ZeTime – smartwatch with mechanical hands & touchscreen – update 13Mar2018

A major problem with smartwatches is short battery life. Two days is generally considered good. Some struggle to make it through a typical day. A major culprit is the display – power-hungry screen technology taken directly from phones.

E-ink displays are much more energy-efficient, but provide fewer, less intense colours. Pebble watches used E-ink displays to provide battery life of a week or longer. But Pebble is no more.¹

ZeTime has another idea for a low energy time display – conventional analogue mechanical hands.


ZeTime smartwatch – analogue mechanical hands draw much less power than the phone screen technology used in most smartwatches
Credit: MyKronoz Switzerland/ZeTime

Mechanical hands draw very little power – operating this way, ZeTime is claimed to have a battery life of 30 days. Another advantage is that it answers the claim that some people object to the appearance of smartwatches.

But ZeTime is not just another dumb watch:


ZeTime smart watch – digital display with numbers, heart rate monitor & step counter – other options available
Credit: MyKronoz Switzerland/ZeTime

Naturally, using the screen reduces battery life – “In traditional Smartwatch usage (used regularly throughout the day), the battery will last around 3 days with a single charge.”²

Other smartwatch functions include:
● notifications of incoming phone calls, SMS & email
● control music
● camera remote
● find phone
● step counter – sync with fitness apps
● heart rate monitor
● custom watch faces
● water resistance to 30 metres

How to prevent the hands from obscuring notifications? Move them out of the way:


ZeTime smart watch – SMS displayed – contact details in the top half – content in the bottom half of the screen – hands temporarily moved for easy reading
Credit: MyKronoz Switzerland/ZeTime

Most existing smart watches have a short battery life. Power management options are:
● have that power-hungry screen on all the time, or
● extend battery life by only turning it on to check the time, or for notifications

ZeTime extends battery life by not having to switch the screen on to check the time. Another battery extender is the absence of a battery-killing GPS.



Update 13 March 2018:

ZeTime is available through Kickstarter for as little as $US139.

ZeTime watch projects have over $US5 million in funding on both Indiegogo & Kickstarter. Although the conventional funding period ended in April 2017, it appears that it is still possible to secure a watch, for $US159, from either of the crowd funders. Contrast this with prices starting at $US177 on Amazon as of this writing. Check prices at:

Indiegogo – “ZeTime: hybrid smartwatch with hands over screen”
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/zetime-hybrid-smartwatch-with-hands-over-screen-watch/x/9010251

Kickstarter – “ZeTime: World's first smartwatch with hands over touchscreen”
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1282890542/zetime-worlds-first-smartwatch-with-hands-over-tou
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¹   HitchHiker's Guide 2 Tech: “Pebble is no more – what next?”, http://hhg2tech.blogspot.com/2017/03/pebble-is-no-more-what-next.html

²   ZeTime: “Frequently Asked Questions”, https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1282890542/zetime-worlds-first-smartwatch-with-hands-over-tou/faqs

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