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I’ve just returned from Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, and beyond the now ubiquitous AI branding of literally anything remotely tech-related, there was one other thing being discussed at every after-show gathering.
Smart rings. Or, more specifically, the Samsung’s offering and the Apple Smart Ring.
If you follow tech news, you’ll probably have noticed an uptick in the amount of smart ring-based stories filtering into your feeds. Samsung’s is, obviously, the most prominent (they actually have a confirmed product to show off), but Apple’s name keeps cropping up, too. Again.
I think this tells a wider story about Apple’s hopes of innovating beyond the currently unobtainable land of Vision Pro.
But, first, there’s some more news to tend to.
The Apple Car is dead… long live the Apple ring?
According to multiple news sources, the Apple car project is dead.
No one but those close to Project Titan (as it was apparently known) knew – or, perhaps, will ever know – how Apple was going to enter the automotive sector beyond CarPlay. However, that seems largely irrelevant now, as reported concerns over profit margins and an increased focus on AI have forced Apple to shut down the project entirely.
This is a shame – I think there are few tech enthusiasts (and, arguably, car lovers) who wouldn’t have loved to see what Apple had up its sleeve. It’s an even bigger shame if reports of layoffs due to the project cancellation are true – I feel genuinely sorry for anyone involved.
So, with the ‘Apple Car’ apparently officially dead (we should remember that Apple hasn’t categorically confirmed this), what’s next for Tim Cook?
As noted earlier, news of rumours surrounding Apple’s entry into the smart ring market are starting to fill news feeds once more. However, beyond a patent filing – which has already been reported numerous times in the past – details are non-existent; as Apple rumours go, this is about as light on information as they come.
But the fact people are talking about it again is significant. Something is going on.
Samsung Galaxy Ring shows the way
If you can bank on one thing with Samsung, it’s that they’ll usually beat Apple to it when it comes to introducing an entirely new product line.
When I say ‘new’, in the Galaxy Ring’s case, Samsung definitely can’t claim to be first to the entire market – it’s a category that has been defined thus far by the likes of Oura and Ultrahuman. However, a mainstream, big-name brand is yet to enter the fray, and Samsung’s teaser during January’s Unpacked event was the first that will have got far more people interested in this form of health tracking.
I managed to get eyes-on with the Galaxy Ring at MWC, although I’m aware that there was a super secret behind-the-scenes unveiling, too, where select members of the press were invited to check it out and ask questions. Despite that, the detail on Samsung’s smart ring is still relatively light.
Battery life, the way in which the Galaxy Ring will play with Samsung’s Galaxy Watch line-up, and, predictably, pricing, all have huge question marks over them. We don’t even know when the device will hit the market. All that is known is that the Galaxy Ring will come in nine sizes and three colour options – gold, black, and silver.
Curious about the use case? Samsung tells us that the Galaxy Ring “will offer users an all-new way to simplify everyday wellness, empowering them with greater insights and more ways to understand themselves day and night”. Whatever that means.
At least we’ve seen it, though. The Galaxy Ring is a real thing, it’s on the way, and, predictably, that means all eyes have turned towards Apple. Again.
Final thought: Apple Ring or Vision Pro?
I’ve been using Vision Pro for a while now, and I’ve arrived at a completely predictable conclusion: it really isn’t ready for the mainstream. At all.
Apple’s mixed reality headset is, arguably, a publicly available developer kit (not officially, of course) and a first-generation collector’s item for serious Apple enthusiasts. I can’t recommend buying one if you’re a regular consumer unless you have oodles of disposable income and an unquenchable thirst for everything Apple does.
I’m attaching myself to visionOS for the long run. I want to see where Apple takes spatial computing and if the bet they’ve placed on it being the future of how we interact with devices is on point. I need convincing. The tech is incredibly impressive. It’s interesting.
But you don’t want in on it yet – trust me.
This is why a smart ring makes far more sense right now for Apple than Vision Pro. While smartwatches remain the most recognisable form of health tracking for the mainstream, Oura and Ultrahuman have accelerated interest in the finger-based alternative. I’m yet to experience them myself but will very soon, and I have a feeling this could be one of those areas in which Apple attempts to prove that everyone else is doing it wrong.
As they did with the iPhone. And the Apple Watch. And the Mac, if we go back far enough.
That excites me. Weirdly, it excites me more than Vision Pro, because an Apple smart ring would have an immediate impact on a fascinating market segment. And there are so many questions.
What features could differentiate it from the smart rings that are already on the market? How will it play with the iPhone? Will it be an alternative to the Apple Watch or a companion device? If the latter – how? Are the rumours about it interacting with other devices in your environment true – and, if so, what does that mean for the future of HomeKit?
The ‘Apple Ring’ could, of course, be nothing but hot air whipped up by an increasingly weary Apple rumour mill. I’m just hoping there’s some substance to it.
Oh, and guess who else has just announced a forthcoming smart ring… Honor!
They’re all at it, eh?
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