The PineTime is an inexpensive smartwatch designed to run open-source software and serve as a wearable companion to Linux smartphones (like the PinePhone), among other things. First introduced a few years ago, PineTime development kits began shipping in 2020 and coders began writing software for the platform.
Now Pine64 is taking orders for a version of the PineTime smartwatch that’s aimed at more casual users. It’s available from the Pine64 Store for $27.
Unlike the development kit, the new version of the watch has a sealed case that’s not designed to be opened up. That means you don’t get access to the low-level debugging interface, but it also means the watch should be a bit sturdier no assembly is required.
The PineTime has a 1.3 inch, 240 x 240 pixel capacitive touchscreen display and it’s powered by a Nordic Semiconductor nRF52832 processor and a 64 MHz ARM Cortex-M4F CPU. It has a 170-180 mAh battery and a very limited amount of on-device memory and storage.
But it has the features you’d expect from an entry-level wearable including support for Bluetooth 5, a vibration motor, accelerometer, and even a heart rate sensor.
Pine64 says the new units will ship with InfiniTime 1.2 firmware pre-installed. Since the last time I wrote about InfiniTime, the software has been updated to support a small hardware change (the new PineTime has a different accelerometer than older units), adds a metronome application, and features an updated stopwatch application with a cleaner user interface.
Prefer to try a different smartwatch operating system? The watch also supports alternate firmware including the MicroPython-based Wasp OS, and there’s a new work-in-progress operating system called Malila on the way. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg for PineTime firmware and app development.
Note that while the PineTime SmartWatch (Sealed) edition is a bit more consumer-ready than the development kits, you can still buy the dev version if you’d prefer – Pine64 is currently selling a 2-pack for $50 that includes one sealed watch and one unsealed dev-friendly watch.
The company also notes that no matter which version you get, Pine64 isn’t responsible if you break something while trying to flash alternate firmware. These devices are made to be hackable, but they’re also made to be cheap.
why not ruby?
I’m on my way to pine64 now to look around.
I’m definitely ordering one. I wonder what the situation is in regards to how you interact with this watch through your smartphone. Do they have an Android app ready to go, or is that going to be on the community to develop?
I probably should have included this link: https://wiki.pine64.org/wiki/PineTime_Development
Most software is probably best described as work in progress, but there are companion apps for Android and Linux.
I just read into it myself as well on their Wiki, and it looks like they have a list of suitable companion apps for various smartphone OSes https://wiki.pine64.org/wiki/PineTime#Companion_Apps
Looks like Gadgetbridge is the solution available for Android phones, which is good news because I’ve read about that before, it looks like a great privacy-focused solution for people wanting to use other Smartwatches like the Xiaomi Mi Band, but don’t want to use Xiaomi apps.
Work has also started on a companion app for Ubuntu Touch: https://gitlab.com/jiiho/uwatch
Awesome, I’ve been waiting for a stable version of the OS. I ordered the twin pack (one sealed, one devkit) and I’ll be interested to see how they work. IMO Pine64 is a great company/community to support. I pre-ordered a Pinebook Pro when they came out for forum members and it has worked very well and I appreciate the open platform. The community is quickly advancing the ARM Linux space. Soon we’ll see affordable laptops that will be suitable for use in emerging markets right out of the box.