At the Samsung Unpacked event in Paris, Editorji got an exclusive first look at the Galaxy Ring, and it's clear that Samsung has put a lot of thought into balancing style, comfort, and advanced health monitoring.
Galaxy Ring: Design and Comfort
The Galaxy Ring aims to offer a straightforward approach to everyday wellness. Samsung’s sensor technology is impressively packed into this tiny, unobtrusive form. Weighing between 2.3 grams and 3.0 grams, it's designed to be comfortable for extended wear, although some might still find wearing a ring 24/7 a bit of an adjustment.
The distinct concave design adds a stylish touch while ensuring durability. With 10ATM water resistance and a Titanium Grade 5 finish, the Galaxy Ring is built to withstand various environments, but we’ll have to see how it holds up over time.
The color options—Titanium Black, Titanium Silver, and Titanium Gold—plus a sizing kit with nine sizes are thoughtful additions, ensuring you can find the perfect fit and style to match your personal taste.
Galaxy Ring: Battery Life and Charging
Battery life is one of its strong points, with up to seven days on a single charge. The charging case, featuring aesthetic LED lighting to indicate charging status, is a nice touch, though we’ll need to test if the battery life holds up with continuous use.
Galaxy Ring: Advanced Health Monitoring
The Galaxy Ring is designed for 24/7 health monitoring, leveraging Samsung’s AI technology to provide detailed health insights. Integration with Samsung Health is seamless, giving you a comprehensive view of your wellness without needing a subscription.
Additionally, Cycle Tracking helps you monitor your menstrual cycle through overnight skin temperature readings. However, the true test will be how accurately it tracks and how useful these insights are in daily life.
Galaxy Ring: Sleep Tracking
Sleep tracking is where the Galaxy Ring shows promise. With Samsung’s sleep AI algorithm, you get insights into your sleep patterns, including Sleep Score, snoring analysis, and metrics like movement during sleep, sleep latency, heart rate, and respiratory rate. The small size of the ring makes it less obtrusive to wear while sleeping compared to a smartwatch, which is a significant advantage.
Galaxy Ring: Holistic Health Insights
The Galaxy Ring generates detailed health reports with its new Energy Score, evaluating physical and mental conditions across four factors: Sleep, Activity, Sleeping Heart Rate, and Sleeping Heart Rate Variability.
This could be a game-changer if it provides accurate and actionable insights, but it’s something we’ll need to test more thoroughly. Wellness Tips offer personalized encouragement, but their effectiveness will depend on the quality of the data and how well it adapts to individual needs.
Galaxy Ring: Heart Health and Activity Tracking
Heart Rate Alert is a valuable feature, providing notifications for unusual heart rates in real-time via the Samsung Health app. Live Heart Rate Check gives detailed information about heart rate activity. The ring also supports automatic walking and running tracking with Auto Workout Detection and daily fitness reminders through Inactive Alert.
Gestures for taking photos or dismissing alarms on your Galaxy smartphone are nifty, though not groundbreaking. The Find My Ring feature is a practical addition, but we’ll have to see how well it works in practice.
Galaxy Ring: Price and Availability
The Galaxy Ring is now available for pre-orders at a starting price of $399, with general availability beginning July 24.
Galaxy Ring: First Impressions
Overall, our first impressions of the Galaxy Ring are cautiously optimistic. It combines advanced health tracking features with a stylish design, but it’s not without potential drawbacks. The long-term comfort, accuracy of the health insights, and practicality of wearing a ring all day are aspects that need more thorough testing.
If these initial experiences are anything to go by, Samsung could have a strong contender in the wearable market. However, it’s the day-to-day use and real-world performance that will ultimately determine its success. While writing this, it is not clear when the Galaxy Ring will be coming to India or if it will support Samsung Pay.
Also watch: Galaxy Z Fold 6, Galaxy Z Flip 6 First Impressions: Worthy Upgrades or Incremental Tweaks?
