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go through Liv McMahon & Imran Rahman JonesBBC News
The company says the ring can be used for sleep tracking.
photo: Samsung
Samsung is hoping to attract fans of fitness and health tracking technology with its latest wearable device, the Galaxy Ring.
The company unveiled the device at its Galaxy Unpacked event on Wednesday as the latest addition to its ecosystem of devices.
Using artificial intelligence (AI) for “super charging”.
Smart rings, which use tiny sensors to monitor various health indicators, have until now been a niche product – although their use by the England men’s football team recently made headlines.
Samsung appears to be trying to change that, becoming the largest tech company to enter the smart ring market yet.
CCS Insight analyst Ben Wood said the product choice was an “interesting bet” for Samsung, and his firm estimated
By 2025, the global smart ring market will reach approximately 4 million units.
“Compared to the 250 million smartwatches that are expected to be sold, that’s just a rounding error,” he told the BBC.
But others think Samsung could help make smart rings more mainstream.
“For most consumers, Samsung’s smart ring will be their first exposure to a smart ring, and this first awareness will have a huge impact in the long run,” said Francisco Jeronimo, an analyst at market research firm IDC.
James Kitto, vice president and head of Samsung’s mobile division in the UK and Ireland, called the launch of the ring a “big moment” for the company.
What is a smart ring?
Smart rings can track health indicators such as heart rate, sleep and menstrual cycle. Currently, the market is dominated by Finnish health technology company Oura.
In recent years, the ring has become a fitness tech fashion must-have for celebrities like Kim Kardashian.
Analysts say they could be successors to smartwatches like the Apple Watch and Google Pixel Watch, thanks to their compact size and sleeker look.
Kitto described Samsung’s Galaxy Ring as “the smallest, most standalone product yet that provides accurate 24/7 health, wellness and sleep tracking”.
Smartwatches typically have more sensors than smart rings, enabling them to access and provide a wider range of health data.
But Geronimo said that for those who don’t want to wear a bulky smartwatch, a “less invasive” smart ring could offer a convenient, comfortable and stylish alternative, especially for tracking their sleep patterns at night.
Samsung says the device is compatible with Android phones running Android 11 or higher, as long as you have the Samsung Health app. Some Galaxy AI features, such as getting an energy score and providing personalized suggestions based on your data, are only available on Galaxy devices.
Dr Evprasya Zamani, associate professor of information systems at Durham University, told the BBC that Samsung’s Galaxy Ring is part of a wider ecosystem of products that can provide insights into a user’s health and wellbeing and could be an “attractive product” for many consumers.
But she warned that users of products that access and monitor health data should be wary of what data is collected and how and where it is shared.
“Being part of an ecosystem means collecting data from rings, watches, phones, and then when that data is put together, it can have more negative effects than positive ones,” she said.
In the past, collecting data related to the menstrual cycle has been controversial.
Last year, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office launched a review of period and fertility tracking apps over data security concerns.
– BBC
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