Here’s how Galaxy Ring gestures work

Andrew Romero | Jul 26 2024 - 11:05 am PT

The Galaxy Ring is Samsung’s own option in the smart ring market. The new ring carries gesture controls, which gives it a one-up on other existing wearables in the form factor. Here’s how those gestures actually work.

What kind of gestures can you do?

When the Galaxy Ring was first announced, the idea of gesture control had promise. It sounded like users would be able to activate certain functions on their paired phone by manipulating the ring around a finger or swiping along the edge of it.

In reality, Samsung’s gesture controls are very similar to what already exists in the Galaxy Watch lineup. With the finger that the ring is sitting on, users can tap the pinch with their thumb. The small shock when tapping fingers is detectable in the ring, reading as an activation for certain features.

While this isn’t exactly what we were hoping for, it’s a nice addition that gives the Galaxy Ring a little more value.

Using the Galaxy Ring gestures, users can do two things as of the time of writing. First, they can dismiss an alarm while it is going off on a Galaxy phone. Second, users can take a picture while the camera app is open. This comes in handy on phones like the Galaxy Fold 6 or Flip 6, as you can prop the phone up without a tripod or third-party stand.

There’s a minimal lag between when the gesture is initiated and when the shutter is activated, which actually somewhat makes it difficult to put your hand back in a natural position before the image is captured. Even still, it’s a cool feature.

Another thing to note is that you won’t be able to use gestures unless your Galaxy Ring is paired to a Galaxy phone. Pairing it to a Pixel or other Android device is possible, but it will bar you from using this function.

How to turn on gesture controls

The Samsung Wearable app is your best friend in terms of adjusting Galaxy Ring settings. The Galaxy Ring will offer up information mostly in the Samsung Health app, but turning on gesture controls will need to be done in the Wearable program.

Open the Samsung Wearable app.
Find and open the Galaxy Ring page.
Scroll down and tap Gestures.
Turn on gestures as needed.

Try the function out once it’s enabled. The Galaxy Ring is meant to be worn on the index finger, but the function works on other fingers as well. I personally like to use smart rings as my wedding band, so the ring finger is where it sits for me. This causes no issues in accuracy and gesture control functionality, as far as I can tell.