I demand BangleJS3!

It's a tricky one - I guess in theory I could design a higher priced, low-volume watch with a CNC milled case and all those features.

But I'm not sure there's enough demand at the moment that I would ever make my my money back on it :(

Maybe that will change, but as you can see from this thread, everyone had different ideas about what they want, and many of them are conflicting.

For instance Qi charging would make a lot of sense to enable some good water resistance, but then you also want a speaker, which for it to be loud would probably make water resistance very difficult.

so maybe after that one is gone completely?

I think keeping support for old models like bangle.js1 is not bad at all for the project neither for users of new models. As it forces to apply better coding practises, help detecting the lack of abstraction between the code and the hardware.
It would be amazing having the official espruino and most apps working in some of the watches that jeffmer made to work with its espruino fork.

Yes, the different display sizes are a challenge, but I am sure there is a solution for it :)

Well, these are just thoughts, suddenly there will be a wider choice among donors for the next B.js watch :)

If the design ticks most of my boxes I'm more than happy to pay in advance without expecting immediate results.

As far as the speaker goes, a piezo disc conducting sound into the case back has been tried and tested method of getting waterproof watches to make sound for years and imho the use cases for actual sound playback are quite limited in a watch, the sound feature will likely be used for simple notifications most of the time. Two use cases come to mind, TTS for blind/ partially sighted users, and navigation directions. This could perhaps be accomplished using BT earbuds.

Re Qi charging, I'm sure this is dealt with in phones and other smartwatches or perhaps it's no issue at all but it might be worth checking that the charging EMF or the magnetic core disc don't damage or interfere with the magnetometer.

SPL06

Is that optional? I thought the Bangle2 comes with "Air Pressure/Temperature sensor (Bosch BMP280 / Goertek SPL06)".

Both the BMP280 and SPL06 are pressure sensors. So I read that as you can have either the BMP280 or the SPL06, not both. Like a car, which can have a stereo from panasonic or sony.

Yes - after the first run, with the component shortage the sensor had to be swapped - so original ones have BMP280 and any Bangle you buy now will have the SPL06. Nice thing is because it's JavaScript running on top it really doesn't make a difference to code or how the watch behaves at all.

Turns out there are waterproof baro sensors, e.g. (first hits) BM1390GLV or LPS33HW ..

The sensor could be installed in a separate open cavity with a flat flex passing into the main sealed cavity either through a potted section or between soft gaskets.

With inspiration from https://github.com/joeycastillo/Sensor-Watch: Route i2c to the additional pins of the watch so we can attach external sensors.

Well, this could also be done over BLE. what type of sensor is worth the hassle of wiring it to the watch and wearing such combined result on your wrist? puckjs or any cheap nrf52 module running espruino can do such BLE to i2c/spi/serial bridge and you can have the sensor in a pocket or other suitable location

@Gordon - this thread has been running a while. I'm wondering how you are leaning for a Bangle JS3. What features are definitley on the list and what gets dropped?

Also do you have any immediate plans for a Bangle JS3 ? Have you recovered from the BJ2 kick starter ?

nm

Have you recovered from the BJ2 kick starter ?

Not really, no! I think in all likelihood I won't be doing any more KickStarter campaigns :)

Also do you have any immediate plans for a Bangle JS3 ?

I don't have plans at the moment - I feel like there's still a lot than Bangle.js 2 does right, and I have a bunch of companies starting to use it so I don't want to suddenly change things under their feet. I've also got enough stock to last me at least a year!

For the moment the plan is to get some other Espruino devices out there this year - it's been a long time of me basically just doing Bangle.js stuff and I have some good ideas for new hardware :)

... but even if I don't sell other hardware, I'm all for making some of the homebrew watches a bit more compatible (eg with the Bangle.* methods) so they can be used with existing apps

Well, this could also be done over BLE

I prefer wires

or bring some of the other watches people have been flashing 'into the fold' and make them official.

Sounds cool, but also like a maintaining problem nightmare. I always test GUI-changes on BangleJS1 and 2. Now imaging you have to test for multiple watches. Or we get a good test/emulator infrastructure..

and I have a bunch of companies starting to use it so I don't want to suddenly change things under their feet.

Interesting, I wonder what the companies use the BangleJS for, do you have any specific information? And are you allowed to say something?

Sounds cool, but also like a maintaining problem nightmare. I always test GUI-changes on BangleJS1 and 2. Now imaging you have to test for multiple watches.

I'd think that you'd probably not have the same expectation on app developers to have apps be stable for all unofficial espruino watches. And it's more on the person using such a watch to fix bugs themselves to a larger extent.

The userbase for the Bangle watches is in the thousands, the user base for unofficial but half decent working other watches will probably be more like lower single digits ;)

Not really, no!

Sorry to hear that.

I feel like there's still a lot than Bangle.js 2 does right,

It gets better all the time. We just need someone with a bit of energy to get heart rate working when moving about.

I'm not saying that I'm not going to do a Bangle.js 3 - just that Bangle.js 2 has only been out a year, and I think that probably most owners would like to know their Bangle was going to stay well supported and keep improving for at least another year.

... but KickStarter campaigns can be difficult. I think maybe some people would be fine with it but I feel personally responsible, so when things don't go right (like EU shipping!) I'm under a lot of stress, which I'm in no hurry to repeat. So I'll still do a Bangle.js 3 at some point, but almost certainly not via KickStarter!

I wonder what the companies use the BangleJS for, do you have any specific information?

There was some Covid-related tracking in the pandemic, and we've got companies developing asset tracking, sport tracking, health research and also elderly care stuff. There are a few more but I can't think of them right now, but generally everyone wants to white-label them and not make it known they're using Espruino so it's hard to give you any specific names!

I'm super happy with banglejs2, i actually own two of them and i really miss a bigger community because i think it's the best opensource smartwatch.

• is the only smartwatch that can switch off the bluetooth
  
• with my watchface the battery lasts for 2 month
  
  

But i'm aware about some issues I would love to get them fixed, maybe in a revision or a new model, but I also hope the community grows and the system gets better, this is my wishlist:

• use a proper speaker (not a 12V on a 5V battery) because right now it can be only used as a subsonic vibrator.
  
• support wifi (i know some espruino chips support wifi, and having this will open the door to do amazing things)
  
• water resistant and inductive charging support to avoid rust
  
• two buttons in the left side (that's actually supported by the API)
  
• real leds instead of emulating them in the screen
  
• microphone, maybe useful for voice notes or to use it as a bluetooth headset
  
  

I understand every line of my wishlist implies a lot of work, but I think this is the most amazing piece of hardware I own and I enjoy it every time i code things for it. So I want to greet you all for the amazing work you put in that little device :)

I think some kind of "Energy Harvesting" would be great too!
Like this:
https://www.powerwatch.com/

Someone designed his own nrf52833 watch https://hackaday.com/2023/01/16/zswatch-this-oshw-smart-watch-is-as-diy-as-it-gets/ , planning to switch to nrf52840 in v2 so definitely could run Espruino. Maybe a good starting point for own design however I guess ready made mass produced watch from China will still be cheaper.

Wow, that is very cool. Throw GPS in there and some kind low power display (epaper or transflective LCD) and it would be very close to perfect for me.

Agreed. I backed/own the original PowerWatch X and the Series 2. The PowerWatch 2 is great and has that form factor that about half of the users would want in a B3. The biggest problem right now is that they have been sold out since 2020 and don't even have parts for repairs (broke both of them by wearing them in the pool for too long under water).

A wish, on top of the ideas here, would be a metal case for a DeLuxe Bangle2, and here is why:

I had a Casio bought in 1993 but it died last year and anyway could give the day of the week only between 1980 and 2020.

So I chose another model, and found in the "vintage" serie of Casio the "W-800H-1AVES", with a steel case that I like :
https://www.watch.co.uk/casio-vintage-edgy-black-digital-sports-watch-w-800h-1aves.htm

Also, I loved the aesthetics of Nixon Regulus silver : https://uk.nixon.com/products/regulus-stainless-steel-black?gclid=CjwKCAiAlp2fBhBPEiwA2Q10D1wAO4czbvxt15Gse9mIXjw_imRU1_q4yu4KgjDOs6VsNXAt8xpW0BoC0E0QAvD_BwE

For both of them, the software does not do much beyond giving time, and has useless features (No need of two timers)

This is when I discovered Bangle 2, immediately loved the concept, and happily chose it (and offered one to my son).

So, ideally, I would love another Bangle 2 but with a steel case.

Thanks - a metal case would be very cool, but it would add a lot to the cost and would make the GPS basically useless (as well as hurting bluetooth range).

It might be possible to do a limited run of them though - I guess we could just get the case CNC cut and then put the normal innards inside it