Samsung debuted its new wearable — the Galaxy Ring — at its Galaxy Unpacked event in Paris on Wednesday, and critics, in their early hands-on reviews, are loving it.
Tech writers across the spectrum had access to Samsung's Galaxy Ring ahead of its July 10 launch so they could test it and form opinions, and the collective verdict seems to be that Samsung may have a hit on its hands, despite it being the product's first iteration.
If you've been wondering whether to preorder the Galaxy Ring, all signs are pointing to: do it!
Here are the best, most compelling features that have the press deeming Samsung's Galaxy Ring a must-have smart gadget for 2024.
People love its comfortable, lightweight design
The joy of wearing a smart ring instead of a smartwatch is that it's more discreet and generally more comfortable. According to critics, Samsung nailed the Galaxy Ring's design.
Yahoo Finance calls the Galaxy Ring "fashionable and unassuming" and explains that it's not easily recognizable as a piece of technology at first glance. Tom's Guide seconds that view, writing that "at just 2.6 millimeters, the Galaxy Ring still looks very discreet."
For me, an unassuming design isn't nearly as important as comfort. Will it bug me while I'm sleeping, or will I barely notice it? According to CNET, it's the latter: "It feels so light, it's easy to forget I'm wearing a tool that tracks my health metrics."
People are praising its no-subscription pricing
One of the biggest differences between Samsung's new Galaxy Ring and the Oura Ring is a monthly subscription fee.
The Verge writes, "despite the $400 price tag, there's no additional subscription (looking at you, Oura)." The Galaxy Ring does cost an extra $100 upfront, but you won't have to worry about a consistent $5.99/month subscription fee like you do with Oura — and critics agree that this is major.
"People are very fatigued by subscriptions," writes Inverse. "Many of the data insights that Oura sells as part of its monthly subscription will be offered for free to Galaxy Ring users, packaged together thanks to AI."
People say the Samsung ecosystem is promising
One of the biggest reasons Apple fans stick with the company and choose an Apple-branded phone, smartwatch, laptop, earbuds, and so on is because of how seamless and easy the 'ecosystem' is. And it appears Samsung has some big plans for pushing its own ecosystem going forward.
According to The Verge, the Galaxy Ring could even "be the one ring to rule an ecosystem," though "the new Health AI features like Energy Score won't be available if you have a non-Galaxy phone."
The same goes for Find My Ring — which works via Samsung Find — a feature ZDNet hoped would debut with the Galaxy Ring: "I've wanted a form of Find My on all the smart rings I've worn, and Samsung has added it."
If you already have Samsung products or if you've wanted to adopt a non-Apple ecosystem, the Galaxy Ring might be more appealing to you. CNBC outlines this perfectly: "When the Galaxy Ring, smartwatch, and phone are paired, Samsung said, users get a more detailed picture of their health, especially when sleeping because the devices are taking data from more sources."
But if owning a Samsung phone or smartwatch doesn't appeal to you, the Galaxy Ring might not be all it's cracked up to be. You'll miss several important features, including an extended battery life.
Outlook
Samsung's Galaxy Ring hasn't even hit the shelves yet — that'll happen July 24 — but it's already generating a ton of positive buzz that indicates it'll be a smash hit. Some say Oura is in trouble with the imminent launch of the Galaxy Ring, but considering the Galaxy Ring doesn't work with iOS and the Oura Ring does, I don't agree.
That said, if Apple decides to launch its own smart ring after seeing whether the Samsung Ring succeeds post-launch, Oura might have a real problem.
