MyKronoz ZeTime Petite: a smaller size of its hybrid mechanical smartwatch

Swiss watch company MyKronoz has a new version of its ZeTime hybrid smartwatch, the ZeTime Petite, which solves one of the biggest problems with the original ZeTime — it makes it smaller, with 39mm case size.

The MyKronoz ZeTime was a crowdfunding project that looked to offer the best of both worlds when it came to smartwatches, combining a full color touchscreen overlaid with a pair of mechanical analog watch hands when it launched late last year.

Size aside, the rest of the ZeTime Petite is pretty much identical to the original, with a stainless steel case, sapphire glass, and a variety of watchbands in different materials and styles. The only other notable difference is that the smaller size leads to a smaller screen, down from 1.22 inches to 1.05 inches (although since both displays offer a 240 x 240 resolution, the Petite ends up looking sharper.)

The Petite solves one of the ZeTime’s issues, but ultimately, you’re still left with a proprietary smartwatch OS that lacks the kind of developer support or deep OS integration like Android Wear and WatchOS. On the other hand, smartwatch apps haven’t exactly panned out in a big way, and the ZeTime does offer all the basics you’d want from a smartwatch, including fitness, notifications, weather forecast, phone controls, and a heart rate sensor.

And like the original ZeTime, the ZeTime Petite claims to offer three days of battery life for the smartwatch side, and up to 30 days of battery life for the analog hands, which is better than most smartwatches.

Both sizes are available now from MyKronoz’ website, starting at $199 for either size.

Microsoft Surface Book Design review

Microsoft has been dabbling in laptop hardware for a very short time but they have quickly risen to the top to become the trend setter for devices running Windows. It convinced an initially sceptic public and greatly gained a reputation after the release of a stellar Surface Pro 3. Now they are back with the Surface Book. Similar to the Surface tabs in the previous year, this edition also comes as a unique two in one hybrid.

Design wise, the Surface Book has an extremely futuristic design. The snake like hinges and the silver aluminium design gives this laptop a minimalistic and yet eye catching design.



The interior of the laptop completely consists of metal except for the glassy touchpad. The same story applies to the exterior with a complete metallic design, save for the mirror Windows badge and the camera. The unique hinge adds to the futuristic appeal and holds up the laptop quite well.

The keyboard is a joy to type on thanks to the 1.6 mm key travel not to mention the tactile noise you hear when you press a button. As mentioned above, the touchpad has a glass finish and is quite precise and easy to use.

Turning your laptop into a tablet is also quite easy. Although many companies already offer this feature, Microsoft’s implementation is the most seamless by far. All one has to do is press the eject button on the keyboard or the button on task bar. The screen will turn off for a sec and you will then get a notification saying it is safe to remove the screen.

Another feature that sets the Surface Book apart is its inclusion of a graphics processor into a 2 in 1 system. The NVidia GeForce GPU makes it easier for the laptop handle media as well as gaming. This sort of implementation has been seen in previous machines but again, none have perfected it as Microsoft has done. In the previous cases, the laptops had to be restarted if you planned to detach the laptop. In the case of Microsoft’s Surface Book, it only needs about a second or two to accomplish the same feat. What makes this feature more exciting is that it offers plenty of room for future upgrades to expand the usage.

The Surface Book does weight quite a bit with a weight of 1.51 kilograms. This is without the optional graphics card that increases the weight to 1.58 kg. The laptop has an aspect ratio of 3:2 and comes with a 13.5 inch screen that delivers great images.