Smartwatch

Fitbit said to be buying Pebble for around $40 million

Fitbit is set to acquire troubled smartwatch-maker Pebble, according to a report from The Information. The deal is said to be mainly about the company's intellectual property and software, and will likely result in the end of Pebble hardware.

In a subsequent report, TechCrunch says a source close to the startup pegged the deal in the neighborhood of $34 to $40 million, and it will just barely cover its debts. In the past, it was rumored Pebble received offers as high as $740 million.

Apple Watch Nike+ arrives Friday, October 28

Confirming earlier hints, Apple this morning announced that the Apple Watch Nike+, a special version of the Apple Watch Series 2 it's created in partnership with Nike, is going on sale this coming Friday, October 28. The $369 device has the same industrial design, price and hardware features as the Apple Watch Series 2.

It also packs in exclusive perks like special fluoroelastomer Nike Sport Bands available in a choice of four colors with perforations to reduce weight and improve ventilation, Nike-branded watch faces and complications and more.

Has Apple Watch Series 2 gained a second mic to improve Siri reception?

In case you missed this little yet important detail in an avalanche of web reports about the Apple Watch Series 2, Apple's second-generation wearable packs in a few handful improvements, among which is what appears to be a second microphone opening. As the original Apple Watch had a single tiny microphone hole, it couldn't suppress background noise.

In turn, the “Hey Siri” function on the original watch behaves somewhat erratically, struggling to recognize the command in noisy environments.

Wait, does that mean that the Apple Watch Series 2 should respond to the “Hey Siri” hot phrase more reliably than before? It's complicated...

Apple Watch 2’s larger battery shouldn’t make the device any thicker

Byte, a UK-based retailer that sells Apple-certified accessories and parts, recently posted a video in which they showed off a few supposedly genuine parts for a second-generation Apple Watch, including a thinner OLED Force Touch display and a significantly thicker battery potentially giving the wearable device a few more hours of run time.

Today, Byte published precise measurements for the above components and the numbers lead to the conclusion that Apple may have been able to squeeze in a much more powerful battery without making the Apple Watch 2 any thicker.

Samsung confirms iPhone support for the new Gear S3 smartwatches

Samsung recently opened up a beta program to test its upcoming Gear Manager for iOS, and we know from before that the Gear S2 will work with the iPhone—but what about the just-announced Gear S3 Classic and Frontier? Will these new devices support Apple's smartphone, too? In a word, yes. SamMobile was able to confirm with a Samsung representative at today's press event that its latest and greatest smartwatches will also work with the iPhone.

Samsung pulls back the curtain on two new wearables: Gear S3 Classic and Frontier

It is no secret that the Gear S2 watches were far from perfect even though they were a step in the right direction for Samsung. Today, the South Korean company has expanded its smartwatch lineup with the introduction of a pair of new wearables—the Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier. More elegant and rugged than ever, the new Samsung watches have embedded GPS and cellular LTE connectivity.

Like the 2015 Gear S2, the new S3 range is based on the Tizen operating system that brings some updated software features to the mix. The Gear S3 Classic and Frontier will start shipping later this year.

Rumor: Google developing two Wear smartwatches with circular displays

Android Police ran a story two days ago, that's now picking up traction, learning from supposedly reliable sources that Google is secretly developing a pair of smartwatches—code-named “Angelfish” and “Swordfish”—that will run its latest Android Wear software, have circular displays and more.

One of the devices, ”Angelfish”, is said to have a subdued but sporty look and include a built-in heart rate sensor, embedded LTE cellular connectivity and GPS for truly standalone operation.

watchOS 3 preview: new watch faces on your wrist & Face Gallery on iPhone

After telling you about the improved performance and more intuitive navigation in the Apple Watch software, our watchOS 3 Preview series continues with an overview of three new watch faces that have been added to watchOS 3 and a brand new Face Gallery feature found in the companion Watch app on iOS 10.

watchOS 3 also lets you launch more apps from faces like Workout, Music and Messages.

And as a cherry on top, you can now use complications on faces that previously didn't support them, like Photo, Motion and Timelapse.

New jailbreak tweak enables sending text messages via Pebble

Those who are using a Pebble smartwatch rather than Apple's own Apple Watch as an accessory for their iPhone are limited in features, but with a new jailbreak tweak dubbed TextSender for Pebble, there is at least some hope for extended functionality.

TextSender for Pebble will, as the name implies, allow those with a Pebble smartwatch to send text messages from their watch via their iPhone.

Apple Watch 2 said to enter mass production in second quarter

Following a TechCrunch report which alleged that we might not see a second-generation Apple Watch released in March, as previously rumored, Taiwan-based DigiTimes reported Tuesday that the device is scheduled to enter mass production in the second quarter of 2016.

In addition, sources told the publication that Apple Watch 2 volumes will not be high as Apple's reduced the original device's shipment forecast for 2016 down further from its estimate in the fourth quarter of 2015 amid weaker than expected shipments.

Samsung says its Gear S2 smartwatch will support iPhone later this year

During its CES keynote on Tuesday, Samsung announced that iOS compatibility is coming soon to its Gear S2 smartwatch. On stage at the Las Vegas event, the company's VP Alanna Cotton said that the popular Tizen-powered accessory is getting iPhone support later this year.

Cotton didn't offer up specific dates or details, but expect S2 functionality to be far more limited on iOS than it is on Android. Apple does not give developers the kind of low-level access its own Watch enjoys—something that has long-hampered Pebble and Android Wear devices.