The Pebble Time 2 marks the return of a smartwatch brand that first gained a following in the 2010s, and it arrives as part of a new wave of Pebble devices. Priced at around £180, it is joined by a round model due to launch in roughly a month. Rather than simply reviving old hardware, the Time 2 offers a nicer build finished to look and feel deliberately retro.
The watch keeps the familiar Pebble layout, with buttons on both sides to control the interface, but adds features the originals never had. It has a backlit colour screen and, for the first time, a touchscreen. It also brings optical heart-rate tracking alongside basic step counting and fitness features. Perhaps most notably, users can download a vast selection of classic Pebble apps and watch faces free of charge.
Setup and everyday use
A new Pebble mobile app syncs the watch and is clean and straightforward to use. Setup via an iPhone is quick, and loading watch faces and apps is equally fast. The Time 2 displays the weather, counts steps, automatically tracks walks and sleep, and syncs notifications promptly.
The device is swim-friendly and its silicone band fits snugly, while the clean steel case recalls the earlier Pebble Time Steel. It also includes stopwatch and timer functions. Some tasks, however, take more effort than on rival devices: muting notifications or silencing vibrations requires more taps and fiddling. There is no voice-activated timer, and no wrist-based contactless payment option, so purchases still rely on a phone or wallet.
Watch faces take centre stage
The standout feature remains the enormous collection of watch faces. There are clever, unusual and playful options to try, including numerous fan-made designs. A search for “Adventure Time” returned a range of faces, while other finds included a tarot-themed design, a cubic time layout activated by a flick of the wrist, and a minimalist dial. Many of these creations play fast and loose with copyright, among them Kirby and Sonic faces.
The Pebble Time 2 is priced at around £180 and pairs with iPhone through the new companion app, with the round model set to follow in about a month.
