Replace on October 24, 2024: Added details about the Oura Ring 4, which launched in early October 2024.
I really like my health trackers, however not everybody enjoys a cumbersome watch on their wrist. As a tech reporter, I typically come to work with a distinct watch on my wrist, and my co-workers nearly at all times deem them “ugly” or “too huge.” I get it: most trackers aren’t delicate.
The Oura Ring is an exception: it’s a well being tracker disguised as a steel ring. I wore it for over 4 months (after the model despatched me a pattern to check out), and suppose it’s an amazing various for anybody who hates chunky watches. But it surely’s not a do-it-all wearable — it received’t change your smartwatch. Learn on to study what you need to know earlier than shopping for one.
SKIP AHEAD Is the Oura Ring on sale for Black Friday? | How I attempted the Oura Ring | My expertise with the Oura Ring | Who’s the Oura Ring greatest for? | Why Belief NBC Choose?
The Oura Ring ($299) is available in two designs: Heritage, which has flat accents, and Horizon, which is a typical, uniform circle (and prices $50 extra). Each are product of titanium on the surface and plastic on the internal end. You’ll be able to select from six completely different finishes (two are unique to the Horizon design).
The ring tracks a plethora of well being metrics like coronary heart charge, blood oxygen, pores and skin temperature and every day steps. It may well additionally routinely detect and log exercises like working, biking, power and coaching. The app retains a historical past of all of your information, so you’ll be able to see modifications and tendencies over days, weeks and months.
The ring technically doesn’t require a subscription, although with out one, you get a really restricted quantity of knowledge: simply every day scores for sleep, exercise and readiness, in line with the model. A subscription, which prices $5.99 a month or $69.99 a 12 months, offers you entry to far more information, together with detailed sleep evaluation, blood oxygen sensing, stress insights, resilience scores, dynamic exercise targets and weekly, month-to-month, quarterly and yearly studies. (Oura offered me with a 12-month subscription to make use of throughout my testing.)
Show: N/A | Weight: 4-6 grams | Battery life: As much as 7 days | Constructed-in GPS: N/A | Sleep monitoring: Sure (together with naps) | Coronary heart-rate monitor: Sure, with EKG | Water resistance: Sure, as much as 100 meters (as much as 12 hours) | Works greatest with: Oura app (iPhone or Android)
Is the Oura Ring on sale for Black Friday?
Sure, the Oura Ring is at present on sale for Black Friday. You will get the Gen3 Heritage ring for 23% off in addition to the Gen3 Horizon ring for 22% off proper now. It is a limited-time vacation deal that may seemingly finish on or earlier than Cyber Monday.
How I attempted the Oura Ring
Earlier than I may take a look at the Oura Ring, I needed to discover my ring measurement. Prospects obtain a free sizing equipment as a part of any ring buy earlier than your tracker ships — I used the sizing equipment to search out essentially the most comfy match for my right-hand ring finger, then up to date my order. Oura recommends sporting the ring in your index finger with the sensor bumps towards the underside of your finger for optimum efficiency. Center and ring fingers work, too, in line with the model.
I examined Oura Ring for about 4 months. For the primary three months, I wore it on a regular basis, together with whereas working, biking and on the fitness center (besides when weight lifting). For the fourth month, I wore it solely at evening for sleep monitoring.
When sleep testing it, I wore the Oura Ring and one different sleep monitoring gadget just like the Apple Watch Sequence 9 ($399), Apple Watch SE ($249) and Withings Scanwatch Gentle ($249) to match the outcomes.
My expertise with the Oura Ring
The Oura Ring is a part of a small however rising class of ring-shaped well being trackers, a couple of opponents being the Ultrahuman Ring Air ($349), RingConn Good Ring ($279) and Evie Ring ($269).
After sporting it for 4 months, it’s not for me (I don’t discover rings very comfy), however it may very well be a great match in your wants. It’s a really correct well being and sleep tracker, delivering detailed stats, tendencies information and a principally hands-off expertise in a a lot smaller measurement than one thing like an Apple Watch Sequence 9 or Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 ($299).
Beneath, I define my expertise in additional element and what to know earlier than shopping for one.
What I like
Sleep monitoring
The Oura Ring was extra correct for sleep monitoring in comparison with different wearables I used on the identical time. For instance, after I get up in the midst of the evening, the Oura Ring would appropriately observe a quick awake interval. If I awoke at 5:45 a.m. however stayed in mattress scrolling on my telephone till 6:30 a.m., the Oura Ring would aso appropriately denote this as ‘awake time’. Different wearables I’ve tried don’t at all times get this proper.
One standout function I discovered helpful (after a couple of months of wear and tear) was its sleep tendencies perform. With Sleep Developments, I can see modifications in information factors like my bedtime, time in mattress and wake-up time, issues I’ve extra management over than stats like deep sleep and restfulness. I attempt to be in mattress by 10:15 p.m. and hope to be asleep by 10:30 p.m. Utilizing sleep tendencies, I noticed that I fell asleep (on common) at 10:34 p.m. in March, however that modified to 11:14 p.m.in Might (yikes).
Well being monitoring
The Oura Ring’s correct monitoring extends to normal well being stats like every day steps, resting coronary heart charge and physique temperature. I received sick with a chilly whereas testing the ring, and was impressed with the way it responded.
I sleep poorly after I first begin to really feel sick. On one explicit morning, the Oura app requested me how I used to be feeling (it routinely detected my elevated physique temperature). I answered a couple of prompts and was prompted to enter relaxation mode. Relaxation mode paused my every day health and well being targets (together with notifications).
As somebody who has gotten many reminders from different health trackers to face up, go for a stroll, or hit my health targets whereas sick, I respect Oura’s automated relaxation mode and concentrate on restoration.
Automated exercise detection
The Oura Ring routinely detects whenever you begin a exercise. It doesn’t ring or buzz at you within the second, however whenever you open the app later, it’ll ask you to double verify and ensure all of the exercises it detected. It’s an amazing method for minimalists who don’t wish to begin and cease a stroll to report a exercise, however it nonetheless accounts for fundamental stats like train length, coronary heart charge and calorie burn.
It’s not essentially the most correct or helpful health tracker, nonetheless. Extra on that under.
Drawbacks to remember
No half sizing
I’m not a hoop individual, and the Oura Ring didn’t change that. The one factor I placed on my fingers is my marriage ceremony band, and that’s lower than half the peak and thickness of the Oura Ring.
It doesn’t assist that the Oura Ring is simply out there in full sizes. This isn’t distinctive to Oura: no good rings at present available on the market can be found in half sizes.
My proper ring finger is a measurement 7.5. Utilizing Oura’s ring sizing equipment, I discovered measurement 8 essentially the most comfy. However that meant that the ring spun round on my finger; I needed to manually realign the sensors typically. Because it has a barely roomy match on my finger, water would get caught below the ring everytime I washed my arms — I needed to take off the ring if I wished to truly really feel dry.
No dwell health stats
I’m an avid runner and a bike owner. I like to trace my coronary heart charge, tempo and mileage in actual time as I train. The Oura Ring doesn’t have a display, so it will possibly’t present me the identical on-wrist information as one thing like an Apple Watch or Garmin. The Oura app doesn’t have dwell monitoring both.
Inconsistent GPS information
I do nearly all of my runs outdoors, and like to have a look at my tempo, mileage and route afterwards, particularly if I’m working in a brand new place. On a number of events, I observed inconsistent map information on the Oura app after my runs. For instance: The Oura app would present that I solely ran midway round a close-by park as an alternative of all the way in which round.
I requested representatives from Oura concerning the inconsistent map information, and so they advisable I flip the situation monitoring in my settings to “at all times on” to guarantee accuracy when recording exercises. After studying some help articles on-line through their web site, I additionally started “beginning” and “stopping” my runs manually through the app — as an alternative of counting on automated detection — by way of the “report exercise HR” perform.
To be clear: Oura’s working metrics have been correct earlier than I modified these settings — issues like length, distance, tempo and coronary heart charge have been much like my Apple Watch SE’s information, which I wore to match towards. It was its map show and settings that have been giving me some points. Regardless of manually recording my exercises through the app, in addition to implementing Oura’s advice for at all times preserving my location companies on, I didn’t see an enchancment within the app information.
I don’t discover this stunning provided that the Oura Ring depends in your telephone’s GPS whereas lots of the greatest health trackers have their very own GPS in-built. One thing just like the Garmin Forerunner 165 ($249) is perhaps a more sensible choice in the event you worth constant map and route information for outside health.
Subscription worth
The Oura Ring all however requires a subscription to be worthwhile. And not using a subscription, you’ll be able to solely see every day scores for sleep, exercise and readiness, in line with the model. With it, you get full information historical past, detailed sleep evaluation, superior temperature monitoring, blood oxygen sensing and resilience information (full checklist of membership advantages right here). It prices $5.99 a month or $69.99 a 12 months — that is on prime of $299 for the ring. That’s fairly steep, particularly contemplating smartwatches just like the Apple Watch Sequence 9 and Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 observe comparable information and don’t require a subscription.
Who’s the Oura Ring greatest for?
The Oura Ring is greatest for anybody who doesn’t wish to put on one thing cumbersome on their wrist, however nonetheless needs to trace some well being and health habits. It delivers very correct sleep and well being information, and doesn’t require a lot enter from the wearer. It has sufficient battery life to final a few week, and prices comparatively painlessly with the included slim dock.
It’s not a great match for anybody who depends on dwell train stats like runners or cyclists. It’s additionally a bit dear, particularly contemplating the subscription — although it does move as jewellery, and $300 for a hoop that’s additionally a well being tracker doesn’t sound as dangerous. And in the event you’re like me and simply don’t discover rings comfy, this one received’t change your thoughts.
Oura has launched an up to date product referred to as the Oura Ring 4, which has a slimmer design, all-new finishes and a redesigned app. Costs vary from $349 to $499, which incorporates the gold and rose gold coloration choices on the higher-end worth level. The Ring 4 has as much as 8 days of battery life, in line with the model, a critical enchancment over the three to 4 days from the Oura Ring 3. The most recent iteration of the Oura ring has fewer sensor bumps alongside the inside of the ring, which ought to make it extra comfy to put on. It may well nonetheless measure your blood oxygen ranges, coronary heart charge and temperature variations, and the accelerometer tracks motion all through the day, in line with the model. These are all worthwhile upgrades however you continue to should shell out for the $6 month-to-month or a $70 annual subscription, which you will want to entry all the ring’s greatest options.
Why belief NBC Choose?
I’m a reporter at NBC Choose who covers know-how and health together with guides to health trackers, trainers and exercise earbuds. I attempted the Oura Ring over 4 months after the model despatched me a mannequin to check out. I tracked my on a regular basis stats, sleep and train utilizing the ring, and in contrast it to different wearables at comparable worth factors.
Atone for NBC Choose’s in-depth protection of private finance, tech and instruments, wellness and extra, and comply with us on Fb, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok to remain updated.