Samsung released a new beta version of its Health app earlier today, and it appears to contain a hint that the company might be releasing a smart ring after all. Samsung has trademarked various smart ring monikers and patented different smart ring ideas over the years, but nothing palpable has come from those efforts so far.
As discovered by a Reddit user, the latest Samsung Health beta app, version 6.24.1.023, contains a “Feature List” that mentions “Ring Support.” The list doesn't offer any additional details on this feature. Nevertheless, Samsung did secure the “Galaxy Ring” trademark earlier this year and also applied for the “Samsung Circle,” “Samsung Index,” and “Samsung Insight” monikers this week.
Is Samsung finally getting ready to release a smart ring?
Judging by patent applications from the past, Samsung has been entertaining the idea of creating a smart ring and entering this niche market segment for some years now. For example, here's one early patent from 2015. And two others, filed in 2016 and in 2022, respectively.
It is possible that Samsung's work in this area will soon come to fruition. The company could finally be getting ready to release the so-called Galaxy Ring, which would presumably offer fitness tracking capabilities similar to a Galaxy Watch.
Then again, it's also possible that “Ring Support” is now mentioned in the latest Samsung Health beta app because the company might want to add support for smart rings developed by other brands. A few names that come to mind are the Oura Ring, the Circular Ring, and the Go2sleep Ring.
Or, in the best-case scenario, Samsung might be planning to do both. It could release the Galaxy Ring and test third-party rings for the Health platform.