Nov
A ring that measures the different phases of sleep and gives recommendations. Sounds a bit like the future, but of course makes sense in the world of self-optimization.
A ring that measures the different phases of sleep and gives recommendations. Sounds a bit like the future, but of course makes sense in the world of self-optimization.
I got my Oura ring rather indirectly. At a 12min.me event where three topics were presented and discussed in a short period of time, one of the speakers was Chris Surel. The former tennis player is now a sleep expert and mainly advises clients who are under high stress. In his talk he reported about a senior consultant who actually had enough sleep, but still wrenched himself out of bed extremely exhausted every morning. According to his own statements, he was feeling “zombie-like”. So a sleep coach was needed – and his name was Chris Surel. Surel generally uses an Oura ring for the analysis. The individual data are then used to find possible solutions. The consultant found that although he slept around eight hours a night, his body only managed to enter the deep sleep phase for a few minutes. Good values are 1 to 1.5 hours! Interesting, I thought, and just ordered a sleep tracking ring.
About Oura Health: Actor Will Smith is invested
Incidentally, the start-up comes from Oulu in Finland and was founded in 2013. Oura Health now also has offices in Helsinki and San Francisco. In 2018, her ring received the Red Dot Award. There was also investment: more than US $ 20 million came from private investors, including famous names such as actor Will Smith, ex-basketball player Shaquille O’Neal and YouTube co-founder Steve Chen. The customers are also impressive. Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone (both Twitter), Marc Benioff and Prince Harry, for example, wear an Oura tracker.
But to my own test experiences. I’ve been using the ring every day for two months. For the first two weeks I had it on my finger almost 24 hours a day. After that only to sleep, because the ring bothers me especially when doing sports and doesn’t quite suit my taste (it’s a bit too bulky for me). The usability, however, is excellent: the data is transferred from the Ring to the smartphone via Bluetooth when the Oura app is called up (iOS in my case). The data is divided into several categories:
Functions
Sleep:
Of course, the number of hours is tracked. More important – and much more precise – are, however, the subdivisions into deep sleep, REM sleep (Rapid Eye Movement, also known as paradoxical or desynchronized sleep) and light sleep.
Readiness:
The balance between restful sleep and previous activity (measured by body temperature and heartbeat).
Moment:
Audio meditation, but not as high quality as Headspace or Calm.
Activity:
The movement profile can also be recorded. You can enter different types of sport and determine the intensity (three levels). In addition, it can be recorded how many calories are consumed.
Do you fancy summer?
Frescobol Collection with a special dealMy conclusion: The Oura Tracking Ring is a winner!
Overall, I am very satisfied with the tracking device. The idea is well implemented and the ring looks really nice too. However, it is too massive for my taste, but tastes are of course different. Nevertheless, it is remarkable to build a chip and battery into such a small gadget. The app is also successful. The data processing is fast and the usability is well thought out. My focus is clearly on the sleep data – and they are recorded pretty well. Unfortunately, I cannot say to what extent these can compete with data from a sleep laboratory, for example, in terms of accuracy, but the tendencies are definitely recognizable for a normal user. It is amazing how much alcohol and eating (too) late can affect sleep. I wasn’t aware of that in the form.
But what do you actually do with all the findings from your own sleep behavior? First of all, you can quickly see whether you sleep well in general. In my case this is the case (my average score is 80+). Still, there is usually room for improvement (apart from a matching bed and a quiet, dark bedroom). The most important thing I found is that you always use about the same time to get up – and not just during the week (for me: 7.40 am). At the weekend you should also keep this time, which I managed to do after a few weeks of getting used to it. A trick here: if you really want to sleep longer, you still get up at the standard time, have a short drink of water and exercise for a few minutes. Then you lie down again and sleep another round. In this phase you can hardly go into deep sleep anyway.
Another important point is turning off blue lights before going into the bedroom. My smartphone is switched to airplane mode at night anyway. If possible, two hours before going to bed. I also like to read a little in the evening before I fall asleep. Netflix until 1 a.m. and then trying to fall asleep right away is usually not the best choice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mcsez1NmsjMWhen you order the ring, you will first receive a sizing kit after the payment process. There are various plastic rings included with which you can estimate your own ring size. After confirming the size, the actual ring is then delivered in the next step. For me it all took about two weeks together.
Oura pricing policy
Pricing: Oura Smart, Stealth and DiamondStarting at 300+ Euro
The model in silver or black currently costs 314 euros. Oura charges up to 1,049 euros for the most expensive variant called “Diamond”. The battery lasts about a week. A charging cable with a kind of ring socket is included.Looking for better sleep ?
More about the Oura ring and options that can improve sleep.