Removing the EMI shield reveals a Texas Instruments chip in the same family as, but slightly different than the one we expected. The backside of the motherboard houses a Panasonic RF module, promising both Bluetooth and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) functionality, as advertised by the folks at Pebble. The report also claimed that the Bluetooth chip being used does not appear to support Bluetooth 4.0 (BLE), despite the company promising support for the protocol in a future software update: Add in a bezel around the screen, and it’s impossible to separate the cases without compromising the display. The Pebble employs tons of adhesive to keep water (and tinkerers) out. Unfortunately, at first glance the watch doesn’t appear to be easily repairable with the report noting waterproofing makes for a “very inaccessible battery.” iFixit noted that excessive adhesive used to keep out water made it impossible to access the insides of the device “without compromising the display”:
iFixit admits it has no way of rating the repairability of this type of device, and for that reason isn’t giving it a repairability score like usual.
IFixit has performed its usual teardown process for yet another device today, this time giving us a look inside the recently launched Pebble Bluetooth smart watch. Pebble most definitely has Bluetooth LE support, though it has not yet been enabled in our operating system. Our chips were labeled CC2560 because TI asked us if we wouldn’t mind using them with CC2564 firmware to speed up our order. That’s why the module was labeled PAN1316. Many chip vendors make silicon consistent between product lines but simply flash different firmware to enable features. The Bluetooth chips TI sent to Panasonic were labeled CC2560 but have been flashed with the firmware (and BT LE support) of a CC2564. The company provided the following explanation regarding iFixit’s findings: Update: We’ve received information directly from Pebble that the watch does indeed support Bluetooth 4.0.
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