Forget smartwatches. Move over fitness trackers. Wearable action cams, you mean nothing. The new wearable in town with the “smart” moniker comes in the form of more traditional jewelry. Instead of wearing it on your wrist, you slide it onto your finger. Figured it out yet?
Smart rings are here.
It seems like only yesterday we were excitedly talking about the first few smartwatches that hit the market. That has long passed now, and there are dozens – if not hundreds – of wearable devices out there for you to get your hands on.
Perhaps more interesting is the idea of a smart ring. A small, efficient device you wear on your finger to get a glance at notifications, receive alerts, and more.
The Best Smart Rings
As we said above, move over smartwatches, smart rings are the new bigwig in town.
NFC Ring 2 (2016)
The original NFC Ring was a hit on Kickstarter and surpassed its funding goal. Now the team is back with the latest version, the NFC Ring 2 that includes some new features.
The new version comes with a more powerful antenna — with up to three times the range — that means the ring can be used even with devices that you can’t brush up against or touch. As it supports NFC you can use it with any other device that supports NFC technology. In short, it can be used to unlock doors via smart locks, unlock your phone, and much more.
If you don’t want to wait for the NFC Ring 2 to launch, you can always go with the original for £29.99 ($47 USD).
WhyNotTech Vring
The Vring is unique because the focus — which the company claims is a world first — is on voice control support. It’s a bulky, rectangular shaped ring that pairs with your smartphone and allows you to interact via voice commands at any time.
However, the original campaign didn’t reach its funding goal on Kickstarter so there’s no telling whether or not this smart device will be available. It may never make it to market now. Keep your eyes on the official website for further announcements.
KERV
Billed by its creators as the “world’s first contactless payment ring,” this smart ring was already funded on Kickstarter which means it should be available soon.
The allure of the KERV is that it’s incredibly simple. There’s no display to worry about, no vibration or notification support, and no internal battery to charge. It doesn’t handle any fitness tracking features either like monitoring steps you’ve taken or calories you’ve burned.
Instead, it does one thing and one thing only. It includes NFC or near field communication support so that you can tap into a number of devices. You can use it to unlock your smart locks, unlock your phone, or pay your bill at select retailers. As a bonus, you can also store important emergency contacts, and medical information in case something goes awry.
There are several sizes and colors to choose from and this thing definitely looks a lot sexier than some of the other smart rings out there. Give it a try if you’re in the market for an NFC ring. The KERV will be about £49.99 at launch (close to $77 USD).
MOTA DOI SmartRing
When you think of the term “smart ring” this is exactly the type of device that comes to mind. The MOTA DOI SmartRing will pair with any Android or iOS phone to deliver notifications like incoming calls, emails, texts, and more. When you get an alert, the device will vibrate gently on your finger to let you know your attention is needed.
There’s a tiny touchscreen display on the device, and you can swipe left to right to dismiss notifications and updates. Don’t worry, the makers didn’t try to cram a ton of information or text on the display. You’ll see the appropriate icon and number of relevant notifications, and that’s it.
The manufacturers claim that the internal battery will last anywhere from 24 to 72 hours depending on how much you use it. In addition, you can charge it wirelessly via a compatible charging station.
Minor customization is offered, which means you can choose the color of the notifications and text, and like your phone you can choose exactly which notifications show up on the ring. If push notifications are being pesky, you can always disable them and you’ll never get them again.
The MOTA is available for pre-order at $200, and will ship sometime before the end of 2015.
Ringly
What Ringly has going for it is that it doesn’t feature a masculine or geeky look. Instead, it’s meant to be an attractive fashion accessory that also happens to do some pretty “smart” things. What can it do, you ask?
It pairs up with a smartphone via Bluetooth and sends alerts and notifications thanks to a series of vibration patterns. There are four different types of alerts that can be used to discern between incoming notifications and updates. Updates you can track with the device include emails, calls, texts, calendar alerts, social updates, and more.
The ring is available in four styles: emerald, quartz, sapphire, and moonstone. Unfortunately, there are only 3 ring sizes available: 6, 7 and 8. If you don’t fit into those sizes you’re out of luck for now.
Ringly is available now for about $195, depending on which model you want.
Fin Ring
The Fin Ring is actually designed to slide neatly on your thumb and allows you to interact with devices via gestures. It can pair up with any device via Bluetooth to control it however you see fit. For example, you could turn down the volume on your TV by tapping your thumb on the extended section of the ring. You can also use it to place a call when it’s paired up with a smartphone.
It can pair with up to three devices at a time, which means you don’t need to bother disconnecting and reconnecting again if you want to control multiple gadgets in your home. In addition, the battery will last up to a month with an average of 8 hours of use per day.
Sadly, these bad boys are sold out currently with no information on when the makers will have more in stock. You’ll just have to keep checking back on the official site.
Ring ZERO
The Ring ZERO by Logbar is bulky for sure and looks ridiculous on your finger, but what you can do with it is equally ridiculous. It serves as an input controller which you can activate through gestures and subtle hand movements. It’s Bluetooth enabled and is compatible with a variety of devices including Google Glass, smartphones, and VR tech.
Through the compatible mobile app, you can specify up to 23 individual actions which are controlled via some kind of gesture. For example, you can swipe your finger in the shape of a Z to compose a Tweet, send a text, or check the weather.
On the front of the ring is a button which you can use to activate the gesture control mode. There are internal sensors to measure what you’re doing with your finger, and the information is synced with a mobile device via an app (obviously).
The company also recently announced a smart home hub that will allow you to pair the device and use it with smart home tech. Pretty sweet!
The Ring Zero is available in either white or black for $149.99.