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The Pebble Time Round smartwatch will be available for sale, starting Nov. 8 in Best Buy and Target stores, the same day that shipments will begin for online buyers who preordered the devices after they were announced in late September.
The Pebble Time Round will also be sold through Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, Target.com and Pebble.com, according to a Nov. 5 post on the Pebble Blog.
The latest Pebble watch is the company’s first-round fashion smartwatch following a string of four popular rectangular smartwatch models over the last several years.
The Nov. 8 release will mark the first time that consumers will be able to see, hold and test out the new devices and compare them to other smartwatches on the market, including the Apple Watch.
The new timepiece is lighter and thinner than other Pebble and competing smartwatches, according to the company, and includes an always-on, e-paper display that alerts users to notifications, messages, incoming calls and more on their wrists. The smartwatch also provides music controls for users, as well as other capabilities.
The Pebble Time Round is 0.30 inches thick and weighs 0.99 ounces, making it one of the thinnest and lightest smartwatches sold today, according to Pebble. The watch can be purchased with either a 14mm or 20mm wide band and comes in silver or black finishes, along with a wide range of leather band colors and styles. A special-edition rose-gold finish is available only with a 14mm band. Metal band options are slated for later this year.
The Pebble Time Round features a battery life of up to two days, 15-minute quick charging that provides one day’s use, splash resistance, an always-on color display, a built-in microphone for replying to messages, a marine-grade stainless-steel chassis and bezel, and tactile buttons for easier control of its functions. The watch face is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass for scratch resistance.
In October, Pebble boosted the voice-recognition capabilities of its growing line of smartwatches with a new API that will allow apps developers to build deeper voice capabilities into their software for Pebble products. The Dictation API is expected to expand the creation of more apps with voice-recognition features to allow wider hands-free use of Pebble smartwatches for everything from connected cars to smart homes and more, according to the company.
Also in October, Pebble added new health- and fitness- tracking capabilities to its original Pebble smartwatch and dropped its price to $99 from its previous $150 price tag, according to an earlier eWEEK story. The upgrades include new non-stop activity tracking and sleep monitoring.
In early August, Pebble unveiled its Pebble Time Steel model, which features a stainless steel body that’s available in three different colors, starting at $249.99.
The Pebble Time Steel is a variant of the company’s Pebble Time smartwatch that was unveiled in June, which includes a stainless-steel bezel and a non-metal body. The Pebble Time Steel is available with a 22mm-wide Italian leather watchband for $249.99 or with a stainless steel band for $299.98.
The Pebble devices work with compatible iOS and Android smartphones, although not all iOS notification features will work. They work with Apple’s iPhone 4S and above running iOS 8, and with all Android devices running Android 4.0 and above.
The company’s smartwatches are also built with protection against water damage and can be worn in the shower, in swimming pools or during outdoor activities in inclement weather. They have water resistance to 98.4 feet, or about 30 meters, according to Pebble.
Pebble owners can choose from more than 8,000 compatible smartphone apps in the Pebble app store to customize their devices. Apps are available from brands, including Jawbone, Misfit, ESPN, Swarm and Swim.com. Independent apps are also available.
Pebble introduced its first smartwatch, called the Pebble, in 2013. One year later, it introduced the Pebble Steel.