This does look promising. Website says they will do a Kickstarter this coming spring (2025) and uh, rather optimistically predicts shipping in the summer? Definitely bookmarking though, we need more tech like this. My final gripe is that I wish they talk about the software more. It's not hard to find intriguing hardware but if it's unsupported on the software side then it doesn't matter.
But is all their software open source? Seems to me Smartwatches break down rarely (aside from battery depletion), and it's usually the software that goes out first.
Looks neat but, very little to know information seems to be available right now so I'm not holding my breath. And FYI there are some other options out now. But those options aren't very polished though and geared more towards computer nerds.
So I guess it is better than current product but it really feel like appropriation of ecology by capitalism. There is no serious need for smart watches, it feels to me like a perfect example of artificial demand. The ecological solution to the e-waste caused by smart watches is to stop producing those.
You may not need one but as someone that has a medical condition constantly logged by a smartwatch there absolutely is a serious need by others.
It’s like saying I don’t need a wheelchair, nobody else does either, which is crazy.
Sorry, my comment was poorly phrased. I meant that there was no mainstream need for it. I get that it can be really useful as a medical device, but in this case I still believe that a full smart watch is overblown. Medical devices are generally tailored to answer a specific need, I do not know of a wheelchair that streams music by Bluetooth or allows you to pay with them. It's the accumulation of features that makes it way less repairable and susceptible to failures. In the case of a medical usage, I don't really see how a full smartwatch is more useful than a simple Fitbit-like device. In fact, I am involved in a mass medical data acquisition project that uses Fitbit to track the everyday condition of patient with schizophrenia symptoms. This specific part is clearly not my area of expertise but my colleagues seem to think that it is sufficient.
Again, I am sorry if my comment hurted you.
There is no serious need
I think this is perfect for people that do exercise, athletic training and sports. A smart watch is useful for heart rate monitoring, not needing to check your phone for distance measurements or notifications. A conventional digital watch can be a chronometer, timer, maybe heart rate if fancy but there are real benefits to the "smart" functionality.
Not everyone needs one of these, but there is a certain segment that smart watches are best for, and if there is one that has an open design and ecosystem compared to others like Samsung, Apple this is excellent.
I use mine extensively as a health monitor/tracker. I now have 3 years worth of heart rate data and can see early warnings of potential issues if it changes. Also it tracks my daily activity for step counts and also my sleep habits. It is also really good for getting off my phone since I can easily see notifications and if they aren't important I can just look at them later instead of always having to check my phone. Also it tells the time so thats nice too.
I’ve been using smart watches since the Pebble Time Steel. The reason I use a smart watch is to get off my phone more.
I use it to screen important notifications, read messages, and to tell the time.
It’s a niche use case but I find it helpful especially at work to see what’s happening without pulling it out.
That said my poor pebble isn’t used much these days, and I’ve moved to Garmin. These have always on reflective displays like e-paper that sips batteries. Plus I’ve been using my garmin to track my exercise which is nice.
Definitely cant recommend the more battery sensitive Apple Watch or the Samsung or google equivalent. But if it lasts 1-2 weeks on a single charge with the screen always showing the time, it’s better than a contemporary watch.
UNA automatically syncs your activities with Strava
Seeing that Strava will likely soon ban third party syncing, I hope these guys have a better plan.
Fitness trackers are really only useful if they integrate into services people use.
But I do love the idea of this watch!
that blows but props to strava for taking a stand for user privacy. even a little goes a long way.
I don't think it has anything to do with privacy, and more to do with walling off any competitors.
Garmin, along with every other major fitness platform syncs with Strava, and the user gives these platforms permission to allow their data to be used to enhance their training, come up with schedules, etc... all things that Strava would be banning.
Funny, because Strava does the same thing with the same data set, even if it didn't come from Strava to begin with! It's not a coincidence that Strava announced their own "athlete intelligence", which literally does what they are banning... as a new, paid product.
And the fact that they announced this without letting any third-party platforms know ahead of time (to prepare), is the biggest dick move they could have made.
As a user of these platforms, Strava is the last place I want my data, but since it serves as a hub to so many other platforms, it makes it easier for me to sync my data.
In theory, a GPS watch should be able to set the time automatically and precisely from the satellites. Hopefully the devs know this.
Time is part of the equation for position. But you still have to deal with week cycle rollovers on GPS L1 so it's best to let user at least set the time.
Well I hope the watch can at least update the time every time it acquires a location. Or when you travel to a new time zone it should be able to update automatically without internet access.
I may have to come back to this and to check it out.
We need more products like this.
