Samsung teases 'Galaxy Ring' at Unpacked event. Is Oura in trouble?
As if the Galaxy S24 series and Galaxy AI weren't enough, Samsung decided to "One More Thing" us by teasing the Samsung Galaxy Ring at Unpacked.
The company dangled the device like a carrot after boasting about the Samsung Health app. However, other than simply flashing it on the screen, we don't know much else about the Galaxy Ring.
Samsung Galaxy Ring teased at Unpacked
"Meet the Galaxy Ring, with AI technology [that] is empowering us to stay connected, unleash our creativity and build healthier habits all in more meaningful ways," the company announced at Unpacked. "This is just the beginning, and we can’t wait for you to try it yourself."
That's it. We don't know anything else about the Ring — no price, no release date, nothing.
If Samsung steps into the ring, pun intended, of miniature wearables, Oura may be in trouble. The company has been synonymous with health-tracking rings, offering options that start from $300.
Oura claims that it has the most accurate sleep tracking of any consumer wearable, according to a PR rep I spoke with at CES 2024. If that's true, Samsung has its work cut out for it. If it can't beat Oura with sleep monitoring, there are still plenty of other health metrics it can master, including heart rate, temperature, and stress (three features that Oura also tracks).
It's worth noting that Samsung already has a significant presence in the wearable market, particularly when it comes to smartwatches. Its latest Galaxy Watch 6 comes with your typical array of wrist-based wearable tracking, including sleep coaching, fitness tracking, and heart-rate monitoring. Plus, it serves as an extension of your phone, allowing you to control you camera, take calls, and text — all from your wrist.
However, the Galaxy Ring will almost certainly be screenless, making it an ideal option for those who don't need a wearable that keeps them connected to their phone. Similar to the Oura ring, it'll likely stick to the basics, monitoring health and sleep, and feeding that information back to an app for logging and progress tracking.
We'll just have to hear from the horse's mouth, Samsung itself, to get more information about this Oura rival.