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Wrist Check

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A community member
Jul 31, 2019153 VIEWS
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So, you think your smartwatch is cool? Well, here is a titbit of smartwatch history ;-) Early this century (2003) - if you were into tech/gadgets - you probably were carrying 2 devices on you: a mobile phone and a "PDA". Yes, hard to imagine - if you're "Gen Z" - but back then, we mostly had 'dumb phones' (apart from some cutting edge people used a Palm Treo). You either owned a Windows CE based organizer (i.e. Compaq iPAQ), or a Palm device or maybe even a Psion. So, when Fossil came out with a combination between a "watch" and a (Palm) organizer in 2003, I had to get one. I already owned 3 Palm Pilot devices and liked the OS very much. Btw: 2 still work fine till this day, and one them is actually a rarity as it is still branded "USRobotics" (from before when they became "Palm"). The idea of having a "smart" watch was just too cool. So, via my (American) girlfriend I obtained the "Abacus". Needless to say it was a "boat anchor" and it hardly held a charge. Also, having to sync data manually every time was a hassle - no such thing as "bluetooth" - and the IR-receiver was kinda useless too (no PC with a IR receiver). The build-in watch faces were kinda cool too (and if you ever owned a Pebble you'll recognize some layouts)... So within one month it disappeared into my junk drawer having the privilege of becoming one of my worst tech buys to become obsolete in record time... It remained operational until a few months ago when I tried to charge it and I found out the rechargeable battery completely died and the watch band broke as well.. I then tossed it out... Anyhow: you can consider these picture as the last wrist shot (and a cool animation) of it in action. R.I.P. Fossil Abacus - you won't be missed (much)....
(Edited)
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hAy.
89
Aug 6, 2019
Oh, Nostalgia. I used it with Palm m500. I used the palm for a long time until my Tungsten T broke down. (It was a long time since I started the pilot.) The watch was a fun thing! But it was not useful for my memory. It quickly returned to the box and I can't figure out where it is now : )
koolpep
929
Aug 1, 2019
Thank you so much to throw me back to memory lane... I also had a US Robotics Palm Pilot, Palm IIIC, Tungsten, Treo, etc etc and even a Psion 3a before that - man these times were glorious and so much fun.
A community member
Aug 1, 2019
koolpepWhat was cool about it, was that everything was new and "fresh" and now it's just more of the same and not so much "revolutionary".. When I started in the internet business in 1994, we literally had a map of Holland with 30-50 drawing pins on it that represented all companies with websites in Holland 😂 I bet nowadays you wouldn't even see the map itself anymore.. Ah, I miss that internet bubble of 1995-2001... Lol..
RayF
22218
Jul 31, 2019
Interesting! By the way, do you remember the Apple Newton?
A community member
Jul 31, 2019
RayFFor sure: a buddy of mine had/has one. It was way ahead of its time and USRobotics/3Com/Palm actually learned a thing of two from its handwriting recognition and cleverly used it for its own character recognition! That thing was so much ahead no one saw its potential! https://youtu.be/V0sbDweeBto
RayF
22218
Aug 1, 2019
Great video, brings back a lot of memories (and nightmares).! I had use of one for a few months at the time, but eventually gave up on it--mostly out of boredom. We forget how limited devices/computers were before the internet came along--and it wasn't all that long ago! Wonder what the next ten years will bring?
Truelove1
2730
Jul 31, 2019
That's a great back story. Every watch tells a story. It's awesome! I remember when the so called "smart" watches came out. Good times... Wow we've come a long way.
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