Pebble’s Crowdfunding Just Won’t Stop. Take That VCs!
Who would’ve thought that a watch could get over $4 million in funding just to reach commercial availability? All without the aid of venture capital funding.
Well, it’s not just any watch, it’s the Pebble – a digital watch that connects to your iOS or Android smartphone via Bluetooth to display text messages, caller ID, social media updates and reminders. It can control music playlists, serve as a GPS tool and more. The Pebble is water-, scratch- and shatter-proof, and has an anti-glare coating so you can see the screen even in bright surroundings. There’s already a fully-functioning prototype, featured in their video.
The Pebble is the product of a five-man team that started the project using cell phone parts. they were able to raise $375,000 from angel investors who wanted their dream to turn into reality. But when they were looking to for investors for a Series A funding, venture capital firms were quick to turn their back on the Pebble. So they did the best next thing– the Pebble team took their project to KickStarter, the crowdfunding site that helps startups launch their projects.
“With VCs, they worry about models and size of market and stuff like that,” Pebble founder Eric Migicovsky told Bloomberg . “With consumers, one of the things I love about the videos, we just showed how you’re going to use it.”
As of today, Pebble already has more than 30 thousand backers and raised over $4 million in pledges, and the numbers just keep rising. In return, those who backed the company will get a Pebble when the product officially launches, depending on the amount of money you pledged for the project.
The Pebble may soon be in consumers hands and the creators already put a price on the device: $150. Not bad for a watch that alerts you for a lot of things besides the time, and can be customized by coding.
It may take months before consumers get their hands on the Pebble but Sony already released its competitor: the SmartWatch. It has many of the same features, but is only compatible with Android smartphones. The SmartWatch will soon be available for $149.99. Though some may go for the SmartWatch since it’s from a trusted brand, other consumers prefer the sleek look of the Pebble over the iPod nano-like design of the SmartWatch.
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