So -- smartwatches?

[jducoeur]

It looks like my much-loved Pebble has finally bit the dust: one of the buttons is completely stuck, another is unhappy, and the OS has crashed. (Which is a problem when I can't navigate to the "Reset" menu option.) It might be fixable with heroic measures, but I think it's probably time to give up: the company's been gone for a long time now.

So it's time for me to finally go looking for a replacement, and I'm seeking thoughts and opinions.

What I'm looking for:

• Excellent compatibility with Android, since that is my phone OS. (Please don't start telling me that I should buy an iPhone. Really.)
• Highest functional priority is notifications. Specifically, when an email/SMS/chat message comes in, I want to be able to quickly and easily read it on my watch, without needing to press buttons or use my other hand. This is the primary reason I use a smartwatch, and it needs to be good.
• Battery life matters to me. Folks mock the Pebble's screen, but I'm used to having a week of battery without needing to recharge, and that's convenient for travel. I can compromise here, but if it doesn't have a solid 24 hours, it's hard for me to take it seriously.
• Reliability matters. I got a lot of years out of my two Pebbles -- I don't want to buy something and have it break in the first year or two.
• All those medical features are a minor consideration. I would use it as a pedometer if it is good -- but my phone does a decent job. I might use a heartrate monitor? Overall, I pretty much shrug at that whole suite of features.
• Similarly, a bright colorful screen doesn't matter a great deal to me -- I've never had one, and it's never really bothered me.
• It shouldn't be excessively large or small, and it shouldn't be hideous, but this is a computer peripheral, not a fashion accessory.

Thoughts? Not being able to see my emails as they come in is already driving me nuts, so I'm going to need to buy the replacement soon. All recommendations (or critiques) welcome.

Comments

Battery life will be the sticking point

[metageek]

Google’s Wear OS cannot go 24 hours without a charge. They’re dependent on Qualcomm chips, and Qualcomm hasn’t issued a genuinely improved watch SOC in over 5 years—IIRC, they’re still at 28nm.

Samsung’s watches use Samsung chips, which are more power-efficient than Qualcomm, but they don’t run Wear OS; I think they’re on Tizen, which is app-deprived, and may have stability problems. (This is a vague, possibly dated memory, but I think I’ve read that Tizen runs all the apps in the same memory space.) Samsung is going to issue an updated set of watches running a revamped Wear OS, but I don’t think those are out yet. I suspect your best bet is to get something cheaper, like a Fibit that does notifications, and wait until the new Samsungs are out—or, better yet, until their version 2.0 is out.

Re: Battery life will be the sticking point

[jducoeur]

Useful data -- thanks!

Re: Battery life will be the sticking point

[metageek]

Samsung just announced their new watches: https://www.theverge.com/22618532/galaxy-watch-4-classic-smartwatch-fitness-tracker-price-specs-features

Re: Battery life will be the sticking point

[jducoeur]

Claiming adequate-but-not-great battery life. Useful to know about, though, and I'll think about it. Thanks for the pointer!

[mindways]

I recently got a new FitBit (Inspire 2). That model definitely fails the "not too small" criteria, but the company's larger options might suit? You'd have to look into details of notifications.

Other notes:

* Android compatibility has been fuss-free.

* When a new notification comes in it gets displayed (either automatically or by turning your wrist up to look at it, not sure which), but I don't know how long it shows for, nor if that span is customizable. Accessing not-just-arrived notifications requires using the other hand.

* My functional battery life seems to be longer than the advertised "up to 10 days" - I last charged a week ago and right now I'm at 67% battery. (I don't use many battery-heavy features.) The type of watch you're looking for is definitely going to have a shorter battery life, but my experience might be an indicator that their advertising claims have some basis in reality.

* I don't know about long-term reliability since I whacked the screen of my first FitBit badly enough to crack it. The batteries on the models I've had haven't been user-replaceable, which is going to put a functional cap on their lifespan, though if my first one is any indicator it's not as much of an issue as cellphones tend to have. (It was doing decently - probably around 80% of new capacity - around 2-3 years in.)

* Their app for fitness features and the like is a particular flavor of janky that annoys me, but it sounds like that's not likely to get in your way.

I don't have a strong opinion about whether FitBits are particularly good or bad smart-watches; I've never looked for something more sophisticated than a fitness tracker with "buzz my wrist when I get a text".

[jducoeur]

Okay, good to know that they at least seem to not suck. (Since FitBit absorbed Pebble, they automatically get a first look from me.) Thanks!

[keshwyn]

Stay away from the Fitbit Charge line. I've had a Charge 2 and a Charge 3 and they've both died within 2 years solidly. I miss my Pebble. :-(

[jducoeur]

That sort of warning is part of why I asked -- thanks!

[mindways]

(Update: it's 8 days later, now I'm at 15% battery and getting "time to recharge" warnings. So I seem to be getting about two weeks between charges, with all of the above caveats.)

[andrewducker]

Take a look at the "Amazfit Bip". 30 day battery life, does notifications.

(I don't have one myself, but when the current watch dies, it's probably going to be my next one. Or its successor will be.)

[jducoeur]

Never even heard of it, but I'll give it a look. Thanks!

[wispfox]

I really like my Samsung gear sport - it's what I went to when pebble stopped existing. I think it fills those all?

[jducoeur]

Good to know -- thanks!

[laurion]

Yeah, not looking forward to the day when my Pebble dies. There's a real gulf right now, it seems, between watches with great battery life, and watches with great functionality. I've been using my Pebble as my morning alarm clock for years now because the silent vibrating alarm wakes me and does not disturb others in the house. I can't replace that with a watch that needs to be charged every night or one that doesn't have good alarm capabilities at all.

I know someone who got https://wyze.com/wyze-watch.html and hasn't complained about it vocally, so I might get one just because the cost is so low to see if it can pass muster. I have a real hard time believing it can at that price, but it makes big claims.

[jducoeur]

blink -- yeah, that is almost bizarrely cheap, to the point of being a totally valid impulse buy. Thanks for the pointer!