Pebble Kickstarter Smartwatch UI Video Delivered
This week the folks behind the $10 million dollar Kickstarter funded smartwatch project Pebble has been updated to include a user interface video demo. This device will be released with full connectivity to iPhone and Android devices via Bluetooth and works with e-paper for easy reading and any lighting situation interactivity. You'll be able to play music, check emails, see notifications, and check the weather and time as well.
The video you're about to watch shows the prototype device connected with a rather large prototype logic board, showing up in an emulator as the developers show the current user interface on a larger PC nearby. There's also a demonstration of the user interface on an iPhone which emulates the final look and interface on the screen of an iPhone.
The final release date for the Pebble smartwatch has been missed, it being September of this year originally, with "scaling issues" being claimed for the missed mark. We're seeing the newest update take a more serious angle on the missed release date:
"Planning and scheduling a major manufacturing project is complex. We're working hard to complete the interconnected tasks that make up the production process. For me and the hardware engineers on the project, a large percentage of our time is spent exchanging complex spreadsheets filled with components specs by email, Skyping about the dimensions of minute hardware requirements and IMing our manufacturing team and factory. Not super exciting. That's why we've decided to share the more interesting stuff (photos, video and more!) in updates." – Eric + Pebble team
Some demo images on the iPhone shown in the gallery below includes an Incoming Call, Music Control, and an Email.
New updates in the Pebble road to the final product include their assurance that they have enough resistors – they just ordered 500,000 more than they had before! Next they note that they're testing watch strap samples, USB charge cables, and shipping components. The developers here have a Manufacturing Text Plan in the works, and they've again assured that they'll be updating their Twitter rather regularly.
Have a peek at the timeline below to get up to date on all things Pebble before the final product pops up later this year!
[via Pebble]