The Talaya Brief: Samsung's upgraded sleep apnea feature reaches the Galaxy Ring

Samsung's upgraded sleep apnea feature reaches the Galaxy Ring

Samsung said in a release dated Nov. 3 in Korea that its updated Sleep Apnea feature is now available on Galaxy Watch and Ring. It follows US FDA clearance in July and approval from Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and Samsung says it is the first company to bring sleep apnea risk detection to a smart ring. The feature now reports the level of breathing disruptions detected, beyond the earlier risk assessment. It needs two nights of valid data within a 10-day period, is for users 18 and older, and is not meant for people already diagnosed with sleep apnea. On the watch side, support starts with the Galaxy Watch 9 on Wear OS 7.0 or higher, and Samsung says support for the Watch 7 and 8 will expand through future software updates, without giving a date. Our full story explains the feature's three levels, and our Galaxy Ring guide has the ring's basics.

Taiwan will treat smart glasses at its college entrance exam as cheating

Starting Aug. 1 next year, anyone caught wearing or carrying smart glasses at Taiwan's General Scholastic Ability Test (GSAT), the college entrance exam, will be treated as cheating, whether or not the glasses are used, the Taipei Times reports. The penalty is a score of zero in that subject, and candidates who refuse to hand over devices or cooperate with an inspection face immediate disqualification. Disqualified applicants are barred from the Multi-Star program and individual application, and from any department that uses GSAT results. The paper ties the rule to recent incidents of candidates wearing smart glasses during exams. It is the latest in a run of exam rules, after South Korea's criminal charges for students cheating with smart glasses and Seoul's exam plan.

Samsung's Android XR glasses are tipped for mid-December

A report from ChosunBiz, relayed by Trusted Reviews, says Samsung's Android XR smart glasses will reach the US and South Korea in mid-December. They are said to use designs developed with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker and to run Google's Gemini AI. Treat this as a rumor: according to the same report, Samsung has not confirmed a release date or a price. Our earlier piece covers the expected December launch.

Xreal's Aura goes on sale in Japan on Nov. 27

KDDI and NTT Docomo will begin selling Xreal's Android XR-powered Aura glasses on Nov. 27, Telecompaper reports. KDDI will sell them through its au +1 collection accessories brand, online first, with selected company-operated stores stocking them from December. Docomo separately confirmed sales through its online shop from Nov. 27, followed by nationwide Docomo stores in December. The Telecompaper page does not give a price. For specs and pricing elsewhere, see our Xreal Aura guide.

Apple Watch's Live Rewind and conversation features enter beta

Apple's Audio Intelligence features for the Apple Watch are rolling into beta testing, initially for developers in the iOS 27.3 update, TechCrunch reports. Apple announced them at its September hardware event as four opt-in AI features for Apple Watch Series 12 that detect important sounds, identify songs, catch up on conversations and take notes. Live Rewind shows the last 15 seconds of speech as a text snippet, and the snippet is deleted after 30 seconds unless you save it. TechCrunch covers only the developer beta, so there is no word here on when everyone gets it. Our earlier piece explains Siri Recap and Live Rewind in more detail.