While the Apple Watch may be grabbing all the spotlight lately, competitor Pebble continues to update its own smartwatch experience via regular updates. On Wednesday, the company bumped their Pebble Time smartphone app for the iPhone to version 3.6, and also updated the device’s firmware to version 3.9.
We’re happy to share a healthy dose of features and improvements bundled in with today’s Pebble software updates. From a better Pebble Health experience to expanded messaging options, there’s something special for every smartwatch in the Pebble family.
Pebble Health improvements include a new API that allow watchfaces an apps to take advantage of Pebble Health stats. The company says watch faces that use the new feature will be appearing in the Pebble app store soon. Health tracking is also “more accurate overall,” and now offers the ability to track step distances in kilometers.
Not all of the improvements in version 3.9 of the firmware update were limited to Pebble Health, as iOS users can now send custom responses to received messages, ala Apple Watch. The update also includes performance enhancements for Pebble Time and Pebble Steel, and an enhancement to squeeze out more battery life when a Pebble is in watch-only mode.
Pebble Time Firmware 3.9 Release Notes
- Pebble Health tracking is now more accurate and can show distance in kilometers. Toggle settings from the Pebble Time smartphone app.
- Support for apps and watchfaces showing activity data from the Pebble Health API.
- Incoming MMS messages now show descriptive icons and any text included.
- Speed improvements for Pebble Time and Time Steel, including snappier animations from Pebble Time Round.
- Improved Watch-Only Mode: keep your Pebble functioning as a watch for a few more hours when the battery is critically low. Alarms, the backlight, and softer vibration remain while Bluetooth and activity tracking shut off to save power.
- Improved low battery warnings based on time left with power instead of percentage remaining.
- Ура, дождались! Cyrillic characters are now supported in notifications and alerts. Enable from the Pebble Timesmartphone app: Menu » Settings » Watch Language » Selected Language.
- Under-the-hood fixes and stability improvements.
- To update to the latest firmware, select Menu » Support » Update Your Pebble from the Pebble Time smartphone app.
Pebble Time App for iPhone 3.6 Release Notes
- NEW Custom Text Replies: Send custom responses to received iOS Messages. Works on Pebble watches with text replies enabled from a compatible carrier.
- NEW Toggle Pebble Health settings between miles or kilometers (requires a Time-series watch running Firmware 3.9 or higher).
- Under-the-hood fixes and stability improvements
- Download 3.6 from the iTunes App Store.
(Via 9to5mac)
