Oura Ring Vs. Ringconn: How Do These Smart Rings Compare?

There are quite a few smart rings on the market for those who want a discreet but stylish way of tracking their life but want an alternative to smartwatches or fitness trackers. Arguably, the most popular name in the game is the Oura Ring, which launched in 2015. Today, there are numerous competitors to Oura, from the Samsung Galaxy Ring to the Ultrahuman Ring Air, but the RingConn has been on the rise in the last few years. After establishing the company in 2021, the first Ringconn debuted two years later and has quickly found itself to be a worthy alternative to the smart ring that has had its foothold in the marketplace longer.

You may not think there is much difference between these two products since they perform many of the same tasks and resemble each other a great deal. However, the two have plenty of differences between each other, no matter how minor they might seemingly be, that can end up playing a big role in which one you decide to purchase. You will be spending a few hundred dollars on a smart ring, and you need to know if that money will be worth it in the long run. Here, we are going to look at both the Oura Ring 4 and the RinConn Gen 2, the two most recent models of each respective smart ring, and get into those little details to see where these two products diverge.

You might think that a smart ring is just a smart ring, but they're not all exactly the same. The Oura Ring 4 and the RingConn Gen 2 are both built primarily out of titanium, but there are other differences. The Oura Ring is quite a bit larger than the RingConn, for starters. The band has a width of 7.9 mm, while the RingConn is over a millimeter narrower at 6.8 mm. There is a difference in thickness, too, with the Oura at 2.8 mm and the RingConn at just 2 mm. This does mean the RingConn is lighter, weighing just 2 to 3 grams depending on the size of the ring for your finger, while an Oura ranges from 3.3 grams and can go up to 5.2. Its lighter weight may make you think the RingConn is less noticeable on your finger, but its interior is not a perfect circle and features some odd, sharp edges in places, which may feel strange compared to the more traditional band of the Oura.

Beyond the size differences, there are also the color options, which is where the Oura Ring is far more versatile. You have six different color options for the ring, including rose gold, gold, silver, brushed silver, stealth (dark gray), and black. The RingConn only offers three options: silver, black, and gold. It should be noted that some Oura color options cost more than others, but RingConns are the same price no matter what.

Because a smart ring is a device that is meant to be worn at all times, you want the battery to last as long as possible. Both smart rings have substantial battery lives, but the RingConn Gen 2 stands out. Battery life is largely determined by the size of the ring. For ring sizes 6 and 7, you can expect up to 10 days of continuous use on a full charge. As the ring size increases, so does the battery's capacity, topping out at 12 days of use on a single charge for ring sizes 12 through 14. That is not to say that the Oura Ring 4 doesn't have a long battery life, but its maximum capacity is to operate for 8 days on a single charge. 

However, the Oura Ring 4 does outperform the RingConn 2 when it comes to charge times. Just as much as it is important to minimize its time off of your finger, that also includes the time it sits in its charger. To get to a full charge from an empty battery, you are looking at around 80 minutes for the Oura. For the RingConn, that full charge time is more than 120 minutes. Importantly, the Oura Ring comes with a charging dock included, whereas the dock for the RingConn needs to be purchased for an additional $39.90. The RingConn does come standard with a charging case, though.

A smart ring is basically just a fashion accessory if you do not have a smartphone to pair it with. Both the Oura Ring 4 and RingConn Gen 2 require you to download respective apps to get the full functionality out of these rings. You'll be able to link your smart ring to other apps on your smartphone that you use to track your daily data, such as Apple Health or Google Fit, but those two are the extent to which the RingConn can connect to third-party apps. The Oura ring has more options for you to connect with, including Natural Cycles for menstruation tracking and several Continuous Glucose Monitoring apps. In total, the Oura app can link with over 40 different third-party applications to get the best range of data for your daily life.

However, all of this extra functionality comes at a price with Oura. To connect with all of these apps, you need an Oura Membership, which will cost you $5.99 per month or $69.99 per year. This also includes access to features like detailed sleep analysis, real-time heart rate monitoring, and body temperature detection. You can get some basic things on the app for free, but for the full experience, you have to pay for the subscription. Despite its lack of third-party connectivity, the RingConn app offers these kinds of native features completely free with its app, as it has no premium subscription that it offers. Though it costs money, reviews for the Oura consistently state it has the more user-friendly app.

There is a lot of crossover in what these two smart rings are able to track. Both the Oura Ring 4 and the RingConn Gen 2 shine in their ability to track your sleep, covering everything from sleep time to sleep stages to blood oxygen levels. In reviews for both rings, the results tend to be very similar, which does show there is at least some significant level of accuracy they are achieving. The one sleep feature the RingConn has that the Oura doesn't have is the ability to detect and track sleep apnea. Obviously, neither of these are medical devices, an actual diagnosis of sleep apnea should be through a medical professional. That being said, the RingConn can give you a decent idea if you should go see that medical professional for this problem.

Both are able to track things like fitness, menstrual cycles, heart rate, and stress as well. The Oura Ring is a bit more detailed in what it's able to capture and has a few more options than the RingConn. For example, the Oura can track indoor cycling, but the RingConn can't. For fitness tracking, the Oura is also a bit more conservative when it comes to determining how many calories you have burned. One major difference between how they track fitness is that the Oura is able to automatically detect when you begin a workout, whereas you need to manually start and stop your workouts with the RingConn. For fitness and activity tracking, the Oura is a far more intuitive product, especially because fitness and activity tracking is relatively new for the competitor.

You can run down all of the features you want between the two. The Oura Ring 4 has many benefits compared to the RingConn Gen 2, though that newer product has plenty of upside as well. However, the cost of one of these smart rings — which is significant — plays a major factor in what a person is able to put around their finger. The RingConn Gen 2 makes things simple because every single model of the ring costs the same at $299. If you want to upgrade to the charging dock rather than use the standard charging case, that will cost you an additional $39.90. That is where the costs for the RingConn Gen 2 end.

If you opt-in for the Oura Ring 4, you will be spending quite a bit more money. The least expensive model goes for $349, and depending on which color ring you want, that price can go all the way up to $499. Luckily, there is no extra charging dock to purchase. However, the charges do not stop there, as you will need to get an Oura Membership as well to get the most out of your purchase, and considering the price of the ring itself, you most likely will. So, that will be an additional $5.99 per month or $69.99 per year. Clearly, the Oura Ring 4 is the more premium option, and it's up to you if its extra features and compatibilities, superior app, and extra aesthetic options are enough to justify the gigantic price disparity between it and the RingConn Gen 2.