About replacement, repair and operating experience Pebble Watch

In the article I’ll tell you how to replace your watches with new ones, how to fix old ones and share operating experience after almost two years of using Pebble Watch and Watch Steel.

The text may contain and most likely contains grammar, spelling, punctuation and other types of errors, including semantic ones. I strongly ask readers to point out these errors and correct me through personal messages.

Replacement

At the beginning of the year, Sasha Lyapota made a video about replacing the first Pebble, in which the screen began to pour over time. Toward the summer my watch suffered a similar sore and I easily changed them to new ones. Delivery took 2 weeks, and sent directly from China.


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Pebble has a really cool service and if something is wrong with your watch, it's a sin not to use it. However, recently the company stopped directly sending its products to Ukraine, as it was in the summer. Russia for delivery is also closed, so you have to resort to the services of intermediaries, which will cost 10-15 dollars (I’ll tell you about the verified ones later).



Text instructions for those who do not understand the video:

1. As soon as you saw the artifacts on the screen of your watch - take pictures! Do not expect to pass. The reason for the interference on the screen I will explain later.
2. Having a snapshot feel free to begin the recovery process. The request can be sent from the official application (preferably, because together with the information you send a log file about the use of the device) or through the feedback form on the site, knowingly specifying all the necessary information for recovery.
3. The letter should contain:
   
   • photograph of the malfunction (i.e. display with artifacts);
   • a photo of your Pebble with a readable serial number (located on the back cover) on a piece of paper, where the date of appeal to support is indicated and the email with which this letter will be sent;
   • the model and color of your watch;
   • serial number (rewrite from the back cover);
   • the address to deliver the new pebble.
   
   The format of the address is listed on the official website .
4. My letter looked as follows (yes, I was not far from Sasha):
   
   
5. I changed Pebble already 3 times (two of my own and one friend) and in all cases I received the same answer a few days later (except for the second case, where I was notified about the termination of shipment to Ukraine):
   No unnecessary gestures do not need to, at least I have never been asked.
   
6. A few days later you will be given a track number on which you can track the clock on the way to the intermediary.

Next begins the selection of a mediator. I used shopfans.ru on two occasions and once litemf.ru . Both coped with their task and delivered the package in value and security. The difference is only in terms and price.

LiteMF due to low demand for delivery to Ukraine, my watch has been shipping for almost a month (+4 days for delivery in the USA). Shipping cost is only 9 dollars. As far as I understand, the company Dnipro deals with transportation. In the Russian Federation, on the assurances of managers and reviews on the forums, the timing is much better.

Shopfans managed in 2 weeks (+6 days for delivery in the USA). The parcel was transported to Ukraine by the company Meest Express, and the delivery cost $ 15 in total. And it was a courier delivery directly to the apartment.



I recorded the entire purchase process in text form and took screenshots. And if someone is still afraid to use intermediaries or simply did not understand the service, write in the comments about the desire to read such material. It's not a problem to write, but by showing my initiative I can get into read-only for advertising.

Repairs

Okay, we got new beautiful watches, but what to do with the old ones? Do not rush to throw them away, because Great chance to defeat the annoying byaku. By preparation and some tests, a problem was identified in the face of a zebra.



Okay, just kidding. ZEBRA ® is a display connector with a printed circuit board, an analogue of a loop, just not a loop. A cheaper and more efficient solution in production, as I understood from the information on the official website. I cannot establish the exact reason, because I am not an expert, but over time something happens to the watch case (both plastic and metal) and the connection of the zebra with the board or screen begins to weaken. Those. maybe plastic “dries out” with time, and in metal ... I don't even know. But as for me the company somewhere miscalculated in the materials and something shrinks. But this is only my guesswork.



The bottom line is that restoring a clock is a matter of 10 minutes, a piece of a match or a skein of electrical tape and one special screwdriver, which, however, you will not find in every home. My bit (nozzle) in the form of an asterisk for a Chinese screwdriver is called a CR-VT4, I suspect that Torx-T4 (or T5) is its counterpart. I will show disassembly on the example of Pebble Watch Steel. To begin, unscrew the four screws on the perimeter of the back cover and remove it.



Try to press in the place marked on the photo below. Disappeared artifacts? “We pinned the circuit board to the zebra, and to the display, respectively.”



I will show how the watch looks from the inside. For this you need to pry the plastic frame on which all the electronics are installed. It is quite easy out of the case.




We return the frame to its rightful place. Just in case, once again we press in the place that I designated above. Works? - So it's time for the match. Using the method of scientific typing and calculating, we select a match length so that it rests against the cover and creates pressure on the board. We collect and voila - no artifacts.



A match can be replaced by any other part that can perform the duties assigned to it. Scotch tape or tape in this case can also be used, but the match solution is more optimal. ;)

What if you have a regular Pebble Watch?

If you have one of the first generations of watches, when they were not collapsible (i.e. on glue), then you will have to sweat thoroughly, for it is quite difficult to disassemble them without damage. You can watch the video guides on YouTube - there users simply remove the top glass, and then they mold (in the literal sense of the word) it from scrap materials.

If on screws, then everything is much simpler. Unscrew these, install the gasket (I used the foam double-sided tape) between the battery and the back cover and the problem disappears.

Operating experience

I first tried on myself the usual Pebble Watch Jet Black and quickly fell in love with them. During use, I realized that vibro-notifications on the hand, display of time and a small calendar (I use the “Timely” interface) - make life much easier. Especially notices that completely disable the experience of a missed call or a message in noisy places where the sound signal is simply not heard.

These watches “fell down” for about 9 months of operation and were replaced by new ones. Then, after the restoration, they were sold together with the replacement that came as needed. A few months without Pebble finally convinced me of the usefulness of these, so that the purchase of the desired Pebble Steel did not take long to wait. True, I decided to save money and bought at a very nice price a used black version with two leather straps, but without a box. They fell even faster than the previous ones, but there was no particular reason to be upset because of quick and easy replacement. Naturally, the clock was restored again, but this time it remained on my hand and for more than a month since the preparation I am pleased with my work. New were sold.



The only problem that until recently caused certain inconveniences was the lack of support for the Cyrillic alphabet, which resulted in the installation of custom firmware every time after the release of the new software version. The lesson is five minutes, but nevertheless, recently this problem has been solved. Now, thanks to Semen Mariyasin (you can zadonatit it here ), just install the localization file in the application on your phone. In more detail about it it is possible to esteem here, on Geektimes .



Well, the main thing - autonomy. In April of this year, I tried Android Wear in the face of the Moto 360 and it took me just a few weeks. They look, of course, cooler, but are endowed with a number of flaws that I didn’t want to put up with: autonomy, screen activation with a gesture (I can always watch time on Pebble), the latter’s behavior in the sun and speed. And the price at the moment at the Pebble Classic at $ 80.

The other day, the classic Pebble version (meaning the Classic and Steel models) received support for the firmware and applications from Pebble Time. Now, similar to the last, the clock interface is tied to the timeline, which synchronizes with your calendars. In general, the system has become more thoughtful and convenient, but about this some other time.

UPD. Absolutely no matter where and how long you bought the watch. This program applies to absolutely all revisions of Pebble Classic and Steel.

Waiting for feedback on the material here, in the comments, or in social networks: Facebook , VKontakte , Twitter , Instagram . And I also have a website where I duplicate my publications from all the expanses of the Internet, so that you can also take a peek (link is below, in the author's card).