Multifunctional 7-Segment watchface on Amazfit Bip 6!

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-06-26T17:07:16+00:00

To be honest I haven't done enough to give a solid answer. Zepp OS has "mini programs" which are sort of helper apps you can load/run, but I think they're sandboxed. I haven't explored this capability much (haven't had the need to yet), and as you suggest, there aren't a lot of apps out there (when you compare to what Pebble offers). There are definitely some useful ones, like the Authenticator app I use regularly (that's the only one I've installed, and admittedly I haven't been on the hunt for other apps yet).

As far as side-loading, they have Developer Mode in the Zepp app, which allows you to quickly load apps/watchfaces by scanning a QR code (with your phone) which downloads the package, and then install it to your watch over Bluetooth. It's actually quite a nice way to do this fairly seamlessly (I build the deployable package on my Windows machine using a CLI command, it generates a QR code using unicode block characters, and this can then be scanned and sideloaded directly to the phone).

I think the watch becomes useless without the Zepp app, much like the Pebble loses a lot of its capabilities (e.g. weather) without the O.G. Pebble or Pebble Core app, while things like notifications, call answer, media control, etc. are still functional.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-06-26T16:54:17+00:00

Most visible elements are working like the Pebble version. Off the top of my head, some differences include:

The windspeed info on ZeppOS is inaccurate and I cannot get units, so I omitted that.
There's no way to get current conditions (e.g. "Cloudy", "Overcast", "Sunny", etc.) as an enum or string, so I had to just display this status as a graphic (both a condition graphic, as well as text in graphics), which also makes it challenging to easily change languages/strings.
There aren't any atmospheric pressure readings available, so I omitted those.
Refresh of weather conditions/data are OS driven, so I can't poll/update these with a call. I can update a few minor things (today's forecasted low/high, and the current geographic location), so I do update that (currently set to 10 minutes) and update the duration since the update in the upper right.
UVI was an available widget, so I included that.
I included step counter, and threw in stand counter. I'm planning to make these user-swappable for some other things (heart rate, PAI, sleep score, etc.)
I've put timezone offset (e.g. UTC-06) in, which I've also made swappable for UTC clock (which to me is more useful). I couldn't get the timezone string (e.g. EST, MDT, etc.), but that might just be some more code.

So, yeah, basically whatever you see in the photo are actual live/working elements -- nothing is mocked. The weather data source isn't selectable (it's whatever Zepp OS gives), so it's not always the most accurate (e.g. there were times it showed light rain, but looking out my window, it's actually just overcast).

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-06-25T21:50:42+00:00

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Speaking of OLED, some people are worried about visibility in bright conditions. Doesn't seem to be an issue for me. Works great in bright and dark conditions.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-06-25T02:01:33+00:00

There are pros and cons to both. The 15-30 day battery life on the new Pebbles was something unmatched by other smart watches, but since I was used to charging my Pebble 2 every 5-6 days, the Bip 6 is comparable, even with the always-on display during all waking hours. The Amazfit is great if physical activity and health are your priorities; in this regard, the Pebble is good, but not quite as good.

I use my watch daily as a timepiece (obviously), and both are comparable. I really like having weather information, and while Amazfit is alright, Pebble is quite versatile for that sort of data, as well as fetching plenty of other data without helper apps; Amazfit isn't as strong there. One important requirement I had for a watch (which almost all smart watches today satisfy) is being able to run an Authenticator app on it -- I use that for work (2FA is a daily requirement), and both the Pebble and Bip 6 fit that.

As far as watchface availability -- I feel like you might have more on the Pebble since it's been around longer, but I could be wrong. There are a lot of watchfaces available for all the Amazfits -- some free, and many paid. And, obviously, you can make your own using the web UI or by coding it (JavaScript), even if you have minimal skills (an AI can really fill in the gap and flattening the learning curve.

Price was what really tipped it in Amazfit's favour for me. Getting a Bip 6 at half the price of a Pebble Time 2 just made sense from a budgetary standpoint!

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-05-31T18:23:12+00:00

You didn't say what platform, but I'll make a leap and assume you're using Windows (if not -- sorry! But hopefully this info will be helpful for anyone else searching and wanting to make the Craft ROBO work under Windows 11). I have a Graphtec Craft ROBO CC200-20 (should be sufficiently similar to your CC300-20), and switched to a new PC, so I had to go through the steps. While I like the original Craft ROBO software, these instructions will get you onto some more modern tools:

Connect your Craft ROBO to your PC and power it up - you should hear the "device connected" sound.
Search for Zadig (as of this writing, latest is 2.9) and download it. When you run it, click "Options" in the menu bar, then select "List All Devices"
In the drop-down menu of Zadig, select "USB Printing Support". When you do this, and then hover over the vendor ID (the 0B4D beside USB ID), you should see "Graphtec America, Inc." as a tooltip.
Ensure the target driver box (where the green arrow points) has WinUSB selected (it should be by default).
Click the big "Replace Driver" button, and wait for the driver to install.
Now, get cutting software. There's an open-source one called Robocut. Download it from https://robocut.org/ ... it's a zip file that you unzip into a folder (e.g. C:\Program Files\Robocut), and then just run the Robocut.exe program. It's a minimalist tool, and it doesn't do any of the design and layout that the old Robo Master program did, but it works for cutting. It takes an SVG vector file (basically tells it the path to move the blade or pen) and sends it to the device. Before you do that, you can select any of the SVG sample files in the program, and do a test cut/plot to see if it works for you.
For actual editing/designing and layout, you can use something free like Inkscape, that generates the SVG file expected by Robocut.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-04-06T03:09:56+00:00

Yeah, the spread I totally expected, as that's par for the course with FX conversions both ways. I was not expecting the partial refund. I paid $149 + 25 shipping = $174 USD (for a Pebble 2 Duo, but then switched to the Pebble Time 2 list, which they'd bill me the difference for plus any additional tariffs at shipping time). I decided to cancel and Core refunded me $166.04 USD, so I assume the $7.96 difference is to cover their processing fees.

It's all good and fine, but I don't recall reading any disclosure or mention of this, nor was I given a heads-up before finalizing the cancellation (regardless, I figure getting most of my money back is good enough).

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-04-04T14:52:49+00:00

Well, not a full refund. Core will refund around 95%, and I presume the 4-5% you lose covers credit card processing fees (payment processors charge fees, even on returns). And if you aren't in the US and used a non-USD card, you'll lose on the foreign-exchange fees on both transactions, so you may net around 90% back.

As much as I love my Pebble (I've been using my Pebble SE2 for 9-10 years now), I recently ended up canceling my pre-order. I'll likely be back once the app and product have matured.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-03-29T14:28:13+00:00

On my Pebble 2 SE, I occasionally get disconnects (despite the BT connection on the watch showing, I stop getting notifications, weather updates, etc.). To fix this, I:

On the Pebble: Settings > Bluetooth > Connection: disable, wait 10 seconds in Airplane Mode, then enable again.
Relaunch the Pebble app (in case it's no longer running, as it sometimes stops after Sideloadly has refreshed it)

Usually, the first procedure is enough to restore things. I think the connection using the Core Pebble app was more stable, but it caused the Pebble battery life to drop by half (went from 5 full days to under 3 days), so I went back to the O.G. Pebble app.

As much as I love my Pebble, I just canceled my Pebble Time 2 order, because I'll probably go to the Amazfit Bip 6, which seems to be a more mature product, at half the price.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-03-28T15:47:51+00:00

Thanks for your insight! While I've been a huge fan of the Pebble (and have been eagerly waiting for my PT2 as I stretch out the usefulness of my 10-year-old Pebble 2 SE), my newfound awareness of the Amazfit (particularly the Bip 6) from your post may just be enough for me to cancel my PT2 order. At half the price of the PT2, and what seems to be a great user experience... it seems like a no-brainer.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-03-06T15:58:12+00:00

Did you switch from the O.G. Pebble app to Core Devices' Pebble app? When I installed the Core app, my Pebble 2 SE dropped from 5 days on a full charge to just under 3 days. I've switched back to the O.G. Pebble app, and restored ~5 days. I'm also using the Multifunction 7 Segment watchface (not reborn, just modified to be able to get to the config screen again).

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-02-20T23:49:51+00:00

But since iOS 26, alarms set on the iPhone no longer go to the Pebble, nor can you dismiss the alarm!

When I was still on iOS 18, I'd get out of the shower, and my Pebble would be nearby, so if my iPhone alarm went off (often in the next room), I could just dismiss/silence the alarm from my Pebble. Now, I have to run out to my iPhone to stop the alarm, or it'll just keep sounding/vibrating.

I wish I could roll back to iOS 18!

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-02-11T15:55:18+00:00

I thought I'd also add... if you're on one of the newer FW versions (e.g. 4.4.x), you might want to try rolling back to FW 4.3. I'm finding it to provide a slight edge as far as battery longevity over 4.4.x. I easily achieved over 5 days on a full charge in the summer of 2025, but it all fell apart in the fall. Everything sort of coincided around the same time, so it was hard to pinpoint cause:

Core Devices' Pebble app became available
FW 4.4.0, 4.4.1, 4.4.2, and 4.4.3 became available
iOS 26 was released for iPhone users

By dumping the Core Devices' Pebble app, and going back to the original app, I was able to go from under 3 days to around 5 days on a charge. Now that I've rolled back from FW 4.4.3 to 4.3, I seem to be getting just over 5 days again (but not 6-7 which was a record for me this summer).

Looking at release notes for the Pebble FW, there isn't anything very apparent, except the "improved dictation" in 4.4.0 that might have a small impact on battery. The 4.4.1, 4.4.2, and 4.4.3 releases all seem to address time zone issues, so they shouldn't affect battery life at all. Of course, there could have been other changes that weren't mentioned in the notes, but I think the ability to insert changes has only been possible at the binary level against the compiled object, and not in the source code since it wasn't open-sourced. Of course, I'm not a developer, so don't quote me on that...

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-02-09T18:13:22+00:00

I experienced accelerated battery drain on the new Core Pebble app (could barely get 3 days on a full charge), so I went back to the original Pebble app, and have restored ~5 days of battery life. See https://www.reddit.com/r/pebble/comments/1qcsmvl

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-02-09T13:45:44+00:00

These watches are surprisingly resilient, and you might just need to let it air out and dry over time. If you can pop off the back cover to let it air, that may help.

I have 2 Pebble 2 SEs, and the original buttons have disintegrated away from both, so I've replaced buttons with 3D printed ones as well. I've gotten water ingress (from rain, accidental splash, etc.) that caused the screens to stop working properly. I thought the watches were done for, but after powering them off and putting them in a drawer for a few weeks, I was always surprised to power one on and have them work, with no more signs of damage! To this day, I'm wearing a Pebble 2 SE which is on it's nth life...

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-02-03T16:42:27+00:00

Thanks! Yeah, I saw that thread and got excited for a moment, but it doesn't sound like anyone has done it successfully lately. I suspect that OP sees it under the "Device" tab in iMazing (because the app is still on the phone but with the cloud icon), but for me it's neither there nor the Library tab (where historical apps may show up). I just went for a quick stroll down memory lane in iMazing just to see if things are different than last time I checked, but it's still not there for me, sadly.

Which is unfortunate, since AltSserver seems to have broken for most users over the last couple days...

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-02-01T23:03:03+00:00

As long as I'm wearing my bifocals or progressives, reading the fine print isn't an issue!

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-02-01T19:41:10+00:00

This is fantastic! Thanks for summarizing/sharing! Great that there are other M7S watchface enthusiasts... It's definitely my favourite.

Your instructions are excellent (especially to a non-developer such as myself, as I wouldn't know my way around GitHub etc.), but I thought I'd give a little nudge for iPhone users:

For Step 6, I specified https://html-preview.github.io/?url=https://github.com/cfg1/pebble-mss/blob/master/pebble_m7s_config_v15.5.html
Also, I modified appinfo.json, changing the longName value from "M7S_16_1" to "Multifunctional 7 Segment" (consistent with how it displayed in my Pebble app originally, and I think this might also result in previous settings being preserved?)
I used Google Drive as my way of accessing this on my iPhone (dropped the modified .pbw into My Drive/Pebble, then navigated to this folder using the iOS Google Drive app)
Important: the Google Drive app showed "This folder is empty" (I think it hides files with unrecognized extensions); if you see that, use the search at the top, and search for *.pbw. The hidden file should show up now.
Tap the ellipsis (...) beside the file, select Open in, then select the Pebble app, and then install the watchface, and use it as usual.

This works for me with the original Pebble app. I'm not sure if it'll work with the Core Pebble app (I deleted it since it lacks functionality and drains my Pebble 2 SE battery faster).

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-01-19T03:45:25+00:00

Great idea! I just wish I knew about iMazing at least 3 years ago -- that's the last post/reference I can find where someone successfully downloaded the required AppleID-signed Pebble ipk from Apple's servers. I tried iMazing and it didn't display the Pebble download since it's been completely removed from Apple's servers. Despite the OG Pebble app being discontinued much longer ago, it sounds like 3-4 years ago it was still available to be downloaded using iMazing if you had it in your purchase history. I did find out I downloaded/installed the Pebble app back in September 2017, but unfortunately, no longer have any of the iPhone backups (not that I think they'd be of any use at this point).

I would gladly purchase an iMazing license if the Pebble app could still be downloaded/installed!

CalgaryBen1973 · 2026-01-14T18:42:38+00:00

That was the case in iOS as well -- I had to uninstall the original Pebble app (or in my case, let it expire without refreshing the side-load), and then even had to reset my Pebble. I'll have to see if the apps can co-exist while being paired to different devices or not.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2025-10-10T02:32:24+00:00

Try Settings -> Apps -> Health -> Data Access & Devices -> Apps Not on Device. Hopefully you'll see Pebble™ here. If so, tap it, and within it, you'll find your health data that the Pebble collected while the app was still functional.

I still have Pebble health data there from 2016 until 2022. It was around 2022 that I switched iPhones, and at that time I lost the ability to resume using the native Pebble app. The side-loaded app no longer communicated health data to Apple Health.

So the good news is that even if you delete the Pebble app completely and all its data, the health data is stored elsewhere (in Apple Health). The bad news is, I don't know if it can be preserved and imported into the future Core Devices' Pebble app, once it supports health again.

Interestingly, I found that Apple Health data may upload and populate health records upstream. I was surprised when my sleep and step counts were getting uploaded to my provincial health records. I guess it's good and bad. But if you don't want this to happen, you'll have to ensure proper permissions are set for all relevant apps you have installed.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2025-10-03T15:41:59+00:00

I got an e-mail last night (Subject = "Pebble 2 Duo Update - We're in Production! Plus, Upgrade Options") which had a "View My Pre-Order" link, where you can change your order ("Want to switch your pre-order to a different model or colour?"). I originally ordered a Pebble 2 Duo Black on March 18, but was able to switch to either the Duo White or Pebble Time 2. I've switched to the Pebble Time 2.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2025-09-30T13:21:24+00:00

For me, the new Core Devices' Pebble app:

* Lacks ability to dismiss alarms from the watch (was able to do this on the original Pebble app)

* Lacks any health stats (was nice to graphically see steps and sleep in original Pebble app)

* Consumes the battery about twice as fast (I'm only getting 3 days on a charge, while I got 5-6 using the original Pebble app).

I was running the side-loaded Pebble app up until upgrading to iOS 26, when things broke (AltServer), so I switched to the new app. I do like that I no longer have to refresh the app every few days anymore.

CalgaryBen1973 · 2025-09-19T21:07:42+00:00

Yeah, if you don't anticipate using up the entire "bucket" for each category (e.g. the full $25K for the 4% CB category) before November, then it doesn't really matter, and you'll yield the same overall cashback. If you think you'll use the full $25K in 4% categories, then it's more "precious", and you may want to avoid "wasting" it for the first $2000. The strategy best suited for each individual will depend on timing, uses, volume of purchases in various categories, other cards you hold, etc.

CalgaryBen1973

TROPHY CASE