Pebble announced Tuesday that it has cut the price of all of its smartwatches by $50 while also updating all models with activity tracking software.
Fans of the company's wristband can now buy the original watch for $99 instead of $149, as well as the Pebble Steel for $199 instead of $229, according to PC Magazine. These devices are available at Best Buy, Target and other retail stores, as well as online at Pebble's website and Amazon.com.
Pebble added that it will soon have new retail and carrier partners in the U.S. and Europe, and fans will soon be able to buy its watches at Sprint stores. The devices are currently available in the U.S. at Sam's Club and Fry's Electronics.
The software update gives Pebble's watches the ability to work with new fitness apps from Misfit and Jawbone, CNET reported. The watches can now track activities without being paired with a phone and will be able to record up to 140 days of data without having to sync to any device. While syncing with phone apps won't be available on the first apps, Pebble plans to make that feature available soon.
Once the update is launched on a Pebble smartwatch, the app will run and do other activities at the same time. The app will also continue to run while only using half the amount of energy that it would normally use in a day. Pebble's OS will partially integrate with fitness apps. Wearers can also use watchface mini-apps to take quick looks at the amount of steps they take.
Activity trackers that will work with the update include Misfit Shine, which was introduced earlier this year, Jawbone Up, and Swim.com, which measures distance, strokes, efficiency and other factors while the user is swimming, PC Magazine reported. Pebble said the update now gives Misfit Shine the ability to monitor sleep in addition to fitness activities.
The price cut and software update comes a month before Pebble plans to make its smartwatches available in the U.K. at Dixons through Amazon.co.uk and O2. The company also has new distribution partners in Benelux and Scandinavia, which include MediaMarkt, Bol.com, Webhallen, and Verkkokauppa.com.
