Pebble watches are getting plug-in support, and might rediscover its mojo

The Pebble Round 2 (Image credit: Pebble) Pebble has announced plug-in support for developersIt should lead to improved app and watch face experiencesEric Migicovsky calls it 'the biggest change since forever'If you own a Pebble smartwatch (or are thinking of getting one), a major update is on the way: plug-in support is coming to the Pebble OS platform, which will mean much more flexibility and variety for apps and watch faces.As announced by Pebble founder Eric Migicovsky (via Android Authority), the upgrade is "the biggest change to the SDK since... forever". Plug-ins are now available as a developer preview, but there's no timeframe yet for a full rollout.It essentially means that developers putting together Pebble apps or watch faces will be able to call on pre-packaged add-ons for tasks like checking the weather, controlling music playback, activating smart lights, chatting to AI, and more.Migicovsky describes them as being similar to Apple Watch complications except "way more flexible and awesome". As developers start to get to grips with plug-ins, look out for their appearance in third-party apps and watch faces.Is Pebble finding its mojo again?Pebble devs - we're working on something big for you 👀The biggest change to the SDK since...forever. Plugins: headless apps that provide data (eg weather, finance, traffic) or offer actions (home control, music, webhooks) to other apps, watchfaces and the Index agent.— @ericmigi.com (@ericmigi.com.bsky.social) 2026-10-23T11:59:23.153ZI've been rooting for Pebble since the very beginning really — way back in 2013 — because the tech landscape needs more smaller, independent companies. It also needs more devices that users can customize and tinker around with.In the 13 years since Pebble first appeared, it's had its ups and downs, but its return in 2025 was widely welcomed. The introduction of plug-ins is a sign of a platform and ecosystem that's maturing and ready to develop further.Expect watch faces that are more useful, apps that are more versatile and easier to operate, more consistency between apps, and improved privacy (you'll be able to configure permissions for individual plug-ins as needed).Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.Questions like "what's on my calendar?" or "unlock the front door" would be able to be routed to plug-ins rather than apps having to do all the heavy lifting. It's a strong step forward for the Pebble 2.0 project, and a sign of some serious mojo coming back. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.