Powerwatch 2 | firmware V2.6.5r0

We are excited to announce the latest PowerWatch 2 firmware update: menus have been reorganized, and we’ve added more power-saving features, new fonts and icons, Automatic Time Sync, and a new GPS Location mini-app!

 

• Firmware: V2.6.5r0
• iOS App: V.1.4.5
• Android App: V1.5.2

 

WHAT’S NEW

The following new features have been added:

 

Reorganized Menus

The menu system has been reworked to reduce the number of button presses required to navigate to commonly-accessed screens. Previously, a large number of screens were placed under the Settings menu. These have now been separated into 3 separate menus: System, Info and Settings.

Auto DND

The default setting for DND is “Auto”, and when notifications are received in this mode, the watch will not notify the user when the user is asleep. When set to “Off”, the watch will always notify the user; when set to “On” the watch will never notify the user.

 

Disconnection Alert

The default setting for Bluetooth disconnection alert is “Off”, and can be toggled through “Vibrate”, “Audio” or “Audio + Vibrate” by pressing SELECT. When enabled, the watch will alert the user with a notification popup whenever the Bluetooth link with the phone is lost.

GPS Update Rate

The default setting for GPS updates is “Auto”, and can be toggled through 1, 2, 5, or 10 seconds by pressing SELECT. Forcing GPS update to reduced rates can save energy during outdoor activities, at the expense of less precise positioning.

Automatic backlight brightness

The watch now uses the ambient light level measurement to determine how brightly to drive the backlight. This saves power when viewing the watch in bright daylight, when the backlight is not needed. It also prevents the backlight from blinding the user when activated in very dark environments.

 

GPS Signal Strength

A GPS signal strength indicator has been added to the “Searching for GPS…” screen as well as to the Activity Screen. The signal strength ranges between 0 to 4 bars (,,,,) and indicates relative strength of the GPS signal. A lock can typically be acquired within about 10 seconds when 3 to 4 bars are illuminated.

GPS Location mini-app

The last known location is displayed in Watch Apps > GPS Location in degrees latitude and longitude. To perform a location measurement, HOLD SELECT and a GPS signal strength indicator will replace the location data. When the new location is acquired, the new latitude and longitude will be shown. Press BACK to cancel the measurement and return to the previous screen.

Automatic Time Sync

The watch now supports automatic time synchronization with the phone via Bluetooth. This will update the watch timezone and daylight savings offset automatically whenever they change on the phone. On certain iOS and Android versions, some users may need to Clear Bonding in the watch, Forget Device in the phone’s Bluetooth Settings, then re-establish Bluetooth pairing in the app before this will work.

 

Improved font update system

Added server-side ability to deliver the appropriate font update file based on the corresponding firmware version. Font updates will only be delivered if the firmware installed on the watch is at least the minimum version required for that update.

 

New icons for Time Screen

The Time screen now shows:

• Watch Mode icon  in the notification tray when in Watch Mode.
• Offwrist Mode icon in the notification tray when the watch is off the wrist.
• Sleep Mode icon  in the notification tray when the watch detects that the user is asleep.
• Charge Mode icon  in the notification tray and stays on when the watch is placed on the charge puck.

 

The Time screen complications now use:

• Body icon   n the thermal generation complication and in the body temperature complication.
• Sun icon  in the solar generation complication.
• Watch icon in the watch temperature complication.

 

The following are the new Navigation icons:

 

Other

Some other improvements include:

 

• Multiple text and icon fixes, as well as other UI bug fixes.
• Multiple translation updates.
• Various under-the-hood cleanups and optimizations to improve code stability, size and speed.
• Multiple bug fixes in Clock mini-app. Timer and Stopwatch should no longer skip 2 seconds when starting.
• Reduced sleep detection sensitivity during user’s normal wakeful hours, and increased sensitivity during user’s normal sleeping hours.
• Fixed an issue causing blinking screen restart loops.

COMING SOON

 

• iOS Offline Sync mode
• App Push Notifications
• Notification removal from watch when cleared on phone
• Improved incoming call notifications
• App-side control of user settings and preferences