Smart rings are the latest trend in wearable tech and they’re making quite the splash — especially with Samsung recently launching their own Galaxy Ring. They might be small, but beneath their sleek frames lie cutting-edge sensors that can precisely monitor your health. Helping you keep track of everything from your exercise habits to your sleep patterns.
In this guide, we're going to cover everything you need to know about smart rings. Then you can decide whether one of these stylish little gadgets is the right fit for you.
Overview:
Smart watches and fitness trackers aren't for everyone, especially if you don’t like wearing things on your wrists. But if you still want a way to keep tabs on your health — smart rings are worth considering. That’s because these snazzy electronic bands are far more discreet and bring a similar level of wellness-tracking wizardry to your finger instead.
Take Samsung's new Galaxy Ring. It’s fitted with three miniscule sensors: an Optical Bio-signal Sensor to monitor heart rate, an Accelerometer that tracks daily activity, and a Skin Temperature Sensor to measure your body's heat while you sleep. But how do you see all the data it collects? It’s simple — smart rings are designed to pair up with mobile phones via Bluetooth and companion apps, so you can view all your insights in one easy place.
And to put up with daily knocks and scrapes, they are typically built from durable materials like titanium or aluminium. Most are water-resistant too, which means you can keep them on when washing your hands or taking a dip in the pool.
You'd be surprised at how much these wearable wonders can do:
Fitness and health monitoring: Smart rings help you stay on top of your fitness goals and health by tracking your heart rate, sleep, steps, and more. Samsung smart rings even have an auto workout detection feature, so they’ll log exercise duration and calories burned without you having to turn on a setting in the Samsung Health app. Just start running and it’ll keep up.
Notifications: With some smart rings, you can receive alerts for calls, messages, and app notifications from your connected phone. You'll just feel a small vibration around your finger giving you a heads up.
Gesture controls: These electronic bands can also include gesture controls, allowing you to control music playback, take hands-free pics, and turn off alarms on the smartphone you've paired it with.
Contactless payments: They can even let you make purchases with a simple tap of your finger — it’s like magic!
NFC capabilities: You can use certain models to unlock doors, start your car, or share info using Near Field Communication tech too.
Did you know?
The first ever commercially available smart ring was launched in 2013 by McLear and was designed with NFC features in mind.
There are plenty of reasons why these smart bits of jewellery are taking off:
Small and stylish: When it comes to health trackers, smart rings are currently the most discreet devices that can monitor your fitness and wellbeing. You can get them in different colours too, making it easy to match them with your personal style.
Advanced sensors: They come equipped with tiny sensors that measure key vitals like your heart rate, blood oxygen, sleep, and stress. Helping you learn more about yourself and make healthier decisions.
Long battery life: Smart rings outlast many smart watches and fitness trackers, going for several days without needing a top up. This means they can offer more consistent data as you'll be taking them off less — giving you a clearer picture of your health and habits.
Slim and lightweight: As they’re so compact, smart rings are arguably the most comfortable health wearables out there for overnight sleep tracking.
While smart rings have lots of benefits, just remember that some models only work with certain phone operating systems. For instance, Samsung's new Galaxy Ring pairs with Android phones running on Android 11 and above only.
You’ve also got to make sure that a smart ring properly fits the finger you intend to wear it on — otherwise its sensors won’t be able to track your health properly. Luckily, most brands offer sizing kits so you can find the right fit before buying.
Smart rings are perfect if you want many of the health-tracking benefits of a smart watch but without the bulk. For sleep monitoring in particular, they’re the comfiest bits of wearable technology out there and can accurately track everything over a few days thanks to their long battery life. The Samsung Galaxy Ring even uses the power of Ai to suggest ways to get a better night's rest via the Samsung Health phone app.
But smart watches have big displays, so you can see and do a lot on them without needing your mobile to hand. Most can even be used as standalone devices and don’t necessarily need to be connected to a phone. They can also have more comprehensive features to help you reach your fitness goals, like built-in workout programs and GPS. And you can get more bang for your buck with a lot of smart watches too, as being newer technology, smart rings are still quite expensive.
Are smart rings waterproof?
Many smart ring models are water-resistant, but the level of water resistance can vary between brands and models. Some smart rings are suitable for swimming and can be submerged up to 100 metres, while others are only resistant to the odd splash. It’s always best to check the manufacturer's specs before taking your smart ring for a dip!
Can you answer calls on a smart ring?
Most smart rings simply notify you of incoming calls by vibrating and let you decide whether you want to answer on your phone. Remember the gestures we talked about? Samsung Galaxy Ring lets you answer and hang up calls by double pinching the ring.
Any more questions?
If you like the sound of the Samsung Galaxy Ring we mentioned throughout this guide, check out our Keep track of your health with Samsung Galaxy Ring article to learn more. And if you want extra smart ring advice, just hit up one of our experts on a video call via ShopLive. It’s totally free and you can get the answers you need all from the comfort of your own home.
