Last month, Samsung made a surprise product announcement after it debuted its new Galaxy S24 smartphone series—the Galaxy Ring. But it had almost no other information about the smart ring other than its expected release later this year. Well, at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the company held a roundtable to share a few more details about its newest product category. Here's what we know so far.
Samsung is positioning the Galaxy Ring as a device for people who want the benefits of a smartwatch without feeling inundated with data. Since there's no screen interaction on a smart ring, the thinking is that the barrier is lower for users to adopt and wear one—they'll still get the health tracking they want without needing to learn a new interface.
That said, the Ring is by no means a replacement for the company's own Galaxy Watch smartwatch series. Samsung's Hon Pak, vice president of its Digital Health Team, says people will be able to wear a Galaxy Watch6 and the Galaxy Ring at the same time, and get richer health data.
For one example, Samsung says it detected that the performance of tracking sleep stages improves when someone wears both at the same time to bed. Pak claims there will be other features that improve when you have both devices.
As a standalone device, Pak says people will be “pleased” at the launch features of the Galaxy Ring. But it seems to focus more on sleep and health insights than fitness. For starters, there will not be any support for auto-workout detection at launch—a common feature on Samsung's smartwatches and a capability available on the popular Oura Ring.
There will, however, be fertility tracking. Last year, Samsung announced a partnership with Natural Cycles to bring period tracking and prediction to the Galaxy Watch, and that same collaboration continues with the Galaxy Ring.
Pak says the ring will use Samsung's “leading sensor technology” and long battery life to deliver advanced sleep insights that include heart health monitoring.
One of the core features is the My Vitality Score, which purports to show your mental and physical readiness for the day. It's based on a clinically validated model from the University of Georgia that initiates a “cognitive load test” to see how ready you are when you wake up for the day—not unlike the Daily Readiness Score on Fitbits and Garmin's Body Battery. This feature will be making its way to Galaxy Watches, too.
This is paired with Booster Cards, which will offer “scientifically-backed insights” for ring bearers to stay boosted and energized throughout the day, with recommendations for better habits, too. Watchmaker Citizen attempted to introduce a smartwatch last year that had a similar feature, but the device was pulled from shelves as it had numerous bugs and issues.
I got a chance to touch and hold the Galaxy Ring, and it's surprisingly lightweight and comfortable. There are several sizes from which to choose, and there will be a fitting process to dial down the ring option for your fingers. Samples on show were available in gold, silver, and dark gray, but Samsung reiterated that things were subject to change. Pak was also coy about sharing what materials the ring is made from, but says Samsung has durability in mind.
The Galaxy Ring will have 24/7 health tracking, but Pak couldn't share exact battery life estimations. He says there's a certain expectation of “more than a couple of days” when it comes to smart rings, but Samsung is working right now to extend the battery life as much as possible. The Oura Ring, for context, can get anywhere between three to five days in our testing; the Ultrahuman Ring Air lasts roughly four days.
The Galaxy Ring works with only Android phones (sorry iPhone owners), and while it currently has a complementary relationship with the smartphone and the Galaxy Watch, Pak repeatedly mentioned that Samsung is exploring how the Ring can be incorporated with other Samsung hardware and appliances. We'll have to wait and see how that plays out.
