Pebble was absolutely a success in the first few years. They failed to sustain the success. Apple and Samsung had entered the markets and invested orders of magnitude more funding than Pebble had.
Pebble probably could have limped on for another 5 years but ultimately their fate had been sealed and it was best to sell and leave on a high note than to go in to decline.
Fossil, Garmin, and (to an extent) FitBit work in different market segments to Apple and Google. Fossil leans heavily on its brand value and aesthetic, while the other two are more fitness centric. The Apple and Google entries are general purpose tools.
Pebble was a different market segment too. Pebble was a low cost, long battery life device. There still isn't anything remotely like the Pebble Time on the market right now. I literally went 2 years looking for a similar device after my old Pebble died and couldn't find anything before giving up and buying an Apple Watch. I do like my Apple watch but honestly, I'd rather have had a new Pebble Time.
There are, Withings makes them (I have another comment you can find on this, don't want to sound like a shill), but there's no ecosystem at all, so the Pebble sweet spot is still unclaimeed.
> Pebble probably could have limped on for another 5 years but ultimately their fate had been sealed
I agree with the point the article makes: if they'd focused in on their niche (hackers) instead of trying to go mainstream, they could have had a tidy, sustainable little business.
It only counts as limping along if you're going toe to toe with the Apple Watch for global marketshare, but there are other ways to define a successful business.
The Pebble was a lot of fun to develop for -- I've subsequently tried developing for other smart watches but it was too much (like) work to be enjoyable.
this is the modern world of monopolies and big money. they either buy you out or crush you. this is why progress is stalled these days so much in hw and sw world. it's just not worth it and requires way too much backing to succeed and be able to compete with these monopolies.
Has progress stalled? The latest generation smart watches are massively better than the last pebble. The hardware that consumers have today is borderline magic. Just because they don't throw in crazy gimmicks in to each years release doesn't mean there was no progress.
Pebble didn't get crushed by a big money monopoly.
Some people are willing to be "niche" and some people aren't. A company that produces 100 laptops per month for $100 profit each is not Apple. But that still means there is $10,000 per month left over after all salaries and other expenses. It's not a path to fame and glory, so few are interested. But it could sustain a very small company for a long time outside the world of monpolies and big money.
But if you've figured out how to produce 5 laptops per day, 20 days every month, you're in a strange space. That's not a garage operation. So why not 50 per day? Then the eternal quest for growth leads you back into the world of monopolies and big money.
Pebble probably could have limped on for another 5 years but ultimately their fate had been sealed and it was best to sell and leave on a high note than to go in to decline.