The creator of the Pebble smartwatch wants to help you stop forgetting things, and has made a new wearable device to make it possible.
The Pebble Index 01 is a smart ring, but shares little with products like the Oura Ring or the Samsung Galaxy Ring, and more with voice recorders like the Plaud Note and Soundcore Work, just with a key twist.
What does the Pebble Index 01 do?
Credit: Pebble
The entire concept is very simple. The Pebble Index 01 is a smart ring you wear on your finger, equipped with a microphone and a single button.
Press the button, and whisper your voice note into the mic, ready for it to be zapped to your phone’s note app or set as a reminder.
That’s it. There’s no health tracking, no heart rate sensor, no secret screen, and no AI companion. It doesn’t even have a rechargeable battery, and this simplicity is the Pebble Index 01’s secret weapon.
Lasting battery life
Because the Pebble Index 01 only does one thing, doesn’t talk back to you, and doesn’t require any internet access, it’s an incredibly simple piece of hardware.
It’s powered by a battery more commonly found in a hearing aid, which is expected to last for two years based on recording between 10 and 20, six-second thoughts per day.
What the Index 01 isn’t for is recording lengthy dissertations or novels. There’s only about five minutes worth of internal storage space, and the battery will quickly run out if you decide to endlessly chat to it each day.
No subscription, low price
Credit: Pebble
This relative lack of flashy features, and crucially, no AI assistant to summarize and organize thoughts, means there are no ongoing costs with the Pebble Index 01.
Instead, it costs $75 if you decide to pre-order it, or $99 when it’s released in early 2026. There’s no concern about privacy because the connection between the ring and your phone is encrypted, and recordings are sent directly to your phone, no cloud service required.
The button adds to the privacy aspect because the microphone isn’t always listening, which also avoids the need for a wake word.
What else do you need to know?
The Pebble Index 01 is made of stainless steel with a silicone rubber button on it, making it water-resistant to one meter. It comes in ring sizes six to 13, in gold, silver, or black finishes, and the accompanying app works with Android and iOS.
The battery will potentially last for years, but there’s no way to replace it, and Pebble says when it has expired you can return the smart ring to them for recycling. Some may see this as a downside.
Although there is no requirement to spend anything extra over the initial cost, an optional cloud storage service is going to be offered, which we’d expect to incur an additional cost, but there are no details at the time of writing.
Pebble promises the smart ring will be “hackable,” and keen owners will be able to use the button to control other devices or features, plus audio can be routed to alternative sources, and add your own voice actions.
When will it be released?
Credit: Pebble
The Pebble Index 01 will be released in March 2026, and early backers will be offered a sizing kit to check which version is suitable, or anyone with a 3D printer can print a test version for themselves.
Pebble has used the same pre-order system for its Core 2 Duo and Time 2 smartwatches, which caused plenty of excitement when they were first announced in mid-2025.
The Index 01 joins products like the $160 Plaud Note and Soundcore Work, but with less emphasis on advanced features or recording meetings, and the Sandbar Stream Ring, which is geared towards sharing and building ideas with an AI assistant.
