Pebble Technology has unveiled its premium Pebble Steel smartwatch for iOS and Android at the 2014 International CES.
Pebble released its first Pebble smartwatch in 2013 via crowd funding platform Kickstarter. Now the company has announced an improved version of the smartwatch with better design and improved functionality.
The latest addition to the company's smartwatch family is the Pebble Steel that includes clear ePaper display, a week-long battery life and waterproof design. Moreover, the latest smartwatch is slimmer than its predecessor.
"With Pebble, we created an iconic, colorful, and sporty smartwatch," said Product Evangelist Myriam Joire, "but we wanted to build something even more refined. Pebble Steel cranks the style dial to 11."
The company has announced the Pebble Steel in two finishes: Brushed Stainless and Black Matte. The new models are bundled with both a matching metal band and a black leather strap. The company says that the Black Matte Pebble Steel is crafted using a process called Physical Vapor Deposition to get a tactile, deep black finish.
The company's latest smartwatch is protected by a Corning Gorilla Glass lens with an oleophobic, anti-fingerprint coating. The Pebble Steel has a RGB LED light at the bottom left of the display that indicates when the smartwatch is charging.
"Our mission is clear," says CEO Eric Migicovsky. "Create the gold standard for wearables that mesh perfectly with your everyday life, and build the fundamental ecosystem and platform for these devices."
The company has also revamped the magnetically attaching charge cable of the smartwatch that is smaller, color coded and sports larger magnets to firmly hold the wearable gadget.
The Pebble Steel also gets a new antenna around the body that helps improve Bluetooth reception in the metal case.
Pebble has already confirmed an app store, which will go live towards the end of January 2014. Users will be able to download apps or watchfaces from the app store.
Pebble has also announced several new apps including ESPN, which will stream live sports scores, and reviews from Yelp. The app store will also get a Mercedes app that will let users check the tire pressure, fuel levels and location of their vehicle.
The Pebble Steel is available now exclusively on getpebble.com for $249. The company has confirmed that worldwide shipments of Pebble Steel will begin on Jan. 28.
Meet Pebble Steel from Pebble Technology on Vimeo.
