Pebble, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, announced some significant changes in the company for 2014. The company announced that it will soon be launching a new store specially dedicated to Pebble apps which are “optimized for wearables.” Apart from that, the big news is that the company has announced a premium smartwatch named the Pebble Steel. The Pebble Steel is the premium version of the Pebble smartwatch, and now users get the choice to opt for either the Pebble or Pebble Steel.
CES a familiar landing point for Pebble
It was at the CES 2013 that Pebble took to the stage to talk about its smartwatch. Since then, more than 300,000 devices have been shipped all over the world. Developers now have built 3 million apps specifically for the Pebble which is a big figure considering that the watch is only a year old. The company is soon going to launch a store with Pebble apps where users can discover and manage apps of their choice. The store will have different categories such as Daily, Notifications, Remotes, Games, Tools & Utilities, Fitness, and Watchfaces. Developers who want to submit apps at the Pebble store need to do so before January 9 to get their apps reviewed.
New design has classic aesthetics
While the original Pebble has a sporty feel, the new Pebble Steel comes with classic aesthetics and a steel-based design. The second generation smartwatch comes with a formal look, perfectly suited for businesspeople and anyone who loves the classic approach. Internally, Pebble kept most of the parts unchanged like the e-paper display, battery, and hardware platform, and the only change is that RAM is doubled from 4MB to 8MB. Along with the specs, the Pebble uses a Corning Gorilla Glass lens to protect the display and also comes with anti-fingerprint coating. The Pebble Steel comes in two variants: Brushed Stainless Steel and Black Matte and each comes with metal and leather straps.
The Pebble Steel is available to pre-order now and the shipping will start from January 28th for $249, while the original Pebble will continue selling at $150. Pebble also announced ESPN, Yelp, Mercedes, and Pandora to its growing list of partners.
