Tech Influencer Hospitalized After Samsung Galaxy Ring Battery Swells on Finger

Hawaii Airport / September 30, 2025 – UK-based tech influencer Daniel Rotar, with over 1.6 million subscribers on his YouTube channel ZONEofTECH, was hospitalized after his Samsung Galaxy Ring’s lithium-ion battery swelled on his finger, trapping the device painfully during boarding for a flight after 47 hours of travel.

Rotar documented the crisis on X in real time, sharing images of the bloated ring fused to his skin.

"My Samsung Galaxy Ring’s battery started swelling. While it’s on my finger. And while I’m about to board a flight, Now I cannot take it off and this thing hurts," he posted, tagging Samsung accounts.

Airport security flagged the swelling battery as a hazard, barring him from the flight and requiring emergency medical intervention.

Efforts to remove the ring with soap, water, and lotions at the airport only intensified the expansion. Hospital staff successfully extracted it using ice to shrink his finger and medical lubricant, exposing a deformed inner structure with the battery visibly bloated and detaching from the casing. The ordeal forced Rotar into an unplanned overnight hotel stay, rescheduling his return and extending his journey beyond 50 hours.

"Won’t be wearing a smart ring ever again," Rotar stated in a follow-up, adding that his finger is now recovering with only minor marks expected to heal in days.

Samsung Steps In Amid User Outcry

Samsung swiftly responded to Rotar, refunding his hotel costs, booking a car for his homeward transport, and retrieving the device for analysis. The company assured him of forthcoming investigation results and expressed intent to address affected units permanently.

Samsung described the event as “extremely rare” in media statements, prioritizing customer safety. It offered no immediate explanation for the malfunction but linked to guidance on ring removal, such as cold water immersion or professional sectioning along a battery-safe indicator line.

Rotar disclosed prior battery anomalies:

“The battery of my ring has been acting very weird for many months (stopped lasting for more than 1–1.5 days and at one point, didn’t even power on after being charged for a full day, until I charged it for 2 days).”

He linked the incident to possible factors like Hawaiian heat, saltwater, multiple flights, and a defective cell, noting the ring was uncharged at the time.

In a broader reflection on wearables, Rotar urged:

“Anything that has a battery that also goes on your body should be made super easy to take off, in case of battery expansion.”

Community Echoes Battery Woes, Parallels to Past Samsung Crises

The viral thread amassed over 7 million views, 33,000 likes, and widespread reactions, amplifying reliability doubts.

Other X (formerly Twitter) users also reacted, saying:
“Omg! I knew Samsung batteries used to swell in their older smartphones, but this is CRAZY.”

Rotar affirmed: in his device collection, only Samsung and Xiaomi models had shown battery swelling.

One commenter detailed personal Samsung setbacks, a friend’s Galaxy S22 battery explosion, a Galaxy S24 damaging USB-C headphones, and family appliances uniformly failing after six years, concluding:

“I’m not a fan of the brand anymore lol.”

Implications for Smart Ring Market and User Guidance

Launched in 2024, the $399 titanium Galaxy Ring tracks sleep, activity, and heart rate, rivaling Oura in the wearable sector. Yet, its skin-hugging lithium-ion design highlights compact battery perils and potentials for heat buildup or chemical leaks in prolonged contact, as critics warn of “mini explosive” risks.

(Rh/VK/MSM)