Some smartwatches try too hard to be an all-in-one wrist-mounted computer—a minimalist Omni-tool or a Pip-Boy without any sense of whimsy. But here are some smartwatches that simply build on the original premise of the wristwatch and keep track of time, and maybe also your steps and messages. While short-lived, the original Pebble was one of those smartwatches that didn’t try to be an invasive healthcare-monitoring tool disguised as a watch. And it’s finally returning to us next this month.
Pebble’s Round 2 smartwatch may not look like much at first glance. It’s shaped like a traditional wristwatch. There are physical buttons on the side—with one styled to look like a traditional winder—a slim bezel, and a traditional 14mm or 20mm band. The Round 2 also mimics a classic watch with a 1.3-inch, 260 x 260 display, which puts its size and weight closer to those of typical wristwatches than to the 41mm to 45mm smartwatches from Google, Samsung, and Apple. Granted, the larger 41mm to 45mm watches tend to have higher resolutions, ranging from the Apple Watch Series 9 41mm’s 352 x 430 pixels to 480 x 480 pixels on the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra. Feature-wise, this is a minimalist smartwatch. It has no speakers and no heart rate monitor. It’s a light, thin stainless steel device that tells the time, displays incoming text messages, tracks your steps and sleep, and includes a microphone for voice-to-text.
