Bangle.js 2 smartwatch
Hacker ApprovedRanked 8 of 20 smartwatches by recommenders
Recommended for its open, hackable JavaScript platform and battery life that lasts days; critics find the single physical button limiting.
Recommended for its open, hackable JavaScript platform and battery life that lasts days; critics find the single physical button limiting.
13 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 13
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 13 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Long battery life lasting days
“it has the main things I want from a tool : notifications, long battery life, easily-visible screen in all conditions”
Comment from 18 Jun 2026 in “Modos Color Monitor Pushes E-Paper Displays Further” “the battery lasts me a week and it's more hackable than Pebble ever was”
Comment from 18 Nov 2025 in “Core Devices keeps stealing our work” “runs just fine for days without a battery recharge”
Comment from 18 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: AsteroidOS 2.0 – Nobody asked, we shipped anyway” Hackable, runs JavaScript apps
“I love(d) my bangle.js. Such a true hacker device. Really fun to use WebUSB and push JavaScript files as apps.”
Comment from 23 Apr 2026 in “A DIY Watch You Can Actually Wear” “When your watch supports the most common computer language on Earth, it is hard to go wrong with it.”
Comment from 25 Feb 2026 in “Ask HN: Programmable Watches with WiFi?” “the battery lasts me a week and it's more hackable than Pebble ever was”
Comment from 18 Nov 2025 in “Core Devices keeps stealing our work” Fun to use with great community
“I love(d) my bangle.js. Such a true hacker device. Really fun to use WebUSB and push JavaScript files as apps.”
Comment from 23 Apr 2026 in “A DIY Watch You Can Actually Wear” “It's very fun product with a great community.”
Comment from 18 Jun 2026 in “Modos Color Monitor Pushes E-Paper Displays Further”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Only one physical button
“only having one physical button kinda kills it for me”
Comment from 19 Nov 2025 in “Pebble, Rebble, and a path forward” “Ticks the boxes, but not the buttons.”
Comment from 19 Feb 2026 in “Pebble Production: February Update”
Other smartwatches people recommend
The four most recommended other smartwatches, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Watch | 246 | 272 | 47% | 12 | 5 yrs29 owners | — |
| Pebble smartwatch | 117 | 37 | 76% | 12 | 12 yrs4 owners | Approved |
| Pebble Time 2 | 53 | 19 | 74% | 10 | 3 mo4 owners | Approved |
| Google Pixel Watch | 41 | 57 | 42% | 10 | — | — |
| Bangle.js 2 smartwatchThis page | 13 | 0 | 100% | 7 | — | Approved |
What people said
14 of the 18 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“the tools IMHO was easier”
“Works well as a preventative measure, but I've never seen that on other watches”
“it has the main things I want from a tool : notifications, long battery life, easily-visible screen in all conditions”
“It's very fun product with a great community.”
“I love(d) my bangle.js. Such a true hacker device. Really fun to use WebUSB and push JavaScript files as apps.”
“When your watch supports the most common computer language on Earth, it is hard to go wrong with it.”
“Ticks the boxes, but not the buttons.”
“runs just fine for days without a battery recharge”
“Bangle.js is closer, for all its (many) flaws.”
“only having one physical button kinda kills it for me”
“I have had constant disconnects for months at a time with Gadgetbridge”
“it's performed well for me over the last 6 months”
“the battery lasts me a week and it's more hackable than Pebble ever was”
“Nothing against those projects, I enjoyed them for what they were as well.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.