If you’re a Pebble user, or backing the upcoming Pebble Time 2 and Core, you might have heard and following with concern the news about their potential acquisition. According to Bloomberg, Fitbit is close to buying the Pebble company for under $40M (USD). It’s Pebble’s software that Fitbit is interested in, so the Pebble product line will be killed.
Worse yet is their uncompleted Kickstarter campaign, where they’ve not yet begun delivering on some of the rewards. The latest campaign includes Pebble 2 smartwatches, Pebble Time 2 smartwatches, and Pebble Core wearable.
Pebble 2 smartwatch deliveries are already underway, so it’s not clear if these will be suspended. The Pebble Time 2 and Pebble Core will be cancelled.
The good news, fortunately for backers, is that Pebble will refund contributors through the Kickstarter platform. This is being reported by Bloomberg, among others, but there’s no official word yet either from Pebble themselves or on their Kickstarter campaign page. It’s likely they’re waiting for the acquisition to be officially announced.
Pebble has been an iconic smartwatch success. On the one hand, their smartwatches boast week-long battery life, compared with other Android Wear and Apple devices that last just a day or two at best. They also built a platform of their own, with their devices supporting pairing with both Android and Apple smartphones.
Now, a lot of folks are going to be asking, what’s next to get after Pebble? Even if Fitbit does pick up Pebble’s DNA, it might take a while before they build a wearable like the Pebble.
Update (2016-12-08): The acquisition has been officially announced. The cancelled Pebble Time 2 and Core backers will also get their refund through Kickstarter.