Gurman: A smart ring from Apple would revitalize the company's wearables
Apple has been witnessing a decline in the revenue that it generates from its wearables, and will continue to see a further decrease, according to estimates from Bloomberg. Renowned industry insider Mark Gurman, in his newsletter Power On, shares why he thinks that the company should consider making a smart ring.
Some people just don't want to wear an Apple Watch. | Video credit — Apple Gurman argues that a lot of consumers aren't comfortable wearing a smartwatch, mostly because they don't like wearing watches at all. I agree on that point, as I'm one of those people. A watch, for many, is a very obtrusive accessory, especially when going to bed. Furthermore, people who do use the Apple Watch often change around the band to accompany their current outfit. For some users, this may be a hassle that stops them from buying a smartwatch in the first place. A ring, on the other hand, would be a simple enough accessory to just slip on when leaving the house.But perhaps most importantly of all, an Apple smart ring would be something new. The company is already working on AI-powered smart AR glasses. In fact, that's CEO Tim Cook's latest obsession. But a ring would be something to add to Apple's wearables department right away, something that would attract new attention from consumers who are bored with smartwatches.An Apple ring can also work in tandem with the Apple Watch, for those users who own both products. The Apple Watch, thanks to its screen, still bombards users with notifications all the time. A ring would circumvent that, truly becoming a product that helps you decrease screen time.And there's something else that a smart ring would be excellent at too.
The Apple Vision Pro uses hand tracking for UI interaction. | Image credit — PhoneArena
Gurman brought up an excellent use for an Apple smart ring that I hadn't even considered: pairing it with the company's XR ( Extended Reality ) devices. Be it the Apple Vision Pro or the aforementioned smart glasses, a ring could be used to provide more accurate inputs. Such a method of command input would also mean that gestures work whether the headset can detect your fingers or not.
For the Meta Orion — a fantastic pair of smart glasses currently in development — the company is considering a wristband for reading gestures. An Apple ring could carry out the same function for the company's own XR devices.
Apple recently indirectly admitted that the absence of dedicated controllers on the Vision Pro was a mistake. VR gaming is the biggest reason most consumers buy a VR headset in the first place. In addition to the price tag of $3,499, the lack of controllers also hurt Apple's headset's sales. As such, Apple has partnered with Sony to bring PSVR2 controllers to the Vision Pro . Developing a smart ring now could help the company set up how it wants to design its XR products in the future.
There's one more thing that Apple can do, in my opinion, if it makes a smart ring: challenge Samsung. Samsung doesn't really have any competition from its biggest rivals in the U.S. — Apple and Google — when it comes to its Galaxy Ring.
I think that both companies would do well to enter this segment and give Samsung a run for its money. Look at what the company released in China to combat domestic offerings: the Galaxy Z Fold 6 SE. The upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 7 is basically a repackaged Fold 6 SE, a phone that the Chinese market got ages ago.
If the Galaxy Ring suddenly got competition, it would almost certainly lead to better products from every company involved. It would also make smart rings more common, something that I wouldn't mind seeing happen.
From all of the positives that Gurman mentioned, I think that the pairing of an Apple smart ring with future XR devices is the most interesting possibility. Even if Apple doesn't make a ring anytime soon, I think it should at least consider something similar as an input device for its smart glasses.
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