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When I hear that a smartwatch company is launching a ring, I assume it’s going to be a smart ring. But Pebble went a different direction, instead creating what’s basically a remote microphone that can work with your phone and other devices. It’s available for pre-order for $75, and will sell for $99 after launch.
Pebble’s new ring is called the Index 01. It’s got a button you can click and hold, and a microphone that will listen to what you’re saying as you hold the button. The recording is then sent to your phone, where it’s processed on-device. That’s it—no heart rate sensor, and no charging dock.
The Index 01’s specs and functionality
Eric Migicovsky, Pebble’s founder, describes using the Index to capture short messages and send instructions to his Pebble watch via his phone. The idea is that you wear the Index on your index finger (get it?) and press the button with your thumb. The ring comes in three colors: matte black with a black button, polished gold with a blue button, and silver with a white button.
There is no battery to charge, just a built-in battery that lasts a total of 12 to 15 hours. Migicovsky writes: “On average, I use it 10-20 times per day to record 3-6 second thoughts. That’s up to 2 years of usage.”
The ring doesn’t have a speaker and can’t vibrate for notifications; it’s just for input. Communication between the ring and your phone is encrypted, and the voice recordings are processed into text on your phone, without requiring an internet connection. The ring doesn’t talk directly to a Pebble watch, but it can talk to your phone and your phone can then display any output to the watch—for example, displaying the text of a reminder that you set.
Who should buy an Index 01 ring?
So far, Pebble users don’t seem to be nearly as excited about this product as Migicovsky is. A Reddit thread discussing the announcement has comments like “Cool idea, weird product,” and “Why would I want this if I already have a Pebble that has all the capability to take voice notes?”
What do you think so far?
Migicovsky explains in the company’s blog post that his goal was for the button to be operated with one hand, and gestures on the Pebble weren’t reliable enough. He also emphasizes the fact you don’t need to charge it, while some of the users seem to be more concerned that a device that can’t be charged is basically disposable—”manufactured e-waste.”
After about two years of use (or less, if you make longer recordings), the app will ask if you’d like to order another ring. The ring will cost $75 to pre-order, and $99 at its regular price. There hasn’t been any mention of a discounted rate for a replacement; it sounds like you’re supposed to buy a new $99 ring every two years.
The ring’s functionality could be extended in the future. A double click-and-hold could signal the Pebble app to process the data in a different way (perhaps sending it to ChatGPT, Migicovsky suggests) and developers could connect the voice processing in the app to other services like calendar and weather apps.
