5 ms·

I'm really disappointed with Pebble. I had a Pebble Steel (the original Steel) and it was great for a while. But when they introduced version 3.0 (I think?), w

I'm really disappointed with Pebble. I had a Pebble Steel (the original Steel) and it was great for a while. But when they introduced version 3.0 (I think?), which brought on the new interface I pretty much stopped wearing it. I'm not a heavy calendar user, except when it comes to work. The 3.0 update was based on the idea that users love using the calendar to schedule their days. That one primary change took away from the simplistic interface that the earlier versions had and made the Pebble more of a chore to keep up with. I didn't want to be bombarded with notifications about tasks/meetings at work, and I certainly didn't want them showing up in the main day view. But then that single today view was mostly unused and empty. It's pretty unfortunate, IMO. I enjoyed using it up till then. I guess I could give it another chance but at this point the Original Steel has likely reached its end of life, at least with respect to new updates.

frio 10y ago
It's funny -- I was the exact opposite. I got the original Pebble Kickstarter Edition, and couldn't really find much of a use for it. Having notifications on my wrist was OK, but not mindblowing. The addition of the timeline made _so much_ sense for me. I've barely taken the watch off since (except to upgrade to a Time Steel). It's extremely handy being able to just tap a button on my wrist in order to figure out if I need to be somewhere else. In fact, the biggest frustration has been that I need to press a button; I'd love it if a watch-face permanently showed me my next appointment. As it turns out, this new update does just that, so, awesome. Different strokes for different folks I guess :). I'm sorry that UX change hasn't been as good for you as it has been for me.
wvenable 10y ago
I'm not much of a timeline user but the old design of using the up/down buttons to switch watch faces was obviously not the best use of the primary interface. I'm surprised that is what you enjoyed best about it. It's hard to be disappointed with Pebble on the software side -- they've continued to make smart solid improvements with each release and backport as much as possible to the older devices. There have been a few missteps but nothing too ridiculous.
- spike021 10y ago
  Oh, I didn't enjoy using the buttons to swap watchfaces. I typically used a single one throughout the day and occasionally would switch to an app, like the MLB app/watchface, as needed (very rarely). I enjoyed the simplistic interface where I could see current time/day/temp/weather and get notifications as they came up. It was nearly perfect for my usecase except that for iOS they never implemented app filtering (for deciding which of my phone apps' notifications would come through the watch).
  - wvenable 10y ago
    I guess I don't understand. OS 3.0 didn't change that functionality of the watch in any way. You still have a watch face and notifications as they come up. That's primarily how I use it as well. What changed for you? They do have app filtering on iOS now.
taneq 10y ago
I don't mind 3.0 (although the timeline doesn't really do anything for me), I just hate the way their "privacy" policy makes something that should be personal and trustworthy (a wrist watch) into a Trojan horse to vacuum every scrap of personal information for them to later sell on.
- kylec 10y ago
  Wait, what? Do you have more context? I hadn't heard about this.
  - taneq 10y ago
    Basically their privacy policy has some very disingenuous wording which makes it sound like they are respecting your privacy, while retaining the right to sell it to third parties. The information they collect is listed quite openly in the first few sections of their privacy policy (link: https://www.pebble.com/legal/privacy https://www.pebble.com/legal/privacy ). It's pretty reasonable that the app needs local access to some of this information, less defensible that it accesses other information (geolocation information, unique device ID numbers, time spent in other apps on your phone?!) and not defensible IMO that they need to hoover it up off your phone. At least they're open about it. Note that they "maintain log files in identifiable form for a period of time for troubleshooting and other purposes" - this is stored in identifiable form indefinitely. The kicker is under "3. Information sharing and disclosure." > As we continue to develop our business, we may sell, buy, merge or partner with other companies or businesses, or sell some or all of our assets. In such transactions, user information may be among the transferred assets. Emphasis mine. Note the way this starts as if it's talking about mergers or acquisitions, then sneaks in "or we might just sell your information to anyone". This bullet point completely negates any restrictions on what they do with your data. (Throughout an 8-email exchange with one of their lawyers, they managed to completely avoid commenting on any issue I raised, despite ample opportunity to set me straight if I was simply misinterpreting the policy. I'm left with no choice but to assume my interpretation is correct and they have no respect whatsoever for their customers' privacy.)
    - 10y ago
denzil_correa 10y ago
> I had a Pebble Steel (the original Steel) and it was great for a while. But when they introduced version 3.0 (I think?), which brought on the new interface I pretty much stopped wearing it. I'm not a heavy calendar user, except when it comes to work. The 3.0 update was based on the idea that users love using the calendar to schedule their days. The reason I stopped using the original Pebble Steel was due to "screen tearing" issue. It happened on my watch before the warranty expired but I had no knowledge it was a hardware issue a few months after the warranty expired. Pebble refused to replace it and rather offered me a discount on their new products. I feel it is completely disingenuous as they want to be put in more money into Pebble for something that is inherently a hardware issue. I am quite disappointed at Pebble. The worst part was that I had a sentiment value attached to the watch. It was a gift by my dissertation supervisor on my Ph.D.

frio 10y ago

It's funny -- I was the exact opposite. I got the original Pebble Kickstarter Edition, and couldn't really find much of a use for it. Having notifications on my wrist was OK, but not mindblowing. The addition of the timeline made _so much_ sense for me. I've barely taken the watch off since (except to upgrade to a Time Steel). It's extremely handy being able to just tap a button on my wrist in order to figure out if I need to be somewhere else. In fact, the biggest frustration has been that I need to press a button; I'd love it if a watch-face permanently showed me my next appointment. As it turns out, this new update does just that, so, awesome. Different strokes for different folks I guess :). I'm sorry that UX change hasn't been as good for you as it has been for me.

wvenable 10y ago

I'm not much of a timeline user but the old design of using the up/down buttons to switch watch faces was obviously not the best use of the primary interface. I'm surprised that is what you enjoyed best about it. It's hard to be disappointed with Pebble on the software side -- they've continued to make smart solid improvements with each release and backport as much as possible to the older devices. There have been a few missteps but nothing too ridiculous.

spike021 10y ago
Oh, I didn't enjoy using the buttons to swap watchfaces. I typically used a single one throughout the day and occasionally would switch to an app, like the MLB app/watchface, as needed (very rarely). I enjoyed the simplistic interface where I could see current time/day/temp/weather and get notifications as they came up. It was nearly perfect for my usecase except that for iOS they never implemented app filtering (for deciding which of my phone apps' notifications would come through the watch).
- wvenable 10y ago
  I guess I don't understand. OS 3.0 didn't change that functionality of the watch in any way. You still have a watch face and notifications as they come up. That's primarily how I use it as well. What changed for you? They do have app filtering on iOS now.

taneq 10y ago

I don't mind 3.0 (although the timeline doesn't really do anything for me), I just hate the way their "privacy" policy makes something that should be personal and trustworthy (a wrist watch) into a Trojan horse to vacuum every scrap of personal information for them to later sell on.

kylec 10y ago
Wait, what? Do you have more context? I hadn't heard about this.
- taneq 10y ago
  Basically their privacy policy has some very disingenuous wording which makes it sound like they are respecting your privacy, while retaining the right to sell it to third parties. The information they collect is listed quite openly in the first few sections of their privacy policy (link: https://www.pebble.com/legal/privacy https://www.pebble.com/legal/privacy ). It's pretty reasonable that the app needs local access to some of this information, less defensible that it accesses other information (geolocation information, unique device ID numbers, time spent in other apps on your phone?!) and not defensible IMO that they need to hoover it up off your phone. At least they're open about it. Note that they "maintain log files in identifiable form for a period of time for troubleshooting and other purposes" - this is stored in identifiable form indefinitely. The kicker is under "3. Information sharing and disclosure." > As we continue to develop our business, we may sell, buy, merge or partner with other companies or businesses, or sell some or all of our assets. In such transactions, user information may be among the transferred assets. Emphasis mine. Note the way this starts as if it's talking about mergers or acquisitions, then sneaks in "or we might just sell your information to anyone". This bullet point completely negates any restrictions on what they do with your data. (Throughout an 8-email exchange with one of their lawyers, they managed to completely avoid commenting on any issue I raised, despite ample opportunity to set me straight if I was simply misinterpreting the policy. I'm left with no choice but to assume my interpretation is correct and they have no respect whatsoever for their customers' privacy.)
  - 10y ago

denzil_correa 10y ago

> I had a Pebble Steel (the original Steel) and it was great for a while. But when they introduced version 3.0 (I think?), which brought on the new interface I pretty much stopped wearing it. I'm not a heavy calendar user, except when it comes to work. The 3.0 update was based on the idea that users love using the calendar to schedule their days. The reason I stopped using the original Pebble Steel was due to "screen tearing" issue. It happened on my watch before the warranty expired but I had no knowledge it was a hardware issue a few months after the warranty expired. Pebble refused to replace it and rather offered me a discount on their new products. I feel it is completely disingenuous as they want to be put in more money into Pebble for something that is inherently a hardware issue. I am quite disappointed at Pebble. The worst part was that I had a sentiment value attached to the watch. It was a gift by my dissertation supervisor on my Ph.D.