Smart Jewelry – What does that actually mean?
Smart Jewelry is the name given to pieces of jewelry that have some sort of “smart” functionality. It’s another wearable device that you can use to stay in touch with the people and information you value the most. Basically it’s bling with a purpose. In many cases smart jewelry is an extension of your smart phone. It can provide you with a range of information and notifications to stay on top of the things that matter in your life…stylishly!
What can Smart Jewelry do?
It depends. Not all Smart Jewelry has the same capability. Some Smart Jewelry combines with technology to provide you with call, text and email notifications. Some has the ability to track fitness (in a similar way to a FitBit), track your sleep and issue silent alarms (through LED lights or vibrations) that you set.
Other Smart Jewelry has a “wellness focus” where it prompts you with mindfulness or meditation reminders. It might track your activity and stress levels, active minutes, calories burned, distance travelled, sleep duration and quality and lots more.
There are even some Smart Jewelry pieces that connect with smart devices in your home. Want the heating on? No worries. How about turning the TV on? Sure. No trouble at all.
It is unlikely that Smart Jewelry will ever replace the full functionality of a Smart Phone. Bundling up technology is difficult and the size of most jewelry pieces means that manufacturers simply cannot cram the functionality of a Smart Watch into a Smart Ring or other Smart Jewelry pieces.
Smart Rings, Bracelets and Necklaces
Smart Jewelry comes in many forms. Smart Rings (of course this is our favorite type!), bracelets, necklaces and brooches are the most common. Although there is a company developing Smart Earrings as well. What will they think of next?
Smart Jewelry currently available includes:
Smart Rings such as the Ringly Luxe – Activity Tracker + Mobile Alerts + Meditation Smart Ring. This Smart Ring can perform a range of functions and comes in many different styles.
There is a tiny LED light on the side of the stone and you can customzse notifications for a bucket load of apps like Slack, WhatsApp, Gmail, Google Calendar and more. The companion app allows you to choose which color light and vibration pattern you want to use for each notification. It also tracks your steps, distance travelled and calories burned. Ringly has recently added meditation and mindfulness exercises to its app as well.
Here’s just one style of the many Ringly Smart Ring options available:
Check out our detailed article about the Ringly Smart Ring by clicking here.
The OURA Ring is another Smart Ring currently on the market. It is a sleep and activity tracker. This Smart Jewelry is less of a statement piece than the Ringly Smart Ring but it has some really awesome functionality. It brings you “actionable insights about your well-being”. It detects blood volume pulse, body temperature and activity level with advanced sensors and determines sleep stages with precision comparable to clinical sleep labs.
Here’s one of the OURA Ring styles available (it also comes in White):
You can see that Smart Ring designs are pretty chunky right now. As we mentioned earlier that is because it is really difficult to get a whole lot of functionality into a ring for your finger.
Those who cannot be convinced by a Smart Ring may consider other forms of Smart Jewelry. Read on.
Smart Bracelets and Smart Necklaces
In addition to the Smart Ring mentioned above, Ringly has also recently introduced a Smart Bracelet for those who don’t fall in love with the Smart Ring or prefer their tech bling on their wrists. Introducing the Ringly Luxe – Activity Tracker + Mobile Alerts + Meditation Smart Bracelet
This bracelet has the same functionality as the Ringly Smart Ring but wraps around your wrist not your finger. Here’s just one of the styles available:
There’s another Smart jewelry maker too – Bellabeat. Bellabeat has created jewelry pieces that can be worn either as a necklace or a bracelet (actually you can also wear it as a brooch – now that’s versatility in action).
Introducing the Bellabeat Urban and Bellabeat Nature. With these pieces of Smart Jewelry, Bellabeat is looking to change the way people feel about health care. With the “health care lies in prevention, not correction” mindset, Bellabeat have created Smart Jewelry that allows you to monitor a range of things. In broad categories, those include:
- Sleep health
- Activity
- Meditation
- Stress monitoring &;
- Period tracking
Both the Bellabeat Urban and Bellabeat Leaf pictured below offer the same functionality. Here’s some photos to give you the general idea:
Bellabeat Leaf Urban Health Tracker/Smart Jewelry – pictured here in Silver but there are other choices available
Bellabeat Leaf Nature Health Tracker/Smart Jewelry – pictured here in Rose Gold but there are other choices available
Other Smart Jewelry Options
In addition to the Ringly and Bellabeat Smart Jewelry options above, there are some other Smart Jewelry pieces on the market. In their current form, these jewelry items are not getting the consistent positive feedback however as Ringly and Bellabeat however it is a pleasing trend to see mainstream jewelry brands jumping on board with Smart Jewelry. Some of the other options available include:
Michael Kors “Access Activity Tracker” Crosby Silicone Bracelet (pictured in rose gold/pink but also available in a range of other colors):
Misfit Ray – Fitness + Sleep Tracker with Black Sport Band (Rose Gold)
It’s also worth noting that there are many Smart device “accessory bling” jewelry pieces on the market. We are seeing these mostly in the form of bracelets that are designed to incorporate your Smart Watch, Fitbit and other Smart devices. Here’s an example of an accessory item that the Fitbit can be incorporated into:
Bayite Fitbit Flex 2 Accessory Flex2 Accessories Bangle Bracelet
The “Smart device jewelry accessories” market is huge so we’ll cover that in another article!
Don’t knock it until you try it
Recent statistics suggest we check our Smart Phones 150 times EVERY DAY! Seriously? Smart Jewelry allows you to control some of that noise in your life without missing out on the things that are the most important to you.
Not all Smart Jewelry will work for everyone as each piece offers different styles and functionality. We are in an exciting time where fashion is meeting technology is some visually stunning ways.
Stay tuned for further articles soon where we will compare Smart Jewelry options including their pros and cons and price comparisons.
But wait, there’s more Smart bling to come!
Yep it is only very early days for Smart Jewelry with more innovative products in the pipeline. A couple of those products are focused on personal safety. Others have broader functionality. Smart Jewelry pieces that are currently “incubating” include:
Loop Ring (see picture below) – A Smart Ring that acts as a personal alarm ring allowing wearers to discreetly send a distress signal to up to five trusted friends and family members.
Check out our Loop Smart Ring review by clicking here
Siren Ring (see picture below) – A Smart Ring that can provide immediate protection with an alarm sounding instantly during an emergency. We’ve taken a look at this Smart Ring in our Best Safety Smart Ring article. Take a look by clicking here
Modulaj by TRiiNG (see picture below) – a visually gorgeous and striking contender for Ringly and the like. Like Ringly, it will allow you to step away from your Smart Phone and still be notified of the things that matter. See our review by clicking here
HB Ring by The Touch (see picture below) – this Smart Ring is pretty unique. How would you like to “see” your partner’s heart beat on a Smart Ring you wear on your finger. No we are not joking. Check out our review by clicking here
Blinq Smart Ring (see picture below) – another Smart Ring that is due to hit the Kickstarter scene in August 2017. It is also likely to compete with the Modulaj Ring by TRiiNG and the Ringly Smart Ring.
Technology is moving so incredibly quickly. Blink and you’ll miss it. We’ve got you covered. Join the Buy Smart Rings community to keep up to date with the latest “Smart Ring” and related technology news, events and exclusive Buy Smart Rings discounts.
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