Hey,
It’s Pete Matheson with a new issue of Experiments in Progress.
Charging is the worst.
You spend half your day calculating whether you've got enough juice to leave the house. These are the devices that fix that.
Best Tech If You Hate Charging
Here’s my definitive roundup of gear that actually lasts:
Smart ring: Ultrahuman Ring Pro
If you want health tracking without touching a charger every few days, this is the one.
The Ring Pro, the newest from Ultrahuman, pushes battery life up to 15 days on the ring itself.
Pair it with the included Pro Charging Case and you're looking at up to 45 days without needing a wall outlet.
Ring battery: 15 days
With case: 45 days
For context, the older Ring Air managed 4–6 days.
The ring also comes with improved sensors and a new AI insights layer called Jade, included for all users.
Smartwatch: Garmin watches
Garmin is the answer to charging anxiety, full stop.
While Apple Watch needs juice every day or two, a good Garmin can go weeks or longer without touching a charger.
Enduro 3 (standard): 36 days
Enduro 3 (solar): 90 days
The Instinct 3 Solar is the sweet spot for most people: rugged, full fitness tracking, and potentially indefinite battery life if you spend three hours outdoors in decent sunlight.
The Enduro 3 is the beast option for ultra-runners and multi-day adventurers.
You do trade the AMOLED look for a more functional MIP display on the longest-lasting models but honestly, once you're off the charger for a month, you stop caring.
Smart glasses: Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 2)
The original Ray-Ban Meta glasses had one big problem: 4 hours of battery life. That's not enough to get through a full day without thinking about it. The Gen 2 fixed that almost doubled it, in fact.
Gen 1 battery: 4 hrs
Gen 2 battery: 8hr
With case: +48hrs
Eight hours covers most people's full day.
And if you're out longer, the case adds another 48 hours of top-ups. There's also a fast charge feature: 20 minutes gets you to 50%.
Worth noting:
the Ray-Ban Meta Display glasses (with the actual AR screen) only last 4–6 hours: the screen costs you battery. If endurance is the priority, stick with the standard Gen 2, not the display version.
Starting at $379. Good cameras (3K now), AI assistant built in, open-ear audio.
Fitness trackers: Whoop vs Fitbit Air
Google launched the Fitbit Air, a screenless fitness band, and it's directly targeting Whoop.
Here's the honest breakdown:
Whoop still wins on battery, and with the wireless PowerPack you can go a full month without stopping. But it costs $199/year on subscription.
The Fitbit Air is $99 once, optional subscription, Gemini AI coaching, and that 5-minute fast charge is genuinely useful insurance.
Garmin is also reportedly working on their own fitness band to compete in this space so this category is worth watching over the next few months.
Longest-lasting headphones
I had to look this up properly rather than call it off the top of my head.
Here's what the data says for over-ear headphones:
Sennheiser Momentum 4: 60 hrs
Soundcore Space One Pro: 60 hrs
Soundcore Space Q45: 65 hrs
Soundcore (by Anker) is doing really impressive things at this end of the market: serious battery life, solid ANC, and a fraction of the price of Sony or Bose.
The Space Q45 at 65 hours with ANC on is ridiculous value. Worth looking at if you want the longest-lasting option without paying flagship prices.
For flagship sound plus endurance: Sony WH-1000XM6 is still the overall top pick in 2026, though the battery isn't the headline story, the ANC and audio quality are.
Phones that actually last
Two days. That's what the best Android phones right now will actually give you.
The OnePlus 15 and OPPO Find X9 Ultra both hit that mark consistently, even with heavy use.
For context: iPhone and Samsung flagships are still stuck around one day.
These two Android phones just leave them behind. It comes down to a newer battery technology (silicon-carbon) that packs more energy into the same space. Apple and Samsung haven't made the switch yet at scale.
If charging your phone every night is something you actively think about, either of these fixes that completely. Most people will end day two still with charge to spare.
TL;DR: buy it or skip it
Product | Battery | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
Ultrahuman Ring Pro | 15 days (45 w/ case) | Non-US only | US ban still in effect |
Garmin Instinct 3 Solar | Potentially unlimited | Buy | Best all-round charger-free watch |
Garmin Enduro 3 | 36–90 days | Buy | For serious athletes / ultra runners |
Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 | 8 hrs + 48 hr case | Buy | Real upgrade over Gen 1, wearable all day |
Whoop 5.0 | 14 days | Depends | Best battery, but subscription cost adds up |
Fitbit Air | 7 days (5 min fast charge) | Buy | $99 one-time, Google AI coaching, no sub required |
Soundcore Space Q45 | 65 hrs | Buy | Ridiculous value for the battery life |
OnePlus 15 | ~2 days | Buy | Top Android battery phone right now |
OPPO Find X9 Ultra | ~2 days | Buy | Same tier, better cameras |
What's your biggest battery frustration right now?
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