Pebble remains the single most successful Kickstarter project of all time (and the third (and the fifth!)) – so with no interest in offerings from the big names like Samsung, LG, and Apple, that is where I headed in search of my next smartwatch…
I have backed each of the following as part of my continual search for something to fill the Pebble-sized hole in my heart and on my wrist (urm, OK, so there’s actually no hole in either since I still wear one of my countless beloved Pebble devices each and every day!) – and I’ll provide detailed reviews as (if?) each arrives!
Gameband: The First Smartwatch for Gamers
The earliest campaign of the bunch, Gameband raised over $325,000 back in March. At the time, I was still recovering from Pebble’s sudden demise and despite being a departure from the Pebble’s minimalist specs, the Gameband caught my eye as a wearable with a purpose. Running custom Android 7.0 Nougat-based firmware (“FearOS”, named after the project’s creator, Feargal), the Gameband is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor, and packs 512MB RAM, 4GB eMCC ROM, accelerometer, gyro and light sensor, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, plus a MicroSD slot for storage, and a USB-C port (yay!). The latter two four features enable the Gameband as a mobile high-speed wired/wireless storage solution, with an emphasis on PixelFurnace, a “game management and launch platform” allowing users to launch a collection of games when connected to a PC (not to be confused with the selection of mini-games available to play on the Gameband’s 320x320px 1.63" AMOLED display). IP67 compliance means it’s OK to get the Gameband a little wet in the rain and even a quick shallow dunk shouldn’t cause problems. Finally, a 400mAh battery provides “a few days of use” under normal usage.
I am an “early bird” backer of the black Gameband edition at $149 plus $10 shipping, and I elected to upgrade to Gorilla Glass for an extra $7.
Pros
- Gamer-focused – not just another meandering general/fitness-oriented wearable
- mSD, Wi-Fi, BT
4.2, nice display, big battery - SDK (?)
Cons
- no publicly known SDK details at present
- PixelFurnace looks like it’s still focused on their previous model
- all gameband.com URLs currently redirect to “We’re working on our cool new website” so no info there either…?
ETA/Status
- Original: September 2017
- Updated: December 2017
The Gameband team have done a fair job of keeping backers in the loop, with 1-2 updates each month.
ZeTime: World’s first smartwatch with hands over touchscreen
My own thirst for something different from the uninspired offerings of Apple, Samsung, and their ilk appears to be validated by the ZeTime, which – along with 26,827 like-minded backers – raised $5,333,792 – only a little more than half of Pebble’s smallest, original campaign, but enough for 18th on the all-time list! This watch is set apart from the competition by its mechanical hands between the display and touch panel, which allow up to 30 days of time-telling when not in “smartwatch mode” (and up to 3 days with the screen enabled) – and which intelligently get out of the way as needed using something ZeTime calls Smart Movement. With an emphasis on design, the few specs that have been detailed lag behind those of the Gameband: a 240px round TFT display, 200mAh battery, a vibration motor, and no processor, RAM, storage or sensor details beyond accelerometer and 3-LED optical heart rate sensor. The watch runs a proprietary MyKronoz OS about which no details have surfaced at present. The device’s potential is limited even further by the lack of SDK or third-party support, which MyKronoz say:
ins’t (sic) part of our original scope. … but could be a product enhancement after launch.
On the plus side, the success of the campaign has unlocked a bevy of bonuses for backers, including:
- upgraded (desk) charger with built-in
200400mAh power bank - free bonus watch band
- doubled (to 2-year) warranty
I am an “early bird” backer of the Original Collection at $139 plus $10 shipping.
Pros
- mechanical hands for “always-on” time display
- established smartwatch/activity tracker creator
5 ATMwater resistance
Cons
- no SDK or plans to support development
- no ability even to create custom watchfaces
- unknown proprietary OS
- exciting hardware with extreme limitations due to the above
ETA/Status
- Original: September 2017
- Updated: on track for September delivery per August 13 update!
The ZeTime team have done a good job of keeping backers updated, with 1-5 updates each month.
Dagadam Watch – Think Beyond
Dagadam, the most expensive of the bunch at $209 for the “early bird” Basic Package, raised £140,000 (about $180,000) back in May. I backed this project because they had a very professional-looking, detailed, well-thought out campaign, plus a few unique features that I’d not seen anywhere else. The first was their “Smart Notification Center”, Dagadam HUB which claims to tailor your notifications based on past interactions. I get an absurd number of notifications, so this feature appealed greatly to me. Secondly, the unique SENSE touch bezel allows for easy adjustment of volume, zooming, etc. (in addition to the normal touch screen) – this is something that I always thought could have made a nice addition to the Pebble (and even looked into prototyping myself!) so I was excited to see it coming to life elsewhere and wanted to give it a try. Other quirky features like Dagadam Buddy, which allows Dagadam wearers to exchange contact info by touching their devices together for 5 seconds always appeal to me, though realistically I don’t expect to run into one of the other 838 backers in the wild! The Dagadam has some of the most impressive specs of the bunch, with a 400px 1.4" round display, 8GB of storage, 512MB of RAM, a 450mAh battery, accelerometer, gyro, light sensor, heart rate monitor, vibration motor, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1, and built-in GPS. Setting it apart further from the other watches mentioned so far is the inclusion of a microphone and speaker (while still retaining IP67 compliance), suggesting that voice assistant, phone calls, etc. may be possible, depending on the firmware. The watch runs Mobvoi’s Ticwear OS – an established Android-based OS with its own app store and SDK. If the name Mobvoi sounds familiar, it’s because they are the creators of the successful Ticwatch line of smartwatches – the latest of which, however (as covered below) runs Android Wear.
I am an “early bird” backer of the Basic S Package at £151 (shipping included) – the S, as well as being £18 cheaper, is 44mm in diameter (like the regular ZeTime) vs. the whopping 49mm of the original. The S also has reduced storage at 4GB instead of 8GB, and its 1.2" display is 360px (vs. 400px) while the battery is reduced from 450 to 350mAh.
Pros
- mature, already-available SDK
- ability even to create and customize watchfaces
- AI-powered Smart Notification Center
- SENSE touch bezel
Cons
- small campaign – fewer than 1,000 backers
- high price compared to others in the group: over $200 for the Basic Package, even at “early bird” pricing
- Mobvoi themselves have moved on from Ticwear to Android Wear with their latest device
- fulfillment delays and communication lapse
ETA/Status
- Original: June 2017
- Updated: per August 15 update:
one month / one month and a half – provided that there will be no other issues to delay us.
The Dagadam team started out with fantastic communication: half a dozen to a dozen updates per month before the project was funded and for the following couple of months. In late June, issues with the selected manufacturer were revealed, and then updates stopped completely in early July. Thankfully an update on August 15th shared details of a new contract and production plan, with a revised ETA of mid-to-late September. Additionally, the immensely confusing band size options were replaced with a single universal band.
UWear – Powerful and Affordable Smart Watch for Hikers
By far the least expensive of the group, the UWear focuses on outdoor sports, GPS, and battery life. A 110px round TFT LCD provides both always-on display (the only one of the bunch to do so) and 12-15 days’ use on a single charge for “typical” usage without GPS. 10 ATM water resistance, GPS, heart rate monitoring and tracking of 10 different sports makes the UWear a viable companion for a range of activities beyond hiking. Packed with sensors, including compass, barometer, altimeter, thermometer and hygrometer, and featuring innovative features like Maze Escape and social hiking, the UWear goes well beyond the basic functionality that its price might imply. Detailed specs on the underlying hardware have not been published, and the OS is proprietary/unknown. Uwatch, the creators of UWear, have been producing wearables for a decade, with over 1 million smartwatches shipped in the past two years. As such, and with no external dependencies, UWear production is able to begin as soon as the campaign is complete.
I am an “early bird” backer at $768 HKD (around $99 USD) plus $60 HKD shipping.
Pros
- true always-on
LCDdisplay - up to 15 days’ battery life (45 always-on time-only without Bluetooth!)
- extensive GPS and sports capabilities
10 ATMwater resistance- low cost compared to others in the group
Cons
- no SDK or watchface creation at launch
- unknown proprietary OS
- limited to manufacturer’s firmware functionality due to above
ETA/Status
- Original: August 2017
- Updated: production almost complete per August 24 update!
The UWear team have only averaged one update per month since the campaign concluded, but with detailed photos of production, backers can easily be reassured that real progress is being made.
Ticwatch E: A Truly Optimized Smartwatch
The second most successful campaign of the group at $3,203,762, Ticwatch S (Sport) and Ticwatch E (Express) aim to bring low-cost Android Wear to the masses. As mentioned earlier, Mobvoi created their own Android-based Ticwear OS to power their previous offerings, but have eschewed it in order to leverage the might of Google’s Android Wear 2.0 with their latest hardware (while continuing to add their own software enhancements). Despite its relatively low price, the Tickwatch’s specs match the highest of the rest of the group in many categories: 512MB RAM, 4GB ROM, 1.4" 400px round touch display, GPS, heart rate monitor, microphone, speaker, accelerometer, gyro, proximity sensor, vibration motor, 802.11n Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.1, all while maintaining IP67 compliance and two days’ battery life. Instead of the near-ubiquitous Wear-oriented quad-core 1.2GHz A7 Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor, the Ticwatch uses MediaTek’s dual-core 1.2GHz A7 MT2601 – surely enough grunt despite fewer cores! With a 5-year track record, successful on-time delivery of their previous crowdfunded smartwatch, the Ticwatch 2 (which shares the MT2601 chipset and many other specs with the S and E), and a heathy-sized campaign, Mobvoi seem like the safest bet of the bunch, as well as perhaps best overall value.
I am an “early bird” backer of the Ticwatch E at $119 plus $7 shipping. The Ticwatch S moves the GPS antenna to its breathable watch band, and adds a “sporty” bezel – none of which appeal to me, especially at a $20 premium.
Pros
- Android Wear
2.0vs. proprietary/lesser-known OS - ability to develop Wearable Apps (including Standalone) via Android Wear
2.0 - top-of-the-line specs despite lower-end pricing
Cons
- Android Wear
2.0– instead of what I like to call a “watch-first” focus that Pebble and many of the above hopefully maintain, succumbing to Google means intentional subservience to the almighty handset – although this has improved with2.0– yet at the same time the lack of4G/LTE/3Gradios or support for them in the tethered MT2601 chipset mean the Ticwatch remains slave to the phone
ETA/Status
- Original: November 2017
- Updated: with the campaign only just having completed on August 18th, there has been no chance for revision yet – nor is it expected, given Mobvoi’s track record
The Ticwatch team have only posted a single update, which seems reasonable given the recency of the campaign conclusion.
Conclusion
So which is the best? Which should consumers favor? What about developers? Which will ship on time, and which will fail? Each project, hardware implementation, firmware, and team is completely different – it’s impossible to predict answers to any of these questions at this point. But rest assured that I’ll be sharing detailed reviews of each when they (hopefully!) arrive, as well as any other interesting campaign developments along the way. Until then…well, the Pebble Time Steel that I’m wearing says it’s time to wrap this post up… 