Smart ring wearables have been on the market for some time now. However, Samsung is the first of the major players to dip their toe into this emerging market, and they’ve pretty much nailed it on the first go. Samsung Galaxy Ring is a fine first effort at an unobtrusive but full-featured wearable that monitors what you want it to without adding any unnecessary distractions.
Read More: I Spent a Weekend with Samsung Galaxy Ring and One Feature Stood Out
On top of all that, Samsung’s knack for visual design and miniaturisation are on display with Galaxy Ring. It’s svelte and easy to wear, and it looks cool and futuristic.
Well-Being Proposal
Samsung Galaxy Ring comes in a small ring box-style charging case. It looks cool and presents Galaxy Ring as a piece of jewellery as much as a piece of tech.
Galaxy Ring enters pairing mode as soon as you first open the charging case. Setup is seamless and straightforward over Bluetooth. The case features a clear and colourless housing, allowing users to see if the ring is inside and monitor the charging progress. The charging case’s built-in battery enables charging of the Ring anywhere.
Read More: Samsung Galaxy S24 FE review – For More than Fans
The housing features a single button, which allows users to check the battery status of the charging case or to pair Galaxy Ring with another device after the initial setup. The case charges via USB-C.
Smart Jewellery
Our black Samsung Galaxy Ring is sleek, understated and slightly mysterious. In the month or so, we’ve worn Galaxy Ring for review, several individuals inquired about the space-age ring on my left index finger.
Samsung Galaxy Ring is available in three colours: Gold, Silver, and Titanium Black. Each wears the same brushed titanium finish with a concave band on the exterior.
Read More: Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra review – All On the Wrist
Upon closer inspection, you can see a plastic interior within the housing, especially when ambient light illuminates the translucent inner ring. Additionally, when viewing the palm side of the finger, the sensors become visible.
Smartest Feature
Samsung Galaxy Ring is (almost) completely passive, and the device provides minimal distraction in its everyday operation. You might forget about the ring until the phone prompts for charging, which is ideal.
However, there are two gestures available for use with Samsung devices running One UI 6.1.1 or later. You can switch off your alarm from the comfort of your bed or take a photo by tapping the finger wearing the device against your thumb twice.
Read More: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6 review – Safe Choice Foldable
Snapping a photo like this came in handy a few more times than I expected. The feature is also thoughtfully implemented. There is a small delay between the gesture and the capture so you don’t get caught mid-gesture in every snap.
On the Long Finger
Despite its slender form factor and light weight, Samsung Galaxy Ring will do at least seven days on one charge. This will depend on which features you have enabled, of course, but I got eight or nine days with my own Ring workload.
Most of the sensors were on for our review, we kept up with our health data, requested the odd check, and got quite a bit of use from the remote camera activation feature. And still, I sailed over over a week on every single charge.
Health Tracker
Samsung Galaxy Ring primarily functions as a passive device that transmits data to your Samsung Wear App. It monitors sleep, heart rate, temperature, steps, and other health metrics using its on-board accelerometer, optical heart rate sensor, and temperature sensor.
Samsung AI offers health and well-being tips based on your data and contributes to your health profile. Heart Rate SOS alerts you via your phone if your heart rate becomes too high or too low, and can notify an emergency contact or emergency services if needed. Additionally, the Galaxy Ring can notify you if you have been sitting for too long.
Samsung Wear App can also utilize your data to assign you a “sleep animal.” This method intuitively identifies your sleep type and provides suggestions for adjustments to your routine to improve your sleep quality.
Another notable feature of the Samsung Galaxy Ring is its ability to conserve battery life by pairing with a Galaxy Watch. The watch can take on some of the sensing workload from the Galaxy Ring, thereby extending the time between charges significantly.
Sleeping On It
While I felt the data was on point, and, indeed, the data often matched a third-party device’s reckoning on my condition, Galaxy Ring seemed to overestimate my sleep by a few minutes on some days.
While the discrepancy was only around 10-15 minutes when they was a major difference, it’s worth noting nonetheless.
On Hand
The light weight of the Samsung Galaxy Ring, around 2.8 grams, was a welcome surprise. With a thickness of around 1.3mm, it’s comparable to a regular men’s ring. Samsung recommends wearing the device on the index finger of the non-dominant hand, and following that advice, it felt comfortable right away.
It didn’t take long for me to forget that Galaxy Ring was there, just like with regular ornamental rings.
Read More: Samsung Galaxy S24+ long-term review – AI Companion Settles In
There’s a small raised line on the outside of the ring that’s not too noticeable visually but can easily be felt by touch. This indicates the bottom of the ring and helps you align the sensors correctly with the pad of your finger on the palm side of your hand.
Charging Versatile
Samsung Galaxy Ring charges conveniently in its sleek smart case. The case is compact, measuring just 24mm deep with a 49mm square footprint, making it easy to slip into any pocket or bag.
With a small battery that provides around 1.5 charges, you can power up your Galaxy Ring anytime, anywhere. A stylish ring-shaped LED indicator shows you the remaining charge in the case or the charging progress of the ring. Samsung Galaxy Ring takes approximately 90 minutes to charge from 0 to 100% inside the case.
The ability of charging the case through multiple methods is highly convenient. Galaxy Ring’s charging case supports USB-C for wired charging, can be wirelessly charged using the Qi standard, and also supports reverse wireless charging on the back of compatible phones.
The ring requires approximately 90 minutes to fully charge within the charging case.
Specifications – Samsung Galaxy Ring
| Sensors/Trackers: | Accelerometer, Optical Heart Rate Sensor, Temperature Sensor |
| Durability: | 810 ATM, IP68 |
| Storage: | 8MB |
| Phone OS: | Android 11 or later Some features only available with Samsung One UI 6.1.1 |
| Battery: | Li-Po 18.5-22-5mAh depending on Galaxy Ring size Charging case contains around 1.5 full charges for Ring |
| Charging: | Case: USB-C, Qi Wireless, and Reverse Wireless Charing from compatible devices Ring: via the case only |
| Connectivity: | – Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, Wi-Fi Direct – Bluetooth 5.3, A2DP, LE – GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS |
| Dimensions: | Galaxy Ring: 7.0mm diameter x 2.8mm deep x c. 1.3mm thick Case: 48.9mm x 48.9mm x 24.5mm |
| Weight: | Galaxy Ring: 2.8g Case: 61.3g |
| Colours: | Titanium Black, Gold, Silver |
Sizing Kit
If you are unsure of your ring size, Samsung offers a sizing kit. The sizing kit provides nine sizes (5-13) to try on. Samsung recommends that you wear the ring for more than 24 hours, including while sleeping, to make sure it fits perfectly.
Samsung Galaxy Ring is available in Ireland from Samsung Ireland at €449. Galaxy Ring is available in three colours – Titanium Black, Titanium Gold and Titanium Silver.
