Designing a Personal Pebble Watchface
Jonas Hietala details the process of designing and building a personal watchface for the Pebble smartwatch, covering aspects like power-efficient graphics rendering, layout composition with elements such as weather and calendar info, and the technical implementation using the Pebble SDK's C API and custom font loading.
Background
- Pebble was a pioneering smartwatch company (2012–2016) known for its e‑paper display, long battery life, and developer‑friendly platform. Its original hardware line was discontinued when Fitbit bought the company, but a passionate community kept the platform alive; in 2025 a new company, Core Devices, revived the hardware with the "Pebble Core" and the "Pebble OS" is now open‑source.
- The article is about designing a custom watchface for Pebble smartwatches using the new open‑source toolchain. The author walks through creating a minimal, personal face using the Pebble C SDK — the same APIs and C‑language approach that Pebble used a decade ago — and reflects on how the constraints (e‑paper display, limited memory, buttons‑only input) force a focus on simplicity and readability rather than the flashy, always‑on‑screen designs of modern smartwatches.
- This matters because the Pebble revival represents a counter‑current to today's smartwatch trends: instead of chasing colour touchscreens, app stores, and AI features, Pebble (old and new) prioritises battery life, glanceability, and a hackable, programmer‑friendly experience. The article is a hands‑on example of that ethos.