Thanks to wearable technology, gone are the days when you need a doctor to analyze all of your health statistics.  When products such as the Apple Watch and Fitbits hit the market, the concept of understanding one’s health statistics was revolutionized.  Heart rate, sleep duration, and step count are easily accessible through these devices.  While these pieces of technology are incredibly helpful in understanding one’s body, they can often be large and bulky.  As the science behind wearable technology has developed, Ōura was able to condense all the best parts of health trackers into one stylish ring. 

“I love the idea of having a Fitbit or Apple Watch to track my health data such as my steps during dance class.  The only reason why I have hesitated buying one is that they are too big and get in the way of my day-to-day life.  The Ōura ring seems like the perfect solution to this dilemma,” said senior Gabby Zahner.

The Ōura ring is a small but mighty ring that tracks sleep, heart rate, activity, and temperature.  It comes in gold, silver, and black so there is a style for everyone; no one will even know that the fashionable finger piece is tracking all of your health statistics behind the scenes.  On the inside of the ring are seven green LED heart rate sensors along with an additional SpO2 sensor that monitors the user’s blood oxygen levels.  With one two-hour charge, the ring is good to go for four to seven full days of use.  The ring’s light, water-resistant design promotes nonstop wear. 

“I’ve heard a lot about the Ōura ring, and I am considering purchasing it to replace my Fitbit.  While I love my Fitbit, it doesn’t look very nice, and I am convinced that the Ōura ring will give me the same, if not more, information.  It’s crazy that a ring can now track my steps and sleep!” said senior Lara Ozcayir.

The core of Ōura ring’s mission is to make healthcare more accessible and in the hands of the patient.  They also encourage and highly value awareness through their ring.  The hope of the company is that they can empower people to keep their health at the forefront of their minds and be more aware of their bodies as a daily practice.  Their sleep tracking function is one of the most alluring features of this ring.  The ring collects data as you sleep and from that, you are able to figure out what you need to do in order to improve your sleep score.  To see all of this information, the wearer merely has to open the app, which is free to download.  Additionally, in their mission to make health more accessible, Ōura offers their ring at an exponentially lower price in comparison to the Apple Watch which is typically upwards of $350.  Unlike the Apple Watch, the Ōura ring only costs $299 and takes data in with more precision than other technology.

“I think it’s so weird that we don’t know a lot of things about ourselves in terms of our health statistics.  A goal of mine is to try to get better and more efficient sleep.  The sleep tracking function in this ring is interesting to me to manage my sleep better.  For this goal, the Ōura ring seems really cool,” said sophomore Averie Masia.

Since the beginning of wearable technology in the 13th century with the invention of eyeglasses, this field has dramatically developed. The creation of this ring birth the new era of wearable tech, one where fashion and efficiency live in harmony. This ring quite literally brings all the information you would want to know at your fingertips.