Qalo, maker of a subscription-free smart ring competitor to Oura, apparently has Whoop in its crosshairs, too. The company just announced the SL-1 Smart Band, a new screenless wearable device for your wrist that tracks all the same health data as the company’s SR-2 Smart Ring, allowing you to seamlessly switch between them depending on the scenario. The strategy is an increasingly common one in a wearable space where capturing as much data as possible is the goal, and Qalo makes it more compelling by being relatively affordable.
The SL-1 is a small rectangular puck of sensors that looks similar to a Whoop 5.0 or competing devices like the Garmin Cirqa, which can be fitted with a variety of silicone and fabric wristbands. Qalo says the device is water-resistant up to around 30 feet and can last over 12 days on a single charge (qualities that will have to be tested in a review), but if you’re drawn to the minimalism of screenless wearables, it seems to fit the bill. More importantly, all of the health tracking basics are covered: The SL-1 can monitor your sleep, movement, blood-oxygen levels, heart rate, heart rate variability, stress, skin temperature, and menstrual cycles, all without a subscription.
Qalo combines that data into a daily “Q Score” that gives you a sense of your health that day and also offers things like menstrual prediction and automatic workout detection. The real draw of the SL-1 is how it works with Qalo’s SR-2 Smart Ring, though. Both devices contribute data to the same health profile, making it possible to switch which device you’re wearing without losing data in the process. Qalo imagines its rings working for most people during the day or as a more comfortable option while you’re sleeping, with the SL-1 band being for more intense workouts or activities where you need your hands and fingers free.
Samsung has pitched wearing its Galaxy Ring and Galaxy Watch together using the same logic. The lightweight Galaxy Ring works on its own, but it’s even more useful as the wearable you turn to when you don’t want a large screen on your wrist. Google’s Fitbit Air could serve the same purpose for anyone who already owns a Pixel Watch. Qalo might not be able to deliver hardware and software at the level of Samsung or Google, but its devices could still be a good alternative because they’re relatively inexpensive. The SL-1 Smart Band and SR-2 Smart Ring each retail for $200, meaning you can purchase them both for around the price of an Apple Watch Series 12. For anyone trying to capture as much data as possible, that could be a lot easier to swallow.
