A Pebble smartwatch firmware update released earlier this week removes the device’s dependency on cloud services. This means existing devices will continue to operate, even after new owner Fitbit shuts down the Pebble servers later this year.
… As noted in a blog post on Tuesday, operating requirements like authentication services are now accomplished through mobile apps running on iOS or Android. Additionally, the login process can be skipped, while smartwatch apps can be side-loaded and new watch firmware installed through the host iOS and Android apps.
Pebble device development and manufacturing ceased when Fitbit purchased the smartwatch firm last year for $23 million. Pebble said in December that Fitbit was “going out of its way” to keep software and services for the devices running, but would only do so through 2017.
When Fitbit shits down the Pebble servers later this year, backend data services will cease, leaving a number of Pebble apps unusable.
The latest Pebble update for iOS is free, and is available via the App Store. [GET IT HERE]
Pebble App for iPhone 4.4 Release Notes
- If Pebble’s authentication servers can’t be reached, users can skip the login process, but the Pebble appstore will not be available. Apps can only be installed via side-loading if this occurs.
- If Pebble’s update servers can’t be reached, the app will be able to install the latest compatible firmware for the paired device, plus the relevant language packs.
- We removed the option to Contact Support but users can still export diagnostic data (including the Health database) by tapping Share Diagnostics.
- Health data collection and various telemetry reporting has been removed.
- The option to suggest new features has been removed.
- Fixed a bug which would “crown” your first day of step counts, even if no activity was recorded yet.
- Developers can now side-load a service configuration to change which servers the Pebble app communicates with.
- The Developer menu is now easier to find within the new Settings tab.
- Turning on Health synchronization in Settings now writes heart rate data to Apple’s Health app.
- Fixed a crash that occurred when configuration pages attempted to open an image picker using HTML5 file input.
- Fixed a crash that occurred when Rocky.js apps used Clay configuration pages.
For more information about the Pebble update, visit the Pebble blog.
