Recently here in The Current, I mentioned a YouTuber who ended up in the ER because of a smart ring. A bunch of you left me comments asking the same thing: “How does that even happen?”
Let me explain, because this wasn’t the guy’s fault. It was a complete tech failure.
💍 Ring of fire
Daniel Rotar was testing Samsung’s new Galaxy Ring on a flight from the UK to Hawaii. Mid-flight, the ring started to feel snug. Then it got tighter. And tighter.
By the time he landed for a connecting flight, it was stuck. He couldn’t twist it off. Before you think, “That happens to people on long flights, they retain water,” nope.
He’s a young guy, fit, not overweight.
The battery inside had swollen, and the ring locked onto his finger. He flagged down a TSA agent, worried it might be seen as a risk. The agent told him to head straight to the hospital.
At the ER in Honolulu, doctors had to cut the ring off. Rotar filmed the whole ordeal, and the video went viral on his YouTube channel. But this is more than a one-off story.
🗜️ This could happen to you
Smart rings use lithium-ion batteries, the same type found in your phone or laptop. But in a ring, the battery is packed into a tight metal band that wraps around your finger with no room for expansion.
When that battery degrades or malfunctions, it can swell. In a phone, it pushes out the back. In a ring, it pushes into your skin. It’s not about body size or hand shape. It’s about a flawed design.
It’s not just this one Galaxy Ring. People who use an Oura Ring have reported similar problems such as swelling, cracking and sudden battery drops from days to hours. And once the battery starts to fail, you can’t replace it. The whole ring is toast.
Smart rings are exciting tech for sure. But I’ll stick with my Apple Watch Series 11, thank you.
⚠️ Know someone wearing a smart ring (or thinking about it)? Tap the icons below to email them this story or share it on your socials. It might save them a trip to the ER.
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