abandoned smartwatches entirely and gone back to mechanical watches because smartwatches just did too much and the small utility I got from them (i.e. health) came with the tradeoff that they had to be charged every couple of days. I ended up trying the Garmin Instinct and it has been exactly what I was looking for. I turn off all notifications and just use it for the data it gives me and for the fitness tracking.
That's exactly how I use it. Apart from the calendar and calls, I keep all notifications off. For me, this is the perfect smartwatch. Colour displays and touch screens don't interest me.
Unfortunately I think in the general consciousness people treat Garmins as “legacy” devices even as their systems are in some ways superior to the flashy upstarts and newcomers.
I used to run a lot and used a GPS watch to plot my runs .. initially, but this got boring fast. I don't want to compare myself with other runners. I just want a distraction free half an hour and thus no phone or watch. :)
Garmin for daily use, galaxy watch for social events. I have zero notifications and sensors running in the galaxy watch, just use it with the Google wallet for a very convenient credit card.
"There is NO way for a 3rd party smartwatch to compete with Apple Watch. Apple restricts 3rd parties in major ways. For example, 3rd party watches on iOS cannot send replies to notifications."
Why would they need to do the review on a device that doesn't work well? That says something about your choice of broken phone, it doesn't say anything about the watch.
I'm still wearing my Pebble Steel. It has a highly visible screen, great battery life, and it's easy to write whatever apps or games I want for it and deploy them immediately, without any signing BS.
After just not wearing a watch because I have a smart phone in my pocket all the time I'm out which has, amongst other functions, a lock on it and I can actually interact with one handed...I will continue simply not wearing an utterly redundant piece of technology.
Electronic devices that only need to do a handful of basic things like smartwatches and ereaders theoretically have less software complexity, which makes writing good software for them theoretically easier. in the age of ai, the threshold of "complex" has changed drastically- giving rise to even more open source adoption. Open source versions of these sw/hw tools seem to be a natural step forward.
After wearing an analog watch for two years, I'll never buy another smart watch.
I do not need to be so connected to my phone that my wrist vibrates when someone texts me. The little reminders to stand up are ignored. The guilt at the end of a day when I didn't get enough steps in is gone. And I have a newfound appreciation for the pure craftsmanship that goes into making this tiny analog device on my wrist that is powered by tiny springs and gears and somehow crafted well enough to be accurate within seconds per day. It's also the one piece of jewelry that is socially acceptable for every single man to wear and can be a fun expression of self given the sheer variety of watches in the world.
I'm surprised that the article even said "but you don’t always have the luxury of sitting down to set the time and get the watch ready for the day".
I wear an automatic all the time, in fact I collect them, and most automatic watches will happily keep ticking for 36-48 hours. If you take it off to sleep it won't need adjusting the next morning.
Even if you did need to fiddle with a watch in the morning (which I do, as I switch watches every few days) it takes seconds to whirl the hands to the correct time. Certainly not a significant timesink.
My automatic has a 3 day reserve and a quartz will stay on time for years
100% agreed. I wore an apple watch daily for almost 10 years and have switched back to automatic watches. The notifications caused me to be way too connected to my phone, and the "tracking" aspects of it were kind of useless to me. I know intuitively if I got enough exercise in a given day (did I go to the gym? Did I go on a long walk?), I don't need a computer to tell me that. Same thing with sleep tracking: do I feel like shit in the morning? I probably didn't sleep well!
The one thing it's good for is run tracking, I'll still put it on for that activity.
I've been tempted to go that route: I used to have a transparent self-winding watch and I miss it.
The thing is, I really like seeing text messages on my watch out of the corner of my eye. I don't read them, but I know that so-and-so texted me, and if it's important I figure out how to read the text safely.
Otherwise, I turn off almost all watch notifications very aggressively.
---
I also really enjoy using my watch as an alarm clock and to track sleep, but I could just wear it at night if I wanted to wear a mechanical watch.
I think there is a bit of a spectrum e.g.
- I don't want EVERY SINGLE notification from my phone to go to my watch
- I also don't want zero notifications b/c it's very useful to get notifications from my kids, important calendar reminders, my boss sends me a slack etc
Also, the watch allows me to still be "connected" for important events but not distracted by my phone.
(I should add that Apple watches give you a LOT of control over the notifications from your phone to your watch. Not sure if that's true with other watches)
I prefer to be able to slack my direct reports without thinking “are they going to get this on the toilet? Is this going to make them panic?”
It’s ok to wait a few minutes.
We've set up separate channels in our messaging app: One for random stuff and one for emergencies, and we only leave notifications on for the latter.
I set expectations with my team that it's only an emergency if I call or page them. I don't have Slack notifications on in my personal time, I don't expect my team to either.
When I had a Pebble Time (dead, waiting on PR2) I basically had notifications turned off. For that matter, I have very few notifications enabled phone too.
It's great as a watch that can tell you if it's going to rain, give you TOTP authenticator codes, and control music playback.
The tiny springs and gears are neat though, in a different sort of way from tiny transistors, can't argue with that one.
Cannot relate. I do not have notifications enabled on my Pebble.
I don't have any guilt over not having enough steps at the end of the day. But I am walking more thanks to my smartwatch.
I can start a timer in seconds when I am meditating, when I am cooking, when I am starting the watching machine. Also I have made a little app that shows me the weights and reps and sets I need to do for my powerlifting programme. I don't have to bring my phone to the gym. Lastly, I made a little app that shows me one thing I need to be doing for my morning routine or the next TODO on my todo list. A god send for someone suffering from ADHD.
It is pretty damn useful to track your progress if you do any kinds of endurance sports like running or cycling, but yeah I turned those notifications off right away.
Does anyone use their oxygen sensor on their wrist device? I have a garmin vivosmart 5 with an oxygen sensor but turned it off because its reading seems to wholly be related to how tight I have the band.
With the o2 sensor off my battery lasts a couple of weeks. With it on only a couple of days.
I have a good fingertip sensor for this that I bought during Covid.
I wish I could get into wearing watches, PineTime Pro is in development could be fun to work on that.
My $10 Casio is infinitely a more reliable timepiece. It doesn't need charging so it can be taken off-grid for months at a time, easy to read the digits when half asleep and your eyes aren't working, has a built-in little light if needed, and if for some strange reason I need to replace it, it'll cost me $10.
When I need something more akin to a piece of jewelry, I reach for my Citizen eco-drive ($99), or my Seiko automatic ($150), both of which don't need recharging. ;)
Maybe this pebble will finally fit into a cost-conscious, and reliable model that existing timepieces already fill, but I'm not convinced through the quality of this article.
I've tried a handful of smartwatches, and own a Pebble 2 Duo. While I'm interested in picking up a newer Pebble device (hopefully with a bit nicer build quality), I've found my sweetspot to be a Garmin. I bought a Forerunner 165, have never needed to pair it to my phone so I can be happy in the data privacy department. Additionally the battery life is fantastic and it gives me all the data I need for my health and fitness goals.
That's basicly what I think since i own a Pebble Time Steel. On Ubuntu Touch, using this great app: https://open-store.io/app/rockwork.mzanetti
For those who do not want notifications, of course you can disable it (all/per app). On my side i need agenda notification, and that brillant. Never miss a planned event, so i'm not going back to analog watch. Since the watch has memory, event if you are disconnect with the phone, you have most of them synched on your hand.
The only issue I had with Pebble Time Steel was the battery, even after changing it, was up for maximum a week. Now with a almost a month + a keychain charger type C adapter, i can't but stuck with an empty battery.
Looking forward to use "find my phone" feature on Ubuntu Touch (I think it's already here on Android)
I have been using a "withings" smartwatch for the last 8 years. The battery now last 3 weeks instead of a month. It has all the features I need spite of being an oldy: heartbeat, steps, calories, countdown, sport mode, etc. The newer ones even have gps and more.
But the thing is: it looks analog, the smart is almost hidden away, that's how I like the tech, because the watch looks really cool. It can receive messages, but I never enabled that feature.
I've taken it deep under water, clashed against climbing walls, kettle-bells and it has a few scratches on it. I'm not a pro at anything so I don't need the garmin precision. I only had to change the wrist thingy once. I don't want another screen in my life. I recommend it as an alternative to all these "wrist-phones"
I immediately went down the preorder track, but found that I had an existing pre-order for May (purchased Jan), which I never got a single update about.
On one hand, super glad they caught that, but otoh, why not let me know it was delayed so severely?
I think the battery life of a smart watch cannopt be underestimated. I have all the old pebbles which I love darely but then I got a Amazfit Bip and I stayed with it until today. One month (!) of battery time with a HR sensor and notifications is all I need so why ever change.
I dont know why apple, samsung and google are not getting it. But I would not even touch one of their products with a 2 feet long pole.
Just my experience and 2 ct.
And one thing: Pebble2 is really really nice, but 200 euro? The Amazfit Bip is (was) 40 euros. Why the price difference?
> I dont know why apple, samsung and google are not getting it.
I know nothing about smart watches other than the fact that the Pebble company failed and that I see Fitbit/Apple Watch everywhere. I’m not convinced that Apple/Google don’t get it.
The appeal here is not nostalgia so much as restraint. Pebble treats the watch as a peripheral
Smart watches to watches are like smart TVs to TVs.
Between the Apple Watch kind of watches on one side, and Pebble kind of watches on another side, there's the whole Garmin ecosystem, a mention of which is notably absent from the article. They are a nice technological middle ground (though maybe not always a price middle ground), especially the classic models with non-OLED transflective screens. Granted, they are more sports/fitness oriented, but that's hardly a drawback honestly.
I’ve found Coros to be great too. I’ve used my Vertix to track GPS for 48 hours continuously during a race. It’s been beaten up against rocks, soaking wet and filthy for extended periods and still works 100%. Just yesterday it saved me from a minor emergency when I got lost on a new trail and needed to backtrack. After years of use it still has weeks of battery life for tracking daily workouts. I don’t use any of the smartwatch features like notifications though and wear a mechanical watch as my daily driver.
Before owning a Garmin watch (Epix Pro Gen 2 in my case) I had no idea just how useful always having a flashlight* with you is. I'd put this feature near all the health/digital features in terms of usefulness. I have it set to red light mode by default and double-pressing the light button gives me instant and unobtrusive night vision. I have also turned on the Red Shift mode for the display which makes the watch itself much more pleasant to use.
* not all Garmin watches have it AFAIK
Yeah I love my forerunner 945. Got it used in 2020 and when it died in 2023 Garmin replaced it for $150 including tax and shipping. Couple friends have got the new fancier touchscreen models but I like the simplicity of my watch. I blocked most texts from coming through as a buzz except immediate family or 2FA but it would be nice if Apple's focus modes worked better with it automatically. Been wondering if Pebble would be a good move to get even further away from proprietary software though as someone who runs or hits the gym monday through saturday
I have the Forrunner 955, and also love it. It has actual push buttons all the features I need in one watch with the running, biking, swim, golf, and hiking modes.
Yeah, my Garmin Instinct Solar 3 gets a 4-week battery life. I never looked back at my Pebble Time.
4-week battery life, if you don't go outside. Solar charges the watch relatively slow (e.g. it takes 3 hours of just sitting under the sun to charge a day), but if you get out frequently it just pushes the battery day just a little further. Funny experience, when I charged it the first time and got outside in the sun, it showed infinity days battery remaining :D
I also appreciate that most of the data is available right there on the watch (although sometime buried). And I even used the torch a couple of times!
The torch is super underrated. I use it regularly, like when getting out of bed in the middle of the night. The best torch is the one you always have on you.
I came here to say this. I had abandoned smartwatches entirely and gone back to mechanical watches because smartwatches just did too much and the small utility I got from them (i.e. health) came with the tradeoff that they had to be charged every couple of days. I ended up trying the Garmin Instinct and it has been exactly what I was looking for. I turn off all notifications and just use it for the data it gives me and for the fitness tracking.
That's exactly how I use it. Apart from the calendar and calls, I keep all notifications off. For me, this is the perfect smartwatch. Colour displays and touch screens don't interest me.
Unfortunately I think in the general consciousness people treat Garmins as “legacy” devices even as their systems are in some ways superior to the flashy upstarts and newcomers.
I'm still trying to figure out what exact user case having a digital watch solves.
I mean .. I have a phone which shows time, plays music and can tell me who called / sent me a signal message.
I have issues with having to charge my phone so having another device that I will have to charge will not make my life any better.
really the only value is for runners/cyclists/swimmers. Being able to run without a bulky device is sooo much better.
I used to run a lot and used a GPS watch to plot my runs .. initially, but this got boring fast. I don't want to compare myself with other runners. I just want a distraction free half an hour and thus no phone or watch. :)
Pebble is too feature overloaded, I prefer a ring.
I'm scared of having a lithium battery on my finger like that.
Garmin for daily use, galaxy watch for social events. I have zero notifications and sensors running in the galaxy watch, just use it with the Google wallet for a very convenient credit card.
Now do the same review on an iOS device.
"There is NO way for a 3rd party smartwatch to compete with Apple Watch. Apple restricts 3rd parties in major ways. For example, 3rd party watches on iOS cannot send replies to notifications."
Why would they need to do the review on a device that doesn't work well? That says something about your choice of broken phone, it doesn't say anything about the watch.
I'm still wearing my Pebble Steel. It has a highly visible screen, great battery life, and it's easy to write whatever apps or games I want for it and deploy them immediately, without any signing BS.
After just not wearing a watch because I have a smart phone in my pocket all the time I'm out which has, amongst other functions, a lock on it and I can actually interact with one handed...I will continue simply not wearing an utterly redundant piece of technology.
Electronic devices that only need to do a handful of basic things like smartwatches and ereaders theoretically have less software complexity, which makes writing good software for them theoretically easier. in the age of ai, the threshold of "complex" has changed drastically- giving rise to even more open source adoption. Open source versions of these sw/hw tools seem to be a natural step forward.
I agree with the direction, though I am not sure "fewer features" always means easier software