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In 2015 smartwatches hit the shelves with a “Boom!” From the Apple iWatch to the Sony Smartband, there have been a number of stabs at the new frontier of digital accessories. While some were more successful than others and some were less…uh, visually compelling than others, it’s safe to say that with generation 2.0 the boom is well underway.
Speculations are now on the rise and we at Review Weekly are here to put three of our favorites head-to-head!
1. Apple Watch
The greatest amount of speculation is no doubt on the Apple Watch 2. Apple’s sleek, round-one bout into the smartwatch world had an ample amount of creativity behind it. It featured options to individualize both the main screen and the snap-on bands, a battery that lasts up to 24 hours (if you do nothing but checkthe time), fitness tracking features, and a beautiful sapphire-based build to minimize scratches. However, there were no doubt some set-backs—most notably the price range in which the every model from standard to Hermès was regarded as overpriced from most tech outlets. (The starting price is $700+.) So what will the next iWatch do that this version could not? There’s definitely a lot of speculation on the interwebs – some of the biggest rumors are waterproofing for my fellow scubadivers and then the obvious smaller, more durable parts being implemented. As with the Motorola there’s also a great amount of speculation over increased battery life and wireless charging. We shall see!
2. Pebble
The Pebble nestled itself into a top ranking in 2015 by offering the most affordable collection of smartwatches on the market. Each Pebble model featured a wide range of features to tackle every niche from working out to doing business. Following its meteoric rise from one of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns of all time, Pebble is already at the forefront of round two with new Pebble models like the Pebble Time Round. Time Round infuses the geek sensibility with the chic aesthetic of its more sleek competitors.
3. Motorola 360
The Motorola 360’s first round swing was an “interesting” one. On the bright side, the 360 v1.0 was a rather stylish addition to the smartwatch competition, sporting an affordable middle-of-the-road price point of $250. Alas, the Motorola also weathered a slew of mixed reviews mostly for its lack of compatibility, weak battery, and few options for customization. Now with version 2.0 many of these shortfalls have been resolved and the design is looking sleeker than ever. The band can now be easily switched (similar to the iWatch), the battery supposedly will be twice as strong, and there are several design options each with an upgraded resolution! So who’s the winner for Review Weekly? Well, now that Pebble is blending the techie vibes that we love with the suave look our significant others want us to have—we’re gonna have to go with Pebble! It’s affordable and consistently the freshest in attempts to move the medium forward. Personally, I’d go for the Hermès iWatch–but at 1500 bucks (more than my rent) I’d be risking homelessness.
