I tend not to do early hands-on reviews of smart rings because they’re essentially very small circles of titanium, and there’s not too much to say. But the Oura Ring 4 stands out, not just because of the immense interest and popularity around it – but because of its importance to the smart ring segment.
The Oura Ring 4 has plenty to talk about. The number of sensors on board has increased dramatically, from 8 to 18 – and that means Oura has some pretty big accuracy improvements to shout about.
But those who have been holding back from investing in Oura due to the size of the smart ring might be disappointed.
Read on for our first-hand experiences with the Oura Ring 4.
Buy the best: Best smart rings from our testing
| Oura Ring Gen 4 | Oura Ring Gen 3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Starts at $349 | Starts at $299 |
| Dimensions | Width: 7.90 mm Thickness: 2.88 mm |
Width: 7.9 mm Thickness: 2.7 – 2.9 mm |
| Weight | 3.3 – 5.2 g (sizes 4-15) | 4 – 6 g (varies with ring size) |
| Sizes | 4 to 15 | 6 to 13 |
| Finishes | Silver Black Brushed Silver Stealth Gold Rose Gold |
Silver Black Stealth Gold |
| Battery Life | Up to 8 days | Up to 7 days |
| Water Resistance | Water-resistant to 100m/328ft Suitable for water sports and sauna (no diving) |
Water-resistant to 100m/328ft Suitable for water sports and sauna (no diving) |
| Accuracy & Sensors | Smart Sensing technology with 18 signal pathways
Infrared photoplethysmography (PPG), red/green LEDs, NTC temperature sensors, accelerometer |
8 signal pathways
Infrared photoplethysmography (PPG), red/green LEDs, NTC temperature sensors, accelerometer |
Size questions
The Oura Gen 4 remains the same thickness as the Oura Ring Gen 3 – at 7.9mm wide, it has the same profile on the finger. It’s also 2.88mm thick, compared to 2.7mm of the Oura Ring Gen 3 Heritage and 2.99mm of the Gen 3 Horizon.
Read next: Oura Ring 4 vs Gen 3
Smart rings are a game of small differences that feel big. But it’s somewhat surprising that Oura has not slimmed down its ring for this generation. I’m sure it could have done, but Oura has opted to boost accuracy and improve battery life instead.
Comfort improvements
The Oura Ring Gen 4 is, however, undoubtedly more comfortable to wear – I can attest to that from years wearing a clunky Oura Ring 3 Heritage and moving over to the Ring 4. Weight has been reduced significantly thanks to changes to the interior material, which is now titanium rather than a resin. It’s now 3.3g, down from 4g. Again, that sounds like a stupidly small change, but it makes a big difference.
And because of the new Smart Sensing platform, which uses an increased number of photoreceptors to allow for the ring twisting on your finger, it’s done away with the uncomfortable nobbles on the Gen 3 interior, which were designed to hold the ring steady. It feels smoother on the inside, so not only is the ring lighter, it’s just nicer to wear, in general.
The elephant in the room, however, is that Samsung Galaxy Ring and RingConn 2 have stolen a march on Oura in terms of size. The Galaxy Ring comes in at 7mm wide, and 2.6mm thick, and its smallest ring is 2.3g.
The RingConn 2, which is about to be finalized in Wareable’s testing, is also epically small at 6.8mm wide and just 2mm thick. It starts the weigh-in at 2g for its smallest ring size, and having worn it myself, it’s ridiculously thin.
So while Oura leads the charge in terms of data, functionality, and insights (it won our Wearable of the Year 2022 – so we’ve been banging the Oura drum for some time), it has ceded the race in terms of sheer size. So those eyeing up a smart ring purchase will have to countenance not only the subscription fee of $5.99/£4.99 per month, but also the fact that there are smaller rings out there.
My final word on the design is the new charging puck.
I was slightly surprised that Oura didn’t choose a charging case option, as we’ve seen with Samsung and the Evie Ring. That enables convenient charges on the go. Oura representatives acknowledged this was something on their radar – but no dice for now.
The Oura Ring 4 charging puck is much improved. It’s bigger, heavier, and less likely to flip over when plugged in. But I would still prefer a charging case.
Early Wareable verdict
I’d be lying if I didn’t say that I was disappointed that the Oura Ring 4 didn’t shrink in size. The Gen 3 was my favorite smart ring in terms of its data, but the Samsung Galaxy Ring and RingConn 2 are undoubtedly nicer to wear.
But in my early time with the Oura Ring 4, it’s more comfortable to wear than the last generation.
And as we started this first-look preview by saying, smart rings are simple loops of titanium. The real magic is the data they collect. So we’re looking forward to fully testing the Oura Ring Gen 4 to see how it performs.
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