Roundtable: Pebble Smartwatch

11/16/2013

Roundtable: Pebble Smartwatch

I hadn't been a watch-wearer for years. I'm still not convinced I'm one now — strapping a timepiece onto your wrist doesn't feel particularly 21st Century — but here I am, with a Pebble proudly displayed on my arm. And I’m not alone. Myself, Jerry, Andrew — Pebble wearers, all.

It certainly took long enough, right? Pebble has been the darling of the "crowdfunding" world since it launched its $100,000 campaign on Kickstarter on April 11, 2012 — and walked away with more than $10.2 million in backers' money just 37 days later. Fast forward more than a year and watches finally started shipping to those who pledged. In August 2013, Pebble found itself on sale at Best Buy.

Now? It's safe to say the Pebble made it, albeit in a limited fashion. Samsung has since come into the game with the Galaxy Gear smartwatch, but to lukewarm reviews. So there’s still room for the upstarts.

We’ve yet to really weigh in on the Pebble. Given that it’s been out for a bit now, we’re going to do things differently and discuss it in more of a roundtable fashion. So with that, we present our collective views on the Pebble smartwatch.