Put a Ring On It: Having a smart ring is helpful with motivation and keeping your health on track

The viral Oura ring — a ring that tracks your heart rate, sleep, blood oxygen, activity and even stress. But it will cost you over $300.

Even though the ring’s appeal is compelling due to its features, the price is an immediate no — especially for a high school student who can barely afford the $3 coffee in the Columbia Brew coffee shop.

Smart rings caught my attention when I started wondering what my quality of sleep was really like during the night and if I’m getting enough rest, especially when I feel exhausted during the day. 

After some ring hunting on Amazon, I found the perfect one for me. The ring had all the same accessories as the the Oura ring, but without the $300 price tag.

The Oulencu ring tracks all aspects of your sleep including how long you’re in each stage of sleep such as REM, light or restful sleep. It also provides a sleep quality score every day, ranging from poor to excellent.

The rings are available in sizes from 6 to 13, in gold, black, and silver and include a considerable size range, especially for adults. The ring cost $119 — a significant improvement over the Oura ring which you have to have a subscription for and pay monthly for the app.

You heard that right, after buying the ring you have to pay even more money. Even though Amazon options were cheaper, the reviews on this ring were hard to beat compared to the disappointed buyers complaining that their ring from a different brand never charged or the app crashed.

When I received the ring, the instructions were easy to follow: download the app, Da Rings, and pair the ring to your phone. The app itself is straightforward. You can immediately see your activity for the day: steps, calories burned and how long you’ve moved for. 

The battery life is standard, lasting two to three days before it needs to be charged. The ring comes with a charger and has a small circle on the inside that’s plugged into the charger. Even when it does need to be charged, it takes less than an hour to charge completely.

The ring is sleek and simple. In appearance, it looks like a normal ring band, but it’s thicker in width. This makes it easy to wear day to day and even comfortable when falling asleep wearing it. 

However, the thickness made the sizing tricky. Thinking I would wear it on my middle finger, I ordered my size accordingly, which I thought would be a seven but it ran small. I now wear it on my ring finger because I can barely squeeze it onto my middle finger.

I was shocked to see what all the app had to offer and how such a small object could track all of it. Along with activity and sleep, the ring can even track stress through multiple sensors. 

The best part of Da Rings is that after a couple of days of wearing the ring, the app will give you recommendations of things to incorporate into your daily routine based on your activity.

Even though the app is easy to navigate, there’s one major issue — it lags. When trying to look at my heart rate levels during the day or scrolling through my daily suggestions, the app will freeze, forcing me to swipe out of the app and go back in. It’s become a routine.

Now, each morning, I check the app to see how my sleep really was, down to the minute I wake up. It’s astonishing to see that I’m actually getting seven hours and 30 minutes of sleep or eight hours of sleep instead of my self-calculated nine hours of sleep. 

Tracking my activity gives me an incentive to take more steps or get up and stretch, according to the app’s suggestions. When I’m at school for seven hours a day, my ring notices when I’ve been sitting for long periods of time, making me realize I need to get up and move.

I’m also able to log my day, giving myself the chance to reflect on my mood, what I’ve eaten, what entertainment I’ve had, what kind of exercise I’ve done and any extra details I want to add. It’s like my own personal diary.

It’s refreshing to see what I need for my own health and how I can accomplish it. I have motivation to get my step count in and get a good night’s sleep — and enough of it. It’s safe to say I’m a big fan of this ring and prioritizing my well being. It’s been well worth the investment.