Post by Brian Sieber on May 25, 2014 20:00:48 GMT -5
Well, I've had the Pine prototype that was provided to me by Neptune for a bit, so it's time to put thoughts to paper. I didn't want to write this too early in the experience, because I wanted to avoid that "starry-eyed" new user aspect. I now feel confident to break down the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. As I will remind everyone several times, these are my opinions and completely subjective. What one person loves, another person has disdain for. All of that being said, here we go.
THE GOOD -
First and foremost... it came with a watchband! This is a KickStarter inside joke, but I have to say that I hope in their retooling, they don't stray too far from this design. The Pine IS beefy (we all know that) and it needs a band that is worthy of that and maintains the aesthetic. This band does that. As I have stated elsewhere, I have not worn any kind of watch, on a consistent basis, in many years. I did get an initial "Hey, there's something on my wrist" feeling, but that quickly faded. In no time at all, the size and weight of the Pine were negligible to me. In fact, I laughed about plugging the device in to charge one night and nearly falling asleep, before realizing that I still had the watchband on. That says a lot to me. Also, the Pine is easily released from the watchband and snaps tightly into place, when returned to it. I did realize that you will want to make sure to hear/feel the final *snap* of it locking into place. This will ensure no unwanted surprises.
The next point is the size of the Pine. It kind of reminds me of the first dive watch I got. People would look at think that it was so huge, in contrast to their little Timex. Well, that was fine. It needed to be bigger to accommodate all of the functions it contained and for ease of visibility. The Pine is the same case. You need some real estate to build everything into it that they wanted to. For me, I want a screen that I don't need a jeweler's loop to look at. Coming from the Note 3, the screen was a huge change for me, but it didn't take long for me to get used to it. It does takes a little bit to get used to the exact touch point on the screen for your finger tips, so you will do some mistyping in the beginning. This is where using voice actions definitely comes in handy. I have always sort of dragged my feet about using any of the voice functions on my phone or tablet, but the Pine offers the perfect opportunity to become familiar with these functions and make good use of them.
I tested a lot of apps (and I mean A LOT) and am happy to say that most seemed to work fine. There are some that I made continuous use of, because they are my required apps (mail, messaging, Waze and a few others). All the rest I merely ensured that they downloaded, installed, started up and looked OK on the screen. The glitches that I did find, were mostly related to developer issues and screen dynamics. In other words, some apps are scrunched up or over-sized on the screen dimensions. This will probably become less and less, as wearables become more widespread. I ran a few graphic-intense games like Riptide G2 and Pokémon, that ran smoothly and looked fine on the screen. I also tested Netflix and it streamed nicely, with vibrant color and nice sound. Keyboard replacement apps will be a matter of choice. I tried things like Minuum, 5-Tiles, Swype and my personal choice... SwiftKey. All of them worked and I can see why folks may want to go with the minimalistic ones.
The camera and video are pretty much what you would expect, from a 5MP lens. I had no serious expectations with this. I had a hard time imagining that anyone backed or pre-ordered the Pine primarily as a wrist camera, with a cell phone attached as a bonus. I loaded "Perfectly Clear" and used that. It automatically optimizes the image and let's you choose which to save. Everyone seemed satisfied with the pictures that have been posted.
I have used my Jaybirds headphones as my bluetooth device of choice, for music and calls, since day one. There have been zero issues and I found this was the best way to handle calls, for me. I use them with my Note 3 anyway, so it wasn't a big change in my case. The sound is nice, albeit not as loud as I would have liked, therefore I used ViPER4Android FX and it was all good.
I have chosen to run the prototype on T-Mobile. I have had no issues with signal (except at my house, which is the black hole of cellular service, no matter who the provider is) and download speeds have been good. I will try to get a speed test app sometime this week and post. Again, that is really one of those "mileage may vary" items.
For those wishing to root their device, I had this one rooted in less than two minutes. No big deal at all. I was able to install Xposed Framework and several modules that enabled me to customize my nav bar, etc. It will be up to Neptune whether rooting and/or flashing ROM's or kernels will have a negative impact on your warranty.
THE BAD -
Well, let's get this out of the way right here... the prototype did not come with any Google Apps. However, I was able to load the apk's for Gmail, Google+, Maps & Navigation and Google Search and they worked, right off the bat. The cards on Google Now and the Play Store did not. I have fiddled with the Store and have partial functionality. Once the Pine is out in the wild, I am sure people far more savvy than I, will get it the rest of the way. In the meantime, I have done fine with "1Mobile Market" and the Amazon app store.
This is a non-issue for me, but I know some people asked if the BACK/HOME/MENU buttons light up on the Pine. They do not. But, it has been of little consequence, even in low light, as you quickly become familiar with their location and it just works.
As I stated above, some apps do not fit the screen well. This is in the hands of the developers and should become less of an issue, as time goes on and wearables become more and more common.
People asked about using the Pine, detached from the watchband and held to your ear. This does work and you can turn the volume down. It would not be my usage of choice, but it is feasible. I actually used my pointer finger to slightly cup the top of my ear over the end of the Pine (much the same as you would cup your hand over the mouthpiece of a phone handset, so you could speak more softly, but be heard more loudly on the other end) and it worked great.
THE UGLY -
There is nothing to list here. With all the pictures and such that we have all seen, since becoming interested in the Pine, there are no ugly surprises. It is just what we have seen. It is not a tiny little delicate device, but it is by no means a Note 3 strapped to your wrist. It is, what it is. And I, for one, have been more than pleased with the outcome.
So, be ready to get yours and decide for yourselves. I am sure there will be divergent opinions on all facets of the Pine, but that is true of any product. I know this, having the prototype has made me anxious to get mine and even more anxious for what Neptune will follow up with.
THE GOOD -
First and foremost... it came with a watchband! This is a KickStarter inside joke, but I have to say that I hope in their retooling, they don't stray too far from this design. The Pine IS beefy (we all know that) and it needs a band that is worthy of that and maintains the aesthetic. This band does that. As I have stated elsewhere, I have not worn any kind of watch, on a consistent basis, in many years. I did get an initial "Hey, there's something on my wrist" feeling, but that quickly faded. In no time at all, the size and weight of the Pine were negligible to me. In fact, I laughed about plugging the device in to charge one night and nearly falling asleep, before realizing that I still had the watchband on. That says a lot to me. Also, the Pine is easily released from the watchband and snaps tightly into place, when returned to it. I did realize that you will want to make sure to hear/feel the final *snap* of it locking into place. This will ensure no unwanted surprises.
The next point is the size of the Pine. It kind of reminds me of the first dive watch I got. People would look at think that it was so huge, in contrast to their little Timex. Well, that was fine. It needed to be bigger to accommodate all of the functions it contained and for ease of visibility. The Pine is the same case. You need some real estate to build everything into it that they wanted to. For me, I want a screen that I don't need a jeweler's loop to look at. Coming from the Note 3, the screen was a huge change for me, but it didn't take long for me to get used to it. It does takes a little bit to get used to the exact touch point on the screen for your finger tips, so you will do some mistyping in the beginning. This is where using voice actions definitely comes in handy. I have always sort of dragged my feet about using any of the voice functions on my phone or tablet, but the Pine offers the perfect opportunity to become familiar with these functions and make good use of them.
I tested a lot of apps (and I mean A LOT) and am happy to say that most seemed to work fine. There are some that I made continuous use of, because they are my required apps (mail, messaging, Waze and a few others). All the rest I merely ensured that they downloaded, installed, started up and looked OK on the screen. The glitches that I did find, were mostly related to developer issues and screen dynamics. In other words, some apps are scrunched up or over-sized on the screen dimensions. This will probably become less and less, as wearables become more widespread. I ran a few graphic-intense games like Riptide G2 and Pokémon, that ran smoothly and looked fine on the screen. I also tested Netflix and it streamed nicely, with vibrant color and nice sound. Keyboard replacement apps will be a matter of choice. I tried things like Minuum, 5-Tiles, Swype and my personal choice... SwiftKey. All of them worked and I can see why folks may want to go with the minimalistic ones.
The camera and video are pretty much what you would expect, from a 5MP lens. I had no serious expectations with this. I had a hard time imagining that anyone backed or pre-ordered the Pine primarily as a wrist camera, with a cell phone attached as a bonus. I loaded "Perfectly Clear" and used that. It automatically optimizes the image and let's you choose which to save. Everyone seemed satisfied with the pictures that have been posted.
I have used my Jaybirds headphones as my bluetooth device of choice, for music and calls, since day one. There have been zero issues and I found this was the best way to handle calls, for me. I use them with my Note 3 anyway, so it wasn't a big change in my case. The sound is nice, albeit not as loud as I would have liked, therefore I used ViPER4Android FX and it was all good.
I have chosen to run the prototype on T-Mobile. I have had no issues with signal (except at my house, which is the black hole of cellular service, no matter who the provider is) and download speeds have been good. I will try to get a speed test app sometime this week and post. Again, that is really one of those "mileage may vary" items.
For those wishing to root their device, I had this one rooted in less than two minutes. No big deal at all. I was able to install Xposed Framework and several modules that enabled me to customize my nav bar, etc. It will be up to Neptune whether rooting and/or flashing ROM's or kernels will have a negative impact on your warranty.
THE BAD -
Well, let's get this out of the way right here... the prototype did not come with any Google Apps. However, I was able to load the apk's for Gmail, Google+, Maps & Navigation and Google Search and they worked, right off the bat. The cards on Google Now and the Play Store did not. I have fiddled with the Store and have partial functionality. Once the Pine is out in the wild, I am sure people far more savvy than I, will get it the rest of the way. In the meantime, I have done fine with "1Mobile Market" and the Amazon app store.
This is a non-issue for me, but I know some people asked if the BACK/HOME/MENU buttons light up on the Pine. They do not. But, it has been of little consequence, even in low light, as you quickly become familiar with their location and it just works.
As I stated above, some apps do not fit the screen well. This is in the hands of the developers and should become less of an issue, as time goes on and wearables become more and more common.
People asked about using the Pine, detached from the watchband and held to your ear. This does work and you can turn the volume down. It would not be my usage of choice, but it is feasible. I actually used my pointer finger to slightly cup the top of my ear over the end of the Pine (much the same as you would cup your hand over the mouthpiece of a phone handset, so you could speak more softly, but be heard more loudly on the other end) and it worked great.
THE UGLY -
There is nothing to list here. With all the pictures and such that we have all seen, since becoming interested in the Pine, there are no ugly surprises. It is just what we have seen. It is not a tiny little delicate device, but it is by no means a Note 3 strapped to your wrist. It is, what it is. And I, for one, have been more than pleased with the outcome.
So, be ready to get yours and decide for yourselves. I am sure there will be divergent opinions on all facets of the Pine, but that is true of any product. I know this, having the prototype has made me anxious to get mine and even more anxious for what Neptune will follow up with.