The Pebble, the Rebble and the Data
The new Pebble 2 Duo looks fantastic, and I can’t wait to try it out! | Image by Core
Well, it was all thanks to Rebble — an unofficial group of developers, which liked the Pebble so much, that they dedicated years of hard work to keeping it alive. Since December 2016, the Rebble Alliance has scraped the old Pebble app store, found a way to make the old Pebble app functional again, and maintained all of the watch faces and apps, originally uploaded to the platform, so that they continue being available. All of this: free of charge (of course, they accepted donations, but the fact still remains). Even Eric himself has claimed that he donated thousands to their cause, which was a very bittersweet happening.
So it is a complete bummer that these two sides, which effectively want the same thing, are now bickering over data, that practically none of them own. And I’d hate for my highly anticipated Pebble Time 2 to be less cool of a watch merely because of this.
The Core of the data dispute
Thanks to Rebble’s hard work, the app store is still around and better than ever. | Image by Core
Rebble, on the other hand, claims that the data is theirs. And I understand that too. This sounds absurd, but it’s true — Rebble has been maintaining this storefront for longer than any of Eric’s companies have been alive at this point. Rebble’s team has done a ton for the community, and no one has any right to deny that.
Core has offered to pay Rebble a small sum per user to access the data to keep things fair. This is another show of good faith, which I think must be acknowledged — it is good that Eric isn’t trying to undermine Rebble’s contribution to Pebble as a whole. And now, we reach the issue:
- If Rebble makes the data public, what would prevent Core from copying over the entire server, cutting them off in the process? The agreement to pay would still be there, but the need to get paid would no longer exist.
- On the other hand, if Core doesn’t get access to the data, a huge part of what gives Pebble its identity can’t happen. Not to mention that the lack of day-one access to the myriad of appstore offerings will certainly contribute to the new smartwatches’ sales performance.
It is not hard to understand both sides of the argument. But it is also the correct thing to take a step back and analyze the situation, and reach some valid conclusions. All of the above — it’s just assumptions. It’s not objective reality, and through good will, partnership and active communication, it might never come to be. Moreover, a large number of Pebble fans both new and old raise valid concerns online. Eric himself is part of the discussion, but he seems to be ignoring them, which doesn’t look great.
I still think the new app should be open source though. My biggest concern that Rebble brought up (and Eric suspiciously didn’t address…) is that, despite PebbleOS and the hardware being open source, everything still relies on this new app that could go offline at any time. I really don’t want to have to sideload the new app 10 years from now the same way I’m sideloading the old Pebble app now. Correct me if I’m wrong in that assessment though.
WaluigisRevenge2018, Reddit, November 2025
A very astute observation indeed. How come there is a demand for Rebble to make the old data open-source, while the new Pebble app’s frontend is decidedly closed-source? It is just odd, especially after Eric described the battle to get PebbleOS to become open-source as a difficult one. This lack of reciprocity is a critical misstep, but one that is still well within reach of getting corrected.
Rebble could, in theory, turn at any time, but there’s no indication in Rebble’s history that they would do such a thing – and Rebble has existed longer than Pebble did at this point. It’s not fair to be so suspicious of their intentions, at least in regards to keeping the app store available.
gnzl, Reddit, November 2025
Maybe I am missing something, but it seems like you did not directly address the core concern of the Rebble team.Rebble wanted to “make sure they’re not just going to build a walled garden app store”. You propose uploading the app data to Archive.org as a solution, but what would prevent you from then taking that data, hosting your own app store and then cutting Rebble out completely? I know projects run on trust, but why not agree in writing to not cut them out?
zandengoff, Reddit, November 2025
I talked about that towards the end of the post. I’m not comfortable with phrases like ‘We’re happy to let them build whatever they want as long as it doesn’t hurt Rebble’. I don’t have a lot of faith in them, especially after this blog post accusing me of stuff I didn’t do.
Eric, Reddit, November 2025
And honestly, this following remark here:
You dont have faith in the Community that kept your watches and community of hobbyists going for the past 9-10 years and the reason you were able to put out new hardware in such short time?! Bro…
Screamline, Reddit, November 2025
Which nicely compliments with another concern, voiced here:
> I’m not comfortable with phrases like ‘We’re happy to let them build whatever they want as long as it doesn’t hurt Rebble’.That’s why you don’t put that in an agreement, you discuss what is actually meant by it. From what I can tell from both the posts, that was never done, instead it’s just something they allege you refuse to commit to writing.Also, for gods sake, involve a lawyer when writing agreements worth thousands of bucks. What you showed in the post is damn near useless – there’s no recourse for not fulfilling part of the agreement besides tearing it up entirely, and either party could do so at any time without penalties.
steamruler, Reddit, November 2025
The last few captured my mind in ways that made my neurons flare up in numerous colors, indicating a mix of different emotions. True enough: the new Pebble watches are effectively riding a wave of past times: PebbleOS and Rebble’s hard work. Eric seems to be responding a bit emotionally to all of this, and I believe I understand why: Pebble is his child, his masterwork, and a device worthy of that title. I believe his outburst comes out of a place of care.
Eric and Core recently demanded that, instead of working together, we need to just give them all of our work from the last decade so that they could do whatever they want with it. And in Eric’s latest newsletter, he hasn’t told you the truth about where the work that makes his business run came from.
Rebble, blog post, November 2025
What you now know as the Pebble App Store from Eric’s new company, Core Devices, is the result of nearly a decade of our work. The data behind the Pebble App Store is 100% Rebble
Rebble, blog post, November 2025
Doing the right thing
This is Eric, wearing the first Pebble. | Image by Pebble
- Without fans, Pebble would’ve never amassed such a cult following
- Without the strong community, devs wouldn’t have flooded the appstore with so many creative releases
- Without Eric’s hard work, the watch wouldn’t exist in the first place
- Without Rebble’s support, none of us would have been able to enjoy these creations for such a long, dry period
Note the chain: it’s all connected. Without the fans’ hunger for awesome tech that does cool stuff, there wouldn’t be a need for innovative software, which called for optimized hardware, which then created the need for Rebble’s project in the first place. It’s all because of fandom. Eric made Pebble, because he thought it’s just so neat. Rebble made the backup, because they loved his product. I’m certain that I know what the correct thing to do here is: making the next Pebble watches the best that they can be. That’s how it started, that’s how it should be. I understand that in this modern age it’s easy to mistrust, but I also believe that some of our historically favorite tech gadgets were born out of freedom and collaboration, not out of fear and assumptions of a worst-case scenario.
Recently, I stumbled upon this awesome video by Enrico Tartarotti:
He raises so many valid points about where we started and how we got to where we are. I don’t think I’m nostalgic — I think we’re losing something valuable with modern tech. And I’d like for the new Pebble smartwatches to serve as a reminder for how things should be, instead of another example for how bad things have gotten in some aspects.
And here’s the twist: Eric and Rebble already know this, and are low key on the same page:
I believe the Pebble community, Core Devices, Rebble and I all want the same thing. We love our Pebbles and want them to keep working long into the future. We love the community that has sprung up around Pebble, and how it’s persevered – next year will be the 14th anniversary of the original Kickstarter campaign!
Eric Migicovsky, personal blog, November 2025
In tandem with:
For our friends who have supported us over the past years: we’re sorry that you’re caught in the middle of this. We think Rebble can be the hub of community, and Core can make awesome products, and these don’t have to be in conflict. Eric’s new devices, Pebble 2 Duo and Pebble Time 2, look absolutely amazing!
Rebble, blog post, November 2025
That’s the spirit. Now get to it. Make them the best they can be. For me, because without Pebble, I wouldn’t have ever attempted to write code (and if I hadn’t failed at that, I would’ve never gotten inspired to pursue tech writing). For all the other people out there, still wearing their old Pebbles with their tattered straps and scratched-up screens. For the new guys, who are just now getting invested in the new Pebble 2 Duo and eagerly checking their tracking numbers for shipment updates.
Guys, don’t forget that it’s all about this. It was always about this. If you were smart enough to get us here, you must be intelligent enough to reach a mutually-beneficial resolution. And in the name of a brighter tech-fueled future, I hope you do soon, because I’d much rather be reading exciting product updates instead.
If you’re hopeful of the future like me, you can check out the upcoming Pebble 2 smartwatches here. I’m sure that they have the potential to be amazing devices, reminding all of us of why we love tech to begin with: because it is fun.
#Data #ego #future #Pebble #Core #Rebble #feud #undermine #comeback
