Apple Ring: Everything We Know So Far

Aug. 12, 2024

With the smart rings becoming more popular, Apple is planning to new health tracker to its wearable portfolio. The are strong rumors thatApple is working on a smart ringto rival the Samsung Galaxy Ring and Oura Ring. The Cupertino tech giant has made remarkable progress in the health space, and with an “Apple Ring”, it could offer us a more comfortable way to fitness and sleep tracking. We’ve summed up everything we know about the Apple Ring.

Is Apple Coming out with a Ring

Earlier this year,Mark Gurman reportedthat Apple is exploring the idea of creating new wearables, including a fitness ring, smart glasses, and AirPods with cameras. According to the report, the Cupertino tech giant was planning to come up with “a smart ring that would take health-tracking features from the Apple Watch and put them on your finger”. However, Gurman also mentioned that an Apple Ring is just an idea so far, and the company hasn’t started working on the actual product yet.

While the actual timeline isn’t clear, there are enough rumors and leaks to believe that Apple has a long-standing interest in the smart rings, and the actual release might not be too far.

If the Apple Ring concept sees the daylight, we expect Apple to come up with something similar to the sleek and minimal design of the Oura Ring. Over the years, Apple has filed several patents related to smart rings. The giant has racked up no shortage of ring-related patents so it has got plenty of designs to choose from. For instance,one patent explainshow a smart ring could be used to control content on future VR glasses and headsets. The ring will have several sensors to gather input from the user.Image Courtesy: Patently Apple

Another patentdescribes an Apple Ring as a mini Apple Watch with biometrics, a touch display, and Siri to control a TV or tablet. On the other hand, the third patent suggests a smart ring that uses NFC to controlVision Prowith in-air gestures so users can have better control over their Apple headsets. The Vision Pro doesn’t include controllers, but a ring-like device might help expand the hand recognition capabilities.

A few years ago, Apple was keen enough on creating a miniature wearable that offers all the Apple Watch functionality on the finger. However, more recent leaks and rumors point to the release of a screen-free alternative to the Apple Watch or a companion device for the Apple Vision Pro. Well, whatever road Apple plans to take, it will be damn interesting to see the first Apple-made smart ring.

An Apple Ring is expected to arrive with all the Apple Watch’s health-tracking features, including step count, heart rate monitoring,sleep tracking, cycle tracking, ECG, and more. This will allow users to enjoy all the benefits of Apple Health without having to wear the smartwatch. Also, the Apple Ring may give you a new way to stay on top of your Activity Rings.

It’s worth knowing that Apple has also filed several gesture-related patents that can easily blend into real life. According to the“Skin-to-Skin Contact Detection” patent, the Apple Ring might detect movement or contact gestures between two body parts like tapping the two fingers together.

Also, there were leaks that the Apple Ring could use the ultra-wideband technology to detect a when user points at a device. Essentially, when a user points at a device while, the ring will use the U1 chip or similar technology to signal the device that the user is about to interact with it. This will allow the user to control the intended hardware.

Now that Apple has entered the AI league, it might push itsApple Intelligence featuresat some level to every device in its ecosystem. Since a smart ring won’t have a lot of computing power, it will be interesting to see how Apple plans its strategy.

An Apple Ring might be a more tempting alternative for users who wish to get deeper health insights without the bulkiness of a watch.Some Apple Watch users like mefind it difficult to wear a smartwatch all the time and put it to a charge every day before going to bed. I feel the Apple Watch, or any other smartwatch doesn’t blend seamlessly into my lifestyle. An Apple Ring would surely attract users who prioritize convenience and find it impractical or uncomfortable to wear a watch, especially at night.

When Apple Ring arrives, it might fix one of the biggest issues of the Apple Watch, and that is the battery life. While we don’t have exact figures, the Apple Ring will offer a better battery life due to its simpler functionality and lack of a display. For reference, most smart rings can last up to several days on a single charge. Also, the Apple Ring might arrive with an affordable price tag, compared to the Apple Watch. So, it might impress a wide customer base who’s looking for a more flexible, comfortable, and affordable alternative to Apple Watch for 24/7 health tracking.

In the end, there’s no debate about what’s better, a smartwatch or a smart ring. This entirely depends upon the user’s lifestyle, preferences, and expectations from a tech wearable. As wearable technology continues to evolve, smart rings might gain more popularity and eventually become an indispensable tool just like smartwatches.

At the moment, there aren’t any concrete rumors about the potential release date or how much an Apple Ring would cost. However, just like other Apple devices, an Apple-designed Ring would also make an expensive entry into the market. Also, Apple will follow a competitive pricing strategy to rival the likes.

As of now, there are no clues of the Apple Ring release date.Mark Gurman claimedthat the Apple Ring is just in the idea stage and the Cupertino tech giant isn’t actively developing any finger-worn device at the moment. Whereas, theElectronic Times reportedthat Apple is seriously considering a smart ring and we might see it within two years. However, there is no concrete evidence on when the Apple Ring will actually hit the market. Due to the lack of rumors, we might assume the Apple-branded smart ring could be a few years away.

The Apple Ring might have asimilar feature set to the Galaxy Ring. That said, Apple might have an upper hand due to its wider ecosystem and continuity features. Also, the giant has been closely following the smart rings market for a few years now, so it might come up with something we haven’t seen before. After all, Apple surprises, sometimes!

That’s everything we know so far about the Apple Ring. We’ll update this piece as the rumor cycle evolves. Stay tuned!