I've Tried 3 Different Smart Rings But I Keep Going Back To Apple Watch - Here's Why

Apple Watch Ultra and Oura Ring 

Jason Hiner/ZDNET

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I've been wearing an Apple Watch each time for nan past decade and I've been utilizing it to way my slumber each nighttime since 2019. Over nan past fewer years, I've known much and much friends, family, and colleagues opting for smart rings alternatively of smart watches to way their health. I've besides personally tested nan Oura Ring, nan Samsung Galaxy Ring, and nan Ultrahuman Ring Air. 

But eventually, I support taking disconnected nan rings and coming backmost to nan Apple Watch arsenic my sole wellness tracker.

Also: I switched to nan Apple Watch aft a four-year hiatus - here's why it's adjacent cleanable now

The funny point is that I had discontinue wearing a watch for years earlier nan Apple Watch arrived successful 2015, preferring to conscionable usage my telephone to support way of nan time. But during nan past 2 years, I've been wearing nan Apple Watch Ultra -- nan largest and astir bulky watch successful nan lineup. 

So why do I for illustration nan Apple Watch to overmuch smaller and much discreet smart rings? It comes down to 3 reasons. 

1. Comfort

Despite wearing nan dense Apple Watch Ultra while I sleep, I've gotten truthful accustomed to wearing an Apple Watch that I'm not very conscious of it erstwhile it's connected my wrist -- either during nan time aliases erstwhile I sleep. 

I can't opportunity nan aforesaid for smart rings. The Oura Ring 3 and 4 and nan Ultrahuman Ring Air are peculiarly bulky for rings and not very comfortable to deterioration erstwhile I'm sleeping. The Samsung Galaxy Ring is simply a small spot amended because it's thinner and lighter. It's astonishing really overmuch exertion is packed into these mini rings, but I still find them a batch much noticeable and uncomfortable to deterioration compared to my wedding ring, for instance. 

Also: I compared nan champion smartwatches from Google and Apple - and there's a clear winner

I'll admit that it's imaginable I'd get utilized to these rings complete clip nan measurement I person pinch nan Apple Watch, but I've worn smart rings for weeks and months astatine a clip for testing and still recovered them distracting to deterioration to slumber and I ever felt relieved to extremity wearing them erstwhile I was done testing nan ring.

2. Glanceable info and speedy actions

The group I cognize who emotion smart rings often opportunity that 1 of nan things they admit is that nan rings don't person screens, which makes them little distracting. However, I really attack it from nan different direction. The Apple Watch does aggregate things to prevention maine from pulling retired my telephone passim nan day. 

To beryllium clear, I person group up nan Apple Watch Ultra to do a lot. I usage nan Modular Ultra watchface and it has 8 different complications you tin group -- positive I besides usage a Shortcut to customize nan Action Button. So that gives maine a full of 9 things nan Apple Watch Ultra tin show and do: time, date, weather, artillery life, activity, workout, mindfulness, hydration, and my civilization Shortcut to brace bosom search pinch nan Supernatural workout app connected Meta Quest. 

I besides regularly drawback important notifications connected nan Apple Watch that I apt would person missed connected my phone. To beryllium clear, I don't get each of my notifications connected nan watch, but I person tuned nan watch notification settings truthful that nan astir important ones ping my wrist. In different words, nan Apple Watch does acold much for maine than conscionable telling nan clip and search my activity.

Modular Ultra watch look connected nan Apple Watch Ultra.

Jason Hiner/ZDNET

3. Fewer wellness stressors 

Smart rings tin arguably connection amended slumber and accent search than nan Apple Watch and different smart watches, since nan rings typically connection much specifications astir some slumber and stress. And you tin reason that a personification could usage that information to alteration immoderate of their habits truthful that they tin get much and amended sleep, aliases motorboat a guided breathing convention to thief relieve their stress, for example. 

However, successful believe location are immoderate realities that are difficult to shift, and having an app connected your telephone many times punctual you that you're not getting capable slumber and/or not managing your accent very good tin really beryllium much detrimental than helpful. That's what I found. 

Also: How iOS 18 turned my Apple Watch into nan productivity instrumentality of my sci-fi dreams

I besides discovered that immoderate of nan measurements and insights that nan smart ringing made were shallow, aliases astatine slightest not very nuanced. For instance, I would get much slumber than normal 1 nighttime and past little nan adjacent night, and truthful I would consciousness beautiful normal overall. Meanwhile, nan ringing app would beryllium lighting up pinch reddish notifications that I needed to set my slumber schedule. And truthful I wondered, "Maybe I'm much tired than I thought?" But I wasn't. And erstwhile I stopped wearing nan ring, I felt for illustration my accent level really went down.

Drawback: Fewer actionable insights

There's 1 point I wish Apple Watch could do much for illustration nan champion smart rings, and that's supply much actionable notifications and coaching tips. For example, successful my reappraisal of nan Samsung Galaxy Ring I noted that it did an fantabulous occupation of correlating betwixt 2 information points and providing a adjuvant recommendation. 

In that case, nan Galaxy Ring noted that 1 of nan factors that had lowered my "Energy" people was erstwhile my "Previous time activity" showed "moderate-to-vigorous workout time" that was importantly beneath my mean of 33 to 87 minutes. That was a bully reminder that not getting successful capable cardio nan time earlier could beryllium a facet successful reducing my power level -- and that tracked pinch my lived experience. It was besides thing that was much manageable for maine to change.

The Apple Watch tin nutrient a ton of information points successful nan Apple Health app, and it does a bully occupation of showing changes successful "Trends" specified arsenic resting bosom rate, miles walked aliases run, steps, workout minutes, and a batch more. But what it doesn't do is supply a slumber score, power score, aliases different kinds of ratings, and it doesn't correlate its trends pinch imaginable outcomes. (There are reports Apple will adhd a slumber people to this year's Apple Watch Series 11.)

If nan Apple Watch took inspiration from smart rings successful this area, it could surely supply a batch much actionable insights that could thief america get moreover much usefulness retired of nan watch -- particularly for those of america who person been providing wellness information complete a play of not conscionable months but years.