Fitbit is close to buying Pebble (and possibly killing the brand) - Polidicks

[QUOTE] Fitness wearables manufacturer Fitbit is close to buying smartwatch maker Pebble, according to The Information — news that has since been independently confirmed by The Verge. Sources say that a deal would see Fitbit taking Pebble's intellectual property, such as its operating system, but would see the Pebble brand phased out. It's not clear yet when the deal will be completed, or when it will be announced. The Information cites three people reportedly familiar with the deal, who say that Fitbit's offer is believed to be for a "small amount," and comes after Pebble has been searching for a buyer for some time. The company laid off 25 percent of its staff earlier this year, and CEO Eric Migicovsky said at the time that money was "pretty tight these days," despite funding rounds in 2015 and 2016 that raised $26 million. [/QUOTE] Source: [URL="http://www.theverge.com/2016/11/30/13802996/fitbit-buy-pebble-deal-reportedly-close"]The Verge[/URL] That's a really sad news. I really like my pebble classic. And (I think) the pebble is the only company who's smartwatch is feature-rich and platform-independent at the same time.

Its a shame, I was really looking forward to the Time 2 as my OG is starting to get a bit long in tooth. But I can't do it in good confidence now. I guess we will see how long it lasts. I'm glad I didn't fund the kickstarter because I had a feeling something like this would happen.

Well dang, I'm still waiting for my Time 2

bought a time a few months ago and ive been extremely happy with it I hope they at least continue supporting current devices

[QUOTE=The golden;51457903]Over the past week I've literally reached for my wallet a few times wondering if I should put down an order on the new ones they say are shipping in November. I've really been interested in them and I think their concept is so cool. But after reading this right now, I'm probably not going to. I doubt I'm the only one either. What an absolutely incredible way of shooting yourself in the foot.[/QUOTE] I dunno, going bankrupt sounds more like shooting yourself in the foot than getting bought is.

pebbles problem is that they didnt get very good agreements with the big box stores. go to a best buy and you'll find it relegated to some weird corner instead of next to all the other fitness trackers and smart watches

Fitbit might find something salvageable about the brand apart from the OS and relaunch a pebble/fitbit mix.

[QUOTE=Sableye;51458383]pebbles problem is that they didnt get very good agreements with the big box stores. go to a best buy and you'll find it relegated to some weird corner instead of next to all the other fitness trackers and smart watches[/QUOTE] At our best buy, they were next to all the other fitness trackers in the middle of the store. :v: But yeah, marketing was a real problem. Most people would ask about my watch and they would say they had never heard of Pebble.

[QUOTE=Demache;51459062]At our best buy, they were next to all the other fitness trackers in the middle of the store. :v: But yeah, marketing was a real problem. Most people would ask about my watch and they would say they had never heard of Pebble.[/QUOTE] Pebble is probably the best smartwatch out there for someone who wants reliable, comfortable, and useful all in one, but it took me an hour and a half of looking for a decent smartwatch to find someone mention it on a forum in a thread about the shitty U8 watch and google it from there. They probably wouldn't be in this situation if they got some podcasts or something to advertise them. MVMT seems to be doing pretty good and that company started off as two college dudes who wanted stylish watches but couldn't afford them. [editline]3rd December 2016[/editline] I hope Fitbit doesn't completely fuck current owners over if they do acquire them, though. I love my Pebble Classic.

[URL="https://blog.getpebble.com/2016/12/07/fitbit/"]Well... the end.[/URL]

That's pretty disappointing. I have no interest in getting a fitbit.

[QUOTE=gk99;51466072]Pebble is probably the best smartwatch out there for someone who wants reliable, comfortable, and useful all in one, but it took me an hour and a half of looking for a decent smartwatch to find someone mention it on a forum in a thread about the shitty U8 watch and google it from there. They probably wouldn't be in this situation if they got some podcasts or something to advertise them. MVMT seems to be doing pretty good and that company started off as two college dudes who wanted stylish watches but couldn't afford them. [editline]3rd December 2016[/editline] I hope Fitbit doesn't completely fuck current owners over if they do acquire them, though. I love my Pebble Classic.[/QUOTE] My Pebble Time Steel is an amazing watch that I've enjoyed using for so very long. It's a remarkably simple device, but yet it is so wonderful to use. It's simplistic and enjoyable to use. I hope that Fitbit won't destroy all support for the devices, but I have my doubts. At least it still looks classy to use.

As a Time 2 backer, I don't think Pebble could have handled communication any worse than this.

[B]WARNING:[/B] As of today, Pebble is no longer accepting returns (Even if you bought the watch yesterday) ADDITIONALLY: All warranties, support, and replacements are now cancelled and null & void. If the Pebble you bought yesterday fails for no reason you are SOL.

fwiw: this wasn't "fitbuy buys pebble inc" it was "pebble goes bankrupt, has fire sale of intellectual property to pay off creditors, fitbit buys IP" that's why there's no support

I wonder if its worth the risk to buy one anyway.

[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;51493620]I wonder if its worth the risk to buy one anyway.[/QUOTE] As far as we know, they will still be maintaining Pebble services. So it's not like your SOL when it comes to using the watch and app store, but the real question is how long will it last. And also will a homebrew community pop up for continued support?

Really tempted to pick up a Pebble 2 before they sell out.

[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;51493620]I wonder if its worth the risk to buy one anyway.[/QUOTE] Sure, as long as you can accept that if either the hardware or software stops working you'll have a $130 paperweight.

[QUOTE=TheLolrus;51493712]Sure, as long as you can accept that if either the hardware or software stops working you'll have a $130 paperweight.[/QUOTE] It's not like the watch will become useless if they shutdown their servers. You just won't be able to install new apps and possibly change settings for already installed apps.

[QUOTE=Megalan;51493758]It's not like the watch will become useless if they shutdown their servers. You just won't be able to install new apps and possibly change settings for already installed apps.[/QUOTE] So, useless. I bought the watch to do all of those things. Might as well use a regular ass $20 digital watch at this point. Fuck Pebble.

[QUOTE=gk99;51493772]So, useless. I bought the watch to do all of those things. Might as well use a regular ass $20 digital watch at this point. Fuck Pebble.[/QUOTE] Could have gotten a Moto 360 for $100, or a beautiful ZenWatch 3 for $220.

I don't need you, I'll make my own watch that can play blackjack and pick up hookers

[QUOTE=Megalan;51493758]It's not like the watch will become useless if they shutdown their servers. You just won't be able to install new apps and possibly change settings for already installed apps.[/QUOTE] No, but unsupported tech makes me wary. Defective hardware won't be repaired or replaced, and software that doesn't get updated is doomed to stop working at some point.

[QUOTE=1/4 Life;51493781]Could have gotten a Moto 360 for $100, or a beautiful ZenWatch 3 for $220.[/QUOTE] Not when my budget was $70 and a Pebble Classic was that much exactly.

[QUOTE=gk99;51493871]Not when my budget was $70 and a Pebble Classic was that much exactly.[/QUOTE] You're in luck! That happens to be more than an LG G Watch costs.

[QUOTE=1/4 Life;51493781]Could have gotten a [B]Moto 360[/B] for $100, or a beautiful [I]ZenWatch 3 [/I]for $220.[/QUOTE] [B]12 hour battery life.[/B] [I]Out of my budget by a long shot[/I]

[QUOTE=Megalan;51493758]It's not like the watch will become useless if they shutdown their servers. You just won't be able to install new apps and possibly change settings for already installed apps.[/QUOTE] Pretty sure you can side load apps. And the app setting page isnt hosted by Pebble, rather the dev. Still it will more or less be on life support since the OS won't receive updates.

Wonder if this will effect investment in other Kickstarted tech projects either by users or by proper investment firms. The loss of Pebble means we haven't had a single technology focused project from Kickstarter that's raised a ton of money and hasn't failed in some way (Pebble, Coolest Cooler, Ouya). Also really sucks that it was FitBit that bought them out, I don't really see them lasting much longer due to the smartwatch market slowing down and the fitness band trend dead already.

[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;51493991][B]12 hour battery life.[/B] [I]Out of my budget by a long shot[/I][/QUOTE] How is a $100 smartwatch out of your budget? Pebbles were around the same price or more. Or were you referring to the abysmal joke of battery life as your budget? I'm warming up to the Gear S3 as an eventual replacement for my PTS. It's pretty sexy but stupid expensive and requires a compatible phone, which is fucking scummy. [QUOTE=Sumap;51494092]Wonder if this will effect investment in other Kickstarted tech projects either by users or by proper investment firms. The loss of Pebble means we haven't had a single technology focused project from Kickstarter that's raised a ton of money and hasn't failed in some way (Pebble, Coolest Cooler, Ouya). Also really sucks that it was FitBit that bought them out, I don't really see them lasting much longer due to the smartwatch market slowing down and the fitness band trend dead already.[/QUOTE] Pebble screwed this up on their own. How did they just magically run out of money? It's arguably the best smartwatch out there and yet they priced it dirt cheap and fucked themselves. They were immensely successful, but then they just went and shat the bed because they couldn't figure out how a business works.