Oura Ring has been on my radar for a while, and when I heard that they were going to launch their new generation 4 of the Oura Ring, I could not stop myself from buying from it. Since I was drawn to the unobtrusive and aesthetically pleasing appearance whilst being a mighty all-rounded sleep, activity, fitness and wellness tracker.
This blog post is all about the review of the Oura Ring 4, dive deep into the features, my personal user’s experience for a few months, the pros and cons, and whether you should buy one for yourself.
What is Oura Ring?
The Oura Ring is a sleek, wearable device that primarily focuses on tracking sleep, fitness and activity, stress, recovery, and overall wellness. Unlike traditional fitness trackers or smartwatches that are wrist-based, the Oura Ring is designed to be worn on your finger, providing a discreet and comfortable way to monitor your health. Developed by the Finnish company Oura Health, the ring uses advanced sensors that are packed in the tiny ring to gather data on over 20 biometrics that directly impact your well-being, offering personalized insights to help you make informed decisions about your fitness, activity, lifestyle and health.
Appearance
The Oura Ring boasts a minimalist design, available in a range of finishes, including silver, black, brushed silver, gold, rose gold, and stealth, catering to different style preferences. The ring is very lightweight, crafted in titanium, the ring is both durable and comfortable to wear throughout the day and night. Its sleek, unassuming appearance makes it suitable for any occasion, whether you’re at the gym, the office, or a formal event.
I was an apple watch daily wearer and one of the reasons for me to switch to Oura Ring is that I can wear it discreetly even if I am dressed up for formal events. For daily usage, I can still wear my analogue watches for different styling options.
The ring is also water-resistant, ensuring it can withstand everyday activities, including swimming, washing your hands and showering.
What does Oura Ring track?
The Oura Ring is equipped with advanced sensors that monitor various health metrics, including:
- Sleep: The ring tracks your sleep stages (deep, light, and REM), sleep duration, and overall sleep quality. It provides a comprehensive sleep score, helping you understand how well you are resting and recovering each night.
- Activity: The Oura Ring monitors your daily activity levels, steps taken, calories burned, and inactive time. It encourages you to stay active by setting personalized activity goals based on your fitness level and overall health.
- Heart Rate: The ring continuously measures your heart rate, providing insights into your resting heart rate, heart rate variability (HRV), and overall cardiovascular health.
- Body Temperature: The Oura Ring tracks changes in your body temperature, which can be an early indicator of illness or stress.
- Recovery: By analyzing your sleep, activity, and heart rate data, the ring provides a readiness score, indicating how prepared your body is for physical and mental exertion each day.
User experience: comfort, convenience and app experience
Comfort of the Oura Ring
One of the standout features of the Oura Ring is its comfort and convenience. Unlike bulky fitness trackers or smartwatches, the ring’s lightweight design ensures it goes unnoticed on your finger, allowing you to wear it 24/7 without any discomfort, especially when you are sleeping. The generation 4 edition is even thinner than the previous generation, makes it less bulky and more comfortable on your finger.
Oura Ring App Experience
The Oura Ring syncs seamlessly with its companion app, available on both iOS and Android devices. The app provides a user-friendly interface, displaying your health data, in an easy-to-understand format. What I love the most is that they are not only presenting me with the data, like heart rate variability, VO2 max, etc., but they presents these data in different scores that could help me to understand my health and wellness better in a user-friendly way.
They have different scores that are targeting on your overall wellbeing, including sleep, readiness, activity and stress.
Sleep Tracking or Sleep Score
The sleep tracking and readiness scores are phenomenal. My sleep score is generally in line with my morning feeling after my sleep, a high score when I am feeling refreshed after sleep.
It not only shows your score, but can track and show your different sleep stages, heart rate, oxygen saturation, patterns, sleep efficiency, time in bed, etc.
Activity Tracking or Activity Score
Although I love my Oura Ring, honestly speaking, it is not the best fitness and activity tracker, comparing to other fitness focused wearables, like Garmin or Apple Watch.
It can auto-detects activities with 40 activity types. Though I found that it may not be the most accurate one. For exercise that have less motion on your hand, it will be difficult for it to track. However, you can input your exercise data afterwards.
Its screenless design provides no data and insights when you are working out. For example, when I run, I have no data on how long I have been running, the distance or speed, etc. This can be pros, as a screen with always-on notifications can be stressful.
With these cons in mind, I pair my Oura Ring usage with an Apple Watch, since it’s integrated with Apple Health. I use my Apple Watch when I am doing a workout, so I can choose and start tracking different exercises with a screen to monitor my performance whilst I’m exercising. It will then automatically import my workout data to the Oura Ring app, so I personally do not find that the screenless limitation to be that bothering.
Readiness Score
Readiness score provides the insights on how ready are you ready for the day to determine what works for your body and lifestyle for the day.
It takes into account your recent activity, sleep patterns, and body signals (like resting heart rate, heart rate variability, and body temperature) that can signify if your body is under strain. Your Readiness Score also influences your Resilience level.
Throughout my few months of using the Oura Ring, I have found that the readiness score is generally align with how I am feeling for the day and whether I can push myself harder in my workout or I should do something gentle and learn to listen to my body.
I used to push myself to do the tough workout even though I had a bad night sleep or feeling tired, just for the sake of following my workout plan and routine. However, with the Oura Ring, it has taught me to learn to listen to my body and be gentle on myself.
With detailed insights, personalized recommendations, and trends over time, the app empowers you to make informed decisions about your well-being.
Pros & Cons
Pros:
- Sleek, lightweight design
- Comprehensive sleep tracking and insights
- Accurate heart rate and body temperature monitoring
- A well-rounded sleep and wellness tracker
- User-friendly app with detailed insights and easy to understand scores
- Water-resistant and durable
Cons:
- Limited activity tracking compared to some fitness trackers
- Higher price point
- Monthly subscription fee
- No display for on-the-go data checking
Can it replace Apple Watch?
The Oura Ring and Apple Watch cater to different needs and preferences. The Apple Watch is a versatile smartwatch that offers a wide range of features, including notifications, phone function, apps, fitness tracking, and more. In contrast, the Oura Ring focuses primarily on sleep, recovery, and overall wellness. If your primary goal is to monitor sleep and gain personalized health insights, the Oura Ring excels in these areas. However, if you seek a multi-functional device with extensive activity tracking, notifications, and other smartwatch features, the Apple Watch may be a better fit. Ultimately, the choice between the Oura Ring and Apple Watch depends on your specific needs and preferences. For me, I want the better exercise and fitness tracking whilst I am working out, I would choose both. Apple Watch when working out and Oura Ring for day-to-day and sleep tracking.
Should you buy?
If you’re looking for a dedicated health and wellness tracker that excels in sleep monitoring, the Oura Ring is a fantastic choice. Its sleek design, advanced sensors, and comprehensive insights make it a valuable tool for anyone serious about improving their overall health. However, if you need a device with broader functionality, such as fitness tracking, notifications, and app support, the Apple Watch or other screen-based fitness tracker might be more suitable. Consider your specific needs and preferences before making a decision, and remember that investing in your health is always a wise choice. If you have a hard time to decide which fitness trackers fit you best with the plethora of choices available these days, check out our blog post that reviews different ones and gives you the recommendations of our top choices.
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