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So we finally saw the launch of Samsung’s newest foldables and wearables, which were headed by the flagship Galaxy Z Fold6. Out of all the devices that the company unveiled during its event however, the Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Ring stood out as they were relatively new compared to the other products on stage.
With regards to the latter, Samsung is leaning heavily into the Galaxy Ring’s appeal as a smartly-designed minimalist wearable, which functions pretty similarly to a smartwatch (you know, just without the watch part). More interestingly, it’s priced somewhat similarly as well, starting at around four hundred bucks – this then brings us to the issue.
READ: Samsung Galaxy Ring pricing and availability revealed
What it Makes it Good
Let’s take a look at the specs first – Samsung says that the Galaxy Ring is capable of 24/7 health monitoring and can keep an eye on stuff like sleeping patterns, heart rate, respiratory rate, and a lot more. It’s also impressive in terms of build quality, and is made using Grade 5 Titanium with 10ATM water resistance.
Unlike most smart wearables, the Galaxy Ring can last for up to seven days of use on a single charge, making it ideal for round-the-clock metric tracking (which you can then view via your smartphone). Based on these merits alone, the Galaxy Ring seems like an ideal smart wearable – it’s lightweight, unobtrusive, and fades into the background.
Overpriced Perhaps?
That said though, I can’t help but feel that Samsung is charging more than the Galaxy Ring is worth, especially since most of its features can be found on the more affordable Galaxy Watch7. Sure, the Watch7 is larger and takes up more space on your arm compared to the Ring, but it also packs a more cohesive user interface, support for NFC functionality, music control, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
…the Galaxy Ring isn’t the first of its kind – the Oura Ring basically offers a lot of the same features at a considerably lower price.
Given the missing features, it feels like Samsung should have priced the Galaxy Ring at $300 to $350 instead, or maybe even lower. Maybe I’m being “nitpicky,” but given the limitations of the device, a $400 price tag seems steep, especially for a first-generation product. Even then, the Galaxy Ring isn’t the first of its kind – the Oura Ring basically offers a lot of the same features at a considerably lower price. This includes tracking your workouts, sleep, heart rate, and more.
READ: Does Samsung even have a game plan for its foldables?
Final Thoughts
Perhaps some might feel that it’s too early to judge the Galaxy Ring just yet – but again, with the features that it lacks, the competition involved, as well as its status as an early product of sorts, one can’t help but raise an eyebrow at what Samsung is charging. Then again, we should see how the device performs in the long run in the months ahead – maybe than can we draw some kind of definitive conclusion on its existence.
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