Pebble, the kickstarter project that raised over $10 million has just announced on CES 2013 that the device will begin shipping to Kickstarter backers on January 23. Becasue there are a total of 85,000 backers, it will take 6-8 weeks before the watch will be available for general sale. If you are unfamiliar with the Pebble watch, check out the hands-on videos after the break to see what this iOS and Android compatible watch can do.

The Verge:

On either iOS or Android, Pebble can receive notifications for texts, emails, and calls. On Android, you can add Google Talk and Google Voice notifications to that mix, while iOS naturally does iMessage since it’s built into the SMS app. It controls music on your phone thanks to AVRCP that works just like it does on Bluetooth headsets — minus the audio, of course. The vibration motor on the Pebble felt strong enough that you won’t miss an alert — it’s certainly more noticeable than a vibration in your pocket.

Engadget:

Under the hood there’s a Buetooth 4.0 radio, vibration motor, accelerometer and compass which enable some interesting new functionality. For example, just tapping the bezel above the armband lights up the screen. We found Pebble’s UI simple and intuitive – the up and down buttons enable menu navigation, the select button lets you chose items and the back button takes you up one level (and initially brings up the main menu). Allerta’s done a great job at fine tuning the software – scrolling is extremely fluid and the UI is pleasantly responsive.

Source [MacRumors and iDB]