Samsung’s Galaxy Ring just exposed my biggest smart ring fear

Smart rings are small, discreet, and stay out of the way while logging heart rate, sleep patterns, and more. But when something goes wrong, that convenience can quickly turn into a liability. A Galaxy Ring user recently reported that his ring’s battery swelled while on his finger, making removal impossible without hospital intervention. More than just nightmare fuel, the incident highlights a design flaw across the entire industry. Smart rings, for all their promise, lack an emergency exit.

Unlike watches or bands, rings don’t unbuckle (or un-Velcro) for easy removal. They only come off the way they go on: sliding past knuckles. If a finger swells, whether from heat, hydration, or a malfunctioning battery, the device can quickly become a vise. In the case of one unlucky Galaxy Ring user, battery swelling turned a well-fitting device into a finger trap, grounding his flight plans and sending him to the ER.

That’s exactly what happened to tech creator Daniel (@ZONEofTECH). According to Daniel, after his Galaxy Ring’s battery failed, soap and hand cream only made things worse. Airport staff denied him boarding, and he ended up in a hospital, where doctors used ice and medical lubricant to slide the ring free.

While battery failure is rare, stuck rings are not. I experienced this myself while pregnant. None of my smart rings required cutting tools, but they did get painfully tight, and I resorted to cold water and old-fashioned dish soap just to slip them off. The panic of feeling trapped by your own tech is real, even without a swollen lithium-ion cell pressing against your skin. Call it finger-based claustrophobia. Add in everyday scenarios like swelling during workouts, and the situation is more common than users may realize.

As of now, smart rings offer no emergency removal features. There are no hinges, breakaway clasps, or expandable seams. The industry’s main safeguard is sizing kits, which aim to help buyers pick their perfect fit before purchase. That’s great for day one comfort, but less helpful when fingers inevitably fluctuate.

Materials don’t help either. Most rings rely on rigid metals, ceramics, or composites designed for durability and style. Once on, they’re meant to stay on, which is logical until the ring won’t come off.

Wearable makers have poured resources into cramming sensors, batteries, and Bluetooth antennas into the tiniest of packages. They’ve focused on aesthetics, miniaturization, and week-long battery life. What they haven’t done is account for worst-case scenarios.

If a smart ring gets stuck, the at-home playbook consists of cooling down your hand, elevating it, and trying lubricants like soap or oil. Failing that, a jeweler or ER can cut it off, though cutting through electronics and batteries is less than ideal and, understandably, destructive to the device itself.

Stuck rings are only one part of the safety story. Their tight fit and rigid build can also trap moisture against the skin, leading to irritation or even mild infections. I’ve personally had to give my fingers breaks while reviewing some devices, swapping fingers to let my skin air out. The rings can also pinch or rub uncomfortably during workouts, especially with repetitive gripping motions like weightlifting or rowing. And yes, I live in quiet fear of a Jimmy Fallon–style ring avulsion. None of these are extremely common, and most aren’t catastrophic, but together they highlight a broader problem: a wearable meant to disappear into daily life can sometimes create more discomfort than convenience.

The Galaxy Ring swelling may be rare, but it should serve as a wake-up call. I hope smart ring makers take safety seriously, starting with battery diagnostics. If a swollen battery is even a remote possibility, there should be a way to alert users before failure. Daniel noticed his Galaxy Ring behaving oddly in the days prior to his incident, with battery life suddenly dropping to just 1.5 days. At the moment of swelling, the battery was fully drained. He speculated that a mix of Hawaii heat, salt water, and multiple flights might have accelerated the ring’s failure, but all of these contributors are real-world, plausible stressors.

Smart rings are among the most seamless wearable experiences. But when a ring won’t come off, seamless becomes suffocating. I’ve felt that creeping panic firsthand, and I didn’t even have a swollen battery to contend with. At the very least, I hope the recent Galaxy Ring incident leads to new industry standards for emergency removal. Until then, my smart rings might be tracking stress as well as causing it.