A Watch for Christmas
I recently had a chance to test out two smartwatches for an extended period of time: The Moto 360 by Motorola which came out in 2014 and the Pebble from 2012. The Pebble was a Kickstarter project which raised over $10 million in 30 days by donations from complete strangers who liked the idea. That was the biggest and quickest of Kickstarter at the time.
What is a “Smartwatch?” Today “Smart” means connected to the internet like a smart-TV. A Smart TV allows you to access the internet and watch programs there instead of on cable or broadcast shows. So basically smartwatches are connected to the internet currently through your smartphone’s apps. They connect to each other with Bluetooth, some with Wi-Fi, then on to the internet.
They are not quite as “new” as you may think. The first smartwatch was called the “Wrist Computer” which was released in 1985 under the name of “Seiko Epson.” There were others of note leading up to the current day selection of many brands and models.
They allow you to see who is calling, answer your phone, read text messages, emails, weather alerts, temperatures, battery strength of the watch or phone and more. They both allow you to see text messages along with from and subject lines of emails and maybe a few lines of the email. However, neither will let you answer those emails and texts with anything but prewritten messages. These are similar to, “OK,” “I’m running late,” “I just left,” etc. You can also create some of your own canned responses. The two I have can give you maps that vibrate before you need to turn. So basically they are gadgets. Smartwatches seem to be coming out with new “smart” features most every day. Of course there are apps which allow you to sleep better, wake up gently, count steps you take, inform you of how many calories you have burned by taking those steps and more.
The Pebble has a rectangular portrait shape and the Moto 360 was the first round smartwatch. But as round as it is, it has what is referred to as a “flat tire.” The bottom of the screen has a dark, flat area where the ambient light sensor and display drivers are contained.
They both have unusual chargers that do not “plug” into the watch but do have a regular USB port on the power end. The Pebble has a magnetic charging wire with four posts that attach to on the left side of the watch. The Moto 360 lays in a cradle to charge wirelessly except for the power to the cradle wire.
Next week we will take a look at my comparison between the two types of smart watches as they are different in many ways.