Week in Tech: Week in tech: Pebble Time, Sony slip-ups and Moto E madness

If you listen carefully you'll hear a whooshing sound. It's the sound of faraway planes, trains and automobiles carrying hundreds of hacks to Barcelona, because next week sees the biggest event in the mobile tech calendar: MWC 2015. Inevitably that means lots of leaks, stacks of speculation and tantalising teasers – so we already know about some of the most exciting new kit that'll launch next week. Not only that but we've got Steam in VR, a superb phone at an unbelievably low price and a completely baffling thing that the record industry is doing. It's enough to make Madonna fall down some more stairs.

Whether by accident or design, the Samsung Galaxy S6 has been leaking for weeks - and the latest leaks include photos of it and its Galaxy Edge sibling in actual use. It doesn't look dramatically different from the Galaxy S5, although if you look carefully you'll notice the slimmer bezel, metal frame and glass back. Apparently it "feels solid as heck".

The S6 will launch just in time for this year's Mobile World Congress, aka MWC 2015. It's the biggest date in the smartphone calendar, and we're expecting to see some more showstoppers including the HTC One M9 and some interesting things from Microsoft. Did someone say HTC One M9?

What's the difference between the HTC One M8 and the HTC One M9? If you answered "one" you'd be right, but there's more to the new flagship than a slightly different number. The UltraPixel camera is now on the front for selfie-related shenanigans, there's a 20MP rear camera and the Boomsound speaker are apparently even more boomy. We'll find out more next week.

The Xperia Z4 tablet was supposed to stay secret until MWC, but Sony's accidentally (we think) leaked it: an image of it appeared on the official Xperia Lounge app, and Sony didn't spot the leak or yank it quick enough. All we know so far is that the tablet will have a "stunning 2K display", but the lack of words such as "compact" suggest it'll be a fairly big device. Other hints include "latest ultra fast processor" and "industry leading battery performance", which makes us think there'll be a Snapdragon 810 in there. We can't wait to find out more.

We mean Moto Es, of course. The new 2015 Moto E is really important, not because of its specs – which are pretty good – but because of its price. The 2015 version is just £109.99, and for your money you're getting a pretty good smartphone running Lollipop. That makes it a serious rival not just to other phones, but to MP3 players and media players too.

We do, and this week we're watching a brand new watch: the Pebble Time, which hit its Kickstarter target faster than you can say "Apple Watch and Android Wear rival". With seven-day battery life, a super-low price and both iOS and Android compatibility, it's an easy sell.

Meanwhile at the other end of the financial universe, Apple appears to be making a watch for the famed 1%: it looks like the gold Apple Watch Edition will cost more than many people's cars. The figure of $10,000 is being widely quoted, but it might cost even more than that. Better start saving…

We thought this one was an April Fool, but it's far too early for that: starting later this year, all new music will be released at 12.01am on a Friday. As Ian Morris explains, "It will benefit artists who communicate with fans on Twitter, but who, apparently, aren't capable of talking about any time that isn't midnight Friday." We're as baffled as you are.

Fancy Steam on your face? It's coming: Valve has announced that it'll be showing off its Steam VR system at this year's GDC event alongside its Steam Machines and "new living room boxes". Let the Half-Life 3 rumours commence! Again!

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10 Best Pebble Apps 2015

Having recently sold its millionth smartwatch, original Kickstarter darling Pebble is doing all it can to battle off the Android Wear invasion and hopefully sway those on the fence about the Apple Watch.

But, to take pride of place on our wrists it needs to impress in the app department. Now, we're not talking about games or overly intricate apps here, the Pebble only has a small monochromatic display, what we want is useful tools and add-ons that extend app functionality from our phones.

Whether it's tracking our steps and ditching the fitness band or changing tracks in Spotify, all these apps do just that, and they have become part of our daily routine.

Our wrists simply aren't big enough for both a smartwatch and a fitness band, but thanks to Misfit's Pebble App we no-longer have to decide whether it's our steps or the time that we track. Due to the built-in sensors on the watch and phone, the accuracy here is pretty impressive – definitely on-par with Misfit's dedicated Shine wearable – and there's sleep tracking too, so you can keep an eye on your slumber. You can scroll through your stats for the week, or beam the data back to the app for more in-depth perusal. It currently only supports iOS, but we're told Android compatibility is on the horizon.

iOS | Free | Misfit app for Pebble

One of the major annoyances we have with the current Pebble hardware is that it can only store eight apps at once, leaving us with the unenviable task of choosing which one to delete when we download something new. Cards for Pebble is worth it, then, because it bundles in several different functions. Alongside an information-laden watch face, you can use it to view your synced calendars, check on the weather and even delve into the latest stock prices. We especially like the travel time updates, which gives you an overview of how long it'll take you to get to your next appointment.

iOS and Android | Free | Cards app for Pebble

Navigating around busy streets with just a tiny monochromatic display for support when our 5-inch smartphone is sitting in our pocket may seem like a borderline stupid idea on the face of it, but there's something about Pebble Nav that sees us constantly fire it up. It only shows your next action, turn left in 30-yards for example, so the screen isn't bogged down with information and the maps have all been specially built for the black and white display. You don't even need to keep an eye on the watch, as it'll buzz your wrist just before you need to turn - handy. It's especially useful when you're on a bike. Just strap your Pebble to the handlebars and it'll make sure you're on the right route.

iOS | £1.49 | Pebble Nav

If you've been dreaming about paying for your dinner just by having the waiter scan your watch for as long as we have, you'll need to download PayPal's new app. Striking a blow at the Apple Watch and Apple Pay, before they've even launched, the Pebble and PayPal combo doesn't even need a smartphone connection, as it dives directly into your account. Anywhere you can pay with PayPal – GBK or Pizza Express for example both accept it – you can use this app. It generates a QR code which, when scanned, deducts the money from your PayPal account. The app will also search for local spots where this payment method is accepted.

iOS and Android | Free | PayPal app for Pebble

We've been disappointed with the way the Pebble handles music track switching. Basically, you can only set one app that the watch will recognise, so if you use a combination of Spotify and PocketCasts you need to manually change it in the settings app before you can use the remote function. But fear not, forMusic Boss corrects this, automatically switching to the app it can see you're using. You have a full set of media controls, the ability to rate songs on the go, if that's your bag, and it works great as a Chromecast remote, too.

Android | £1.21 | Music Boss

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In Depth: Pebble Time release date, news and features

The original Pebble wasn't even really a "smartwatch" when it debuted but it revolutionized wearables and set the standard for future smartwatches to come.

The Pebble Steel further cemented the company's standing as a legit smartwatch competitor by creating a sleeker model, but it didn't fully impress with usage.

Now, with Pebble Time, it seems like the public cries were heard, and most issues with the previous watches have been ironed out.

It's still a couple months away but we're excited to get our hands on the newest wearable and we're betting you are, too. In the meantime, here's everything we know about the Pebble Time.

The Pebble Time will start shipping in May to Kickstarter backers, which puts it a month behind the Apple Watch release date. So far it's unclear when Time will show up on retailer doorsteps but expect it to soon afterwards.

Pricing starts at $199 (£149, AU$199) which is the same as the Pebble Steel. However while the Kickstarter is still running you can grab the Time for $179 (about £115, AU$227).

It's far cheaper than the $250 (£200, AU$330) Moto 360 and the LG G Watch R, which costs $270 (£200, about AU$400). The iWatch will be the priciest wearable of the bunch, and starts at $349 (likely north of £223, AU$403).

The full array of specs haven't been released but a recent Reddit AMA revealed a few gems.

The Pebble Time will have 64KB of RAM on board and an ARM Cortex M4 CPU running at 100Mhz, an upgrade from the original Pebble's M3. The additional processing power is essential in supporting a new microphone feature.

Full specs will be released later on alongside the Pebble Time SDK.

Four sensors built are built into the smartwatch, including a 3 axis accelerometer, 3D compass, ambient light sensor and the aforementioned microphone.

Pebbles are known for outstanding battery life and the Time is no exception. Like the previously used e-ink displays, the new color e-paper screen helps reduce power consumption, allowing the battery to last for seven days before the next recharge.

The e-paper interface also utilizes a color palette that's limited to 64 colors, yet it looks like it will be far easier to read than the usual smartwatch displays. The company also kept the physical buttons opposed to incorporating touchscreen capabilities.

Are YOU excited?

Bluetooth is of course included in the Time package with range supposedly better than the other Pebbles, reaching up to 50 meters or more.

It's been noted the Time is similar in design to the Steel but even better. At just 9.5mm, it's 20% thinner than the original Pebble.

Similar to the Samsung Gear S, the scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass watch body will be curved, though it will be much smaller and fit more comfortably on the wrist. The bezel is made of stainless steel and will have three different watch case colors - black, red and white - with a black bezel for the former two colors and silver for the latter.

The Time will also come with a silicone watch band in the same colors above to match the watch case, but any 22mm strap can be swapped in thanks to a quick release pin.

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