By Jerry Hildenbrand

published 6 hours ago

Samsung's Galaxy Ring is making a big splash as the first product of its type from a major tech manufacturer. We've seen smart rings before, but none have the ecosystem and brand recognition of a product from a company like Samsung.

And for many people, it's a great product. Like any tech product, it has drawbacks and strengths, but it fills a need for plenty of us. Smart rings are here to stay, at least until something even smaller and more inconspicuous comes along to replace them.

Smart rings are different in another way, too: they're disposable by design. This is not because a company like Samsung or Oura wants to build something with a short, useful life but because there's no way to do it differently.

Imagine a small circuit board, some sensors, a tiny battery, and plenty of epoxy, and you have what's needed to build a smart ring. Over at iFixit, they've taken the time to crack open a Galaxy Ring to demonstrate this, and this is why we love iFixit. What they found shouldn't surprise anyone.