About
The Oura Ring is a smart ring sleep tracker wearable developed by Oura Health, a startup based in Finland.
Features
- Tracks sleep cycles (light sleep, REM sleep, Deep sleep)
- Tracks resting heart rate (only during sleep) and heart rate variability (an important metric for recovery)
- body temperature
- 3D motion (activity tracker, steps taken)
- Bluetooth syncs data to Oura Ring app (iPhone and Android).
- Charges wirelessly through an included charging base.
- Battery lasts up to 7 days on a single charge.
- Water resistant up to 100 m.
- Meditation mode
- Airplane mode
- App calculates a "Readiness Score" and a "Sleep Score" based the data collected from sensors
- Sensor data accessible on Oura Cloud website.
Specs
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SensorsHeart Rate (infrared optical pulse), Heart Rate Variability (HRV), Body Temperature, 3D movement (gyro)
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Battery Life7 days
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Sync ConnectionWireless Bluetooth Low Energy Smart
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ChargerWireless, USB-C connection
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MaterialTitanium, diamond-like carbon coating
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Weight4 - 6 grams
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SizeUS 6 - 13 ring size, 7.9mm wide, 2.55 mm thick
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ColorsSilver, Black, Rose Gold, Stealth Black
Video
Editor's Notes
Ah, the Oura ring.
Nothing says Silicon Valley biohacker status symbol more than this sleep tracker disguised as a chunky fashion accessory. It's expensive -- that's for sure -- coming in at nearly the price of an Apple Watch ($300 USD, not counting customs fees for which this unfortunate Canadian was dinged an extra $50) and it doesn't even track your heart rate 24/7 or receive phone calls!
So why did I buy it and why do I see so many people wearing them at biohacker meetups?
Well, when it comes to measuring heart rate variability (HRV) and total sleep in a simple unobtrusive manner, nothing really comes close to the Oura ring.
I briefly contemplated getting a Fitbit but it uses a heart rate sensor that constantly flashes a bright green LED -- which could interfere with your circadian rhythm. Fitbits are also kinda bulky.
The Motiv Ring, a close competitor, while cheaper than the Oura ring lacks the ability to measure HRV, which is important metric I use to judge whether I am recovered enough to attempt deadlifts on the day.
Until Apple comes out with a watch that is extremely light, has built in sleep tracking, and only needs to be charged once a week, I'm sticking with the Oura ring.
Sleep stages accuracy
I would not trust the Oura ring for accurate measures of REM or Deep sleep. The only scientific study that measured the Oura ring vs a PSG (polysomnography, the gold standard used in sleep clinic labs) was not very impressive, showing something like only 50% - 60% agreement for sleep stages (for Oura ring v1). The Oura Total sleep time was much better at roughly 90% agreement.
If you really want to track your sleep stages you probably will need to buy a sleep tracker with EEGs, such as the Dreem 2.
Notable Users
Links
- /r/ouraring - (reddit.com)
- Sleep lab validation of Oura Ring sleep detection vs PSG - (myzeo.xaoc-lab.ru)
- The Sleep of the Ring: Comparison of the ŌURA Sleep Tracker Against Polysomnography - (pubmed.gov)
Reviews
Author
Nathan Cheng is the founder of Biohack Stack -- an online community dedicated to exploring ways to hack human biology. Follow my radical longevity journey on Twitter @realnathancheng
Nathan Cheng
November 11, 2019 at 11:49 pmThe Good:
+ I love my Oura ring. I use it mainly to track my total sleep time, sleep efficiency, resting heart rate, and heart rate variability.
+ It acts as a reminder for me to practice better sleep hygiene and lovingly admonishes me when it catches my late night snacking.
+ I also like using it to judge recovery in the mornings. If my recovery score is bad I will usually not push myself too hard in the gym that day.
+ The app is great and the ring form factor is really convenient and comfortable.
+ Battery life: I am charging my ring about once every 5 days or so. Takes about 1.5 hr to fully charge.
The BAD:
- I don't think the sleep stages are that accurate, judging from the limited studies that they have comparing the Oura ring to polysomnography. If I wanted an accurate breakdown of my REM / Deep sleep I would get an EEG based sleep tracked like the Dreem 2.