A smartwatch and a smart ring with a sleep tracking feature utilize actigraphy, wrist movement detection, or sensors to allow the gadget to detect your movement so it can track your sleep patterns. Two of the best gadgets of these kinds today that have this feature are the Oura Ring and Apple Watch SE 2. In this Oura Ring vs. Apple Watch SE 2 review, we break down the differences between the two and which ones you should get.
The Oura Ring is a smart ring by Oura Health, a Finnish health technology company, mainly used to track sleep and physical activity. Meanwhile, Apple Watch SE 2 is one of the series of smartwatches of Apple, known for its powerful connectivity, fitness, health, and safety features.
The two are different wearables, so choosing which to buy for their sleep tracking capabilities can be difficult. But we’re here to guide you. Here is a detailed comparison between the Oura Ring and Apple Watch SE 2 in terms of their sleep tracking features, alongside other capabilities.
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Oura Ring vs. Apple Watch SE 2 Quick Comparison
Before drilling down into the Oura Ring and Apple Watch 8 comparison, take a quick look at their specs and functionalities:
| OURA RING 3 | APPLE WATCH SE 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Sleep tracking | ✅ | ✅ |
| Heart rate monitoring | ✅ | ✅ |
| Activity tracking | ✅ | ✅ |
| Recovery monitoring | ✅ | ❌ |
| Stress management | ✅ | ✅ |
| Blood oxygen monitoring | ✅ | ✅ |
| Period prediction | ✅ | ✅ |
| Blood sugar monitoring | ❌ | ❌ |
| Battery life | Up to 7 days | Up to 18 hours with regular use |
| Water protection | IP68 (Water-resistant up to 100 meters) | Water-resistant up to 50 meters |
| Monthly membership | n/a | n/a |
| Price | $349 | $249 |
| GET IT HERE | GET IT HERE |
Oura Ring vs. Apple Watch SE 2: Features and Functionalities
We’ve divided this comparative review into three sections: Oura Ring and Apple Watch SE 2’s features and functionalities, their specs and design, and their pricing and availability. Let’s start with their features and functionalities.
Sleep Tracking
As you close your eyes and prepare to doze off, Oura Ring gears up to track your entire night of sleep. Yes, the entire time you are asleep. In the morning, you will wake up to in-depth data showing how long you spent in each sleep stage, including a sleep score to give you an overview of how well you slept, accessible via the Oura app.
Meanwhile, the Apple Watch SE 2 also offers advanced sleep tracking, so both can help you meet your sleep goals. You may also view your sleep data collected by the smartwatch using the watch itself or via your iPhone’s Health app.
Apple Watch SE 2’s sleep data include your total sleep time, awake time, and how long you spent in various stages of your sleep. It also tracks your breathing rate as you sleep, which Oura Ring also does. Basically, the Apple Watch SE 2 and Oura Ring generally can do the same in terms of sleep tracking.
However, they differ in further sleep-tracking features. While the Apple Watch SE 2 allows you to set sleep goals via the Health app, Oura Ring shares personalized bedtime guidance and reminders to help you improve your sleep quality.
ALSO READ: OURA RING VS. APPLE WATCH SERIES 9: WHICH IS BEST FOR SLEEP TRACKING?
Fitness Tracking
Aside from sleep tracking, many people invest in smart rings and smartwatches because of their ability to track their fitness and activities. Let’s start with Oura Ring’s fitness tracking feature.
Oura Ring presents an activity score to make sure you balance your activity and inactivity, as well as rest properly. But aside from the activity score, it also shows a readiness score to ensure you are giving yourself enough time to rest and recover.
While Oura Ring and Apple Watch SE 2 share roughly the same functionalities when it comes to tracking your sleep, they somewhat part ways with their fitness tracking capabilities. Rather than focusing on “scores,” Apple Watch SE 2’s fitness tracking works differently.
The smartwatch’s app highlights the workouts you use often, as well as shows your heart rate, active calorie burn, and time elapsed. And, there is no need to sync it with your iPhone.
ALSO READ: RINGCONN VS. OURA VS. ULTRAHUMAN: WHICH IS THE BEST HEALTH SMART RING?
Heart Rate Monitoring
Monitoring your heart rate from time to time is one of the best steps you can take to ensure you are on top of your health. So how do Oura Ring and Apple Watch SE 2 fare in terms of this feature?
One of the most glaring features of Oura Ring regarding heart rate monitoring is Live Heart Rate, which lets you check in with your body at any time of the day. With just a simple tap, you can get immediate feedback on your present heart rate. However, this feature is only available on the Oura Ring Gen3.
On the other hand, Apple Watch SE 2’s heart rate monitoring or tracking is part of its fitness tracking feature. Its heart rate tracking is also accurate and provides high, low, and irregular heart rate notifications. But, if you are looking for an ECG sensor that its other siblings have, you won’t find this in SE 2, unfortunately.
ALSO READ: FITBIT CHARGE 5 VS. OURA RING 3: WHICH IS MORE ADVANCED HEALTH AND FITNESS TRACKER?
Blood Oxygen Monitoring
Getting insights about your blood oxygen levels is also important as they should alert you when you need medical intervention. Can the Oura Ring and Apple Watch SE 2 help in this regard?
The Oura Ring does this with its blood oxygen sensing functionality. It can measure peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2) levels in the wearer’s blood by sending light from the smart ring’s red and infrared LEDs into their finger while they are asleep, before measuring how much light is reflected. If there is more red light than infrared light, this indicates richly oxygenated blood. Meanwhile, if there is more infrared light than red light, this indicates poorly oxygenated blood.
Sadly, like the original Apple Watch SE, this second-generation smartwatch model does not feature blood oxygen (SpO2) monitoring, which makes the Oura Ring a clear winner in this part.
ALSO READ: RINGCONN VS. ULTRAHUMAN RING AIR: WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE?
Oura Ring vs. Apple Watch SE 2: Specs and Design
You’ve learned about their biggest features. Now, let’s head over to their specs and design.
Design
Oura Ring’s design offers 24/7 comfort and is ultra-lightweight, water-resistant, and very durable. This timeless design works for every occasion, during workouts or nightouts.
Meanwhile, the Apple Watch SE 2’s design is more of part of Apple’s tradition. It shares its design with its predecessor, with Ion-X front glass and a back case made from a nylon composite material. However, the smartwatch does not have dust resistance and there is only a single aluminum case option.
Battery Life
The battery life of Oura Ring is up to seven days, and it also charges very quickly. Meanwhile, Apple Watch SE 2’s battery life is only up to 18 hours after an overnight charge.
Water Protection
The Oura Ring is water-resistant up to around 330 feet. Meaning to say, you can wear it while in the shower while swimming, or as you partake in recreational diving such as snorkeling. However, it is recommended to wear the smart ring while scuba diving. You should also not keep it submerged underwater for more than 12 hours.
Apple Watch SE 2 is water-resistant at up to around 164 feet of depth. So, it is safe to shower or swim with, provided that the water isn’t exceptionally hot or mixed with strong detergents. However, after several months of use, the smartwatch might no longer be water-resistant.
ALSO READ: RINGCONN VS. OURA RING 3 REVIEW: BATTLE OF HEALTH MONITORING SMART RINGS
Oura Ring vs. Apple Watch SE 2: Pricing and Availability
The Oura Ring, particularly the Gen3 model, ranges from $299 to $549 depending on the style and finish. But, your expenses do not end there. There is a subscription fee of $6 if you want to enjoy the most of it. Without paying for the subscription fee, the app only shows your activity, readiness, and sleep scores. It is available for purchase on the official Oura Ring website, at various retail locations worldwide such as Best Buy, and in official retailers in Japan.
On the other hand, Apple Watch SE 2 starts at around $287 up to around $815. You can buy the smartwatch from the official website of Apple, authorized Apple products reseller outlets, Amazon, and more.
The Verdict: Which Is the Best Device for Sleep Tracking?
There are various reasons why you don’t get good quality sleep. It could be due to your lifestyle, situation at work, health conditions, or your sleeping environment, among many others. But you can resolve this problem, of course.
For the tech-savvy and well-invested in gadgets, and want to save on the expensive costs of visiting the hospital for tests, they might want to consider having a smart ring or smart watch, such as the most popular variants, the Oura Ring and Apple Watch SE 2.
Earlier, you learned about the differences between the two, in case you find yourself deciding which one to buy. While the Oura Ring defeats the Apple Watch SE 2 in terms of blood oxygen monitoring, battery life, water protection, and price, the two are equal in terms of sleep tracking.
Right here, you might say that the Oura Ring is the better choice. While this could be true, there are other factors to consider, such as with regard to your style. The Oura Ring isn’t as conventional as smartwatches like the Apple Watch SE 2. Aside from smartwatches being popular nowadays – you can see them worn by several people – you might find it weird to have like a rubber ring around your finger, as the smartwatch is pretty much a watch, except that it works like a smartphone. But if you are a minimalistic type of person, you’d love the Oura Ring.
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