Wondering which device is better for sleep tracking? In this Oura vs. Garmin Venu 3 review, we compare these wearables, mainly on the features and functionalities front so you have an idea which device fits your needs.
Technology has traveled a long way in terms of how it can improve people’s lives. You’ve got the likes of robot vacuums that make cleaning a total breeze, air fryers for cooking delicious meals minus the stress, and, of course, smartwatches and smart rings.
A smartwatch, as its name implies, is a wearable computer in the form of a watch. Similar to a standard watch, it can tell time, but it is so much different because of its other functions, such as fitness and sleep tracking. On the other hand, smart rings are designed to fit around a finger like a traditional ring, but can offer features such as mobile payments and health tracking.
Two of the trendiest wearables today are the Oura Ring and Garmin Venu 3. The Oura Ring is a smart ring that uses sensors to track various health metrics, from fitness to sleep. Meanwhile, Garmin Venu 3 is one of the smartwatches in the catalog of this Swiss technology brand, purpose-built with the most advanced health and fitness features, and designed to make calls and send texts as well.
This discussion shall guide you on which of the two is better in terms of their sleep-tracking capabilities, in particular. So, let’s get started with the comparison, beginning with their features and functionalities.
Oura vs. Garmin Venu 3 Quick Comparison
Before moving deeper into the Oura Ring and Garmin Venu 3 comparison, take a quick look at their specs and functionalities:
| OURA RING 3 | GARMIN VENU 3 | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 14 days with smartwatch mode |
| Water protection | IP68 (Water-resistant up to 100 meters) | Water-resistant up to 50 meters |
| Monthly membership | n/a | n/a |
| Price | $349 | $449 |
| GET IT HERE | GET IT HERE |
Oura vs. Garmin Venu 3: Features and Functionalities
Sleep Tracking
Let’s start with the Oura Ring. This smart ring’s sleep tracking feature works the moment you close your eyes and gears up for sleep. The device tracks the entire time you are asleep. As you wake up, you will be presented with in-depth data showing how long you spent in each stage of sleep. You can also see your Sleep Score which gives an overview of how well you slept.
On the other hand, while Garmin Venu 3’s sleep tracking functionalities are generally the same as those of the Oura Ring, it has features not present in the latter, such as monitoring the smartwatch’s wearer’s movement during sleep. Furthermore, via the Garmin Connect app or in the watch’s settings, you can set your normal sleep hours.
Garmin Venu 3 also presents sleep statistics that include the total hours of sleep, sleep stages, sleep movement, and sleep score. It also provides a “sleep coach” that advises you on how else you can improve your sleep.
ALSO READ: OURA RING GEN 3 VS. SAMSUNG GALAXY WATCH 6: IS OURA BETTER THAN SAMSUNG GALAXY WATCH?
Fitness Tracking
The Oura Ring and Garmin Venu 3 can both be your partners as you achieve your fitness goals. The Oura Ring presents an activity score to ensure your activities, inactivities, and rest periods are balanced. It also shows a readiness score to make sure you are giving yourself sufficient time to rest and recover in between your strenuous activities.
Meanwhile, Garmin Venu 3’s features for fitness are massive. Some of them include providing you with on-screen workouts you can follow, a Garmin coach that takes the cue from expert trainers, a workout creation functionality, and the cycling power feature that guides you as you ride on your bike, plus so much more.
ALSO READ: OURA RING VS. APPLE WATCH SE 2: WHICH IS THE BEST SLEEP TRACKER?
Heart Rate Monitoring
The star feature of the Oura Ring in terms of heart rate monitoring is the Live Heart Rate. This allows the ring to record your current heart rate and get immediate feedback about it. But, take note that this feature is only available on the Oura Ring Gen 3.
Meanwhile, the Venu 3 series by Garmin has a wrist-based heart rate monitor, which is also compatible with chest heart rate monitors. View your heart rate data on the heart rate glance.
ALSO READ: OURA RING VS. FITBIT VERSA 4: WHICH IS THE BEST HEALTH WEARABLE DEVICE?
Blood Oxygen Monitoring
The Oura Ring is a champion in terms of blood oxygen monitoring. Its blood oxygen sensing feature measures peripheral oxygen saturation levels in your body by transmitting light from its red and infrared LEDs to your finger while you are asleep. Then, it measures how much light is reflected. The amount that each light reflects can tell whether you have richly or poorly oxygenated blood.
Does the Garmin Venu 3 series have functionalities for blood oxygen monitoring? Yes. Unlike other smartwatches, this watch has a wrist-based pulse oximeter to help gauge the saturation of oxygen in the wearer’s blood.
ALSO READ: OURA RING 3 VS. GARMIN FENIX 7 REVIEW: WHICH DEVICE FITS YOU BEST?
Oura vs. Garmin Venu 3: Specs and Design
Design
The design of Oura Ring is very simplistic—no added gimmicks. Aside from providing comfort and convenience 24/7, the smart ring is also ultra-lightweight, durable, and water-resistant. If big gadgets are not your thing, this is for you.
Garmin brands its Venu 3 as a smartwatch “designed to keep you going strong.” But going further into the details, the Venu 3 watches retain much of the styling of Garmin’s Venu 2 Plus. Also, Garmin Venu 3 is available in black or white color options.
ALSO READ: OURA RING VS. APPLE WATCH SERIES 9: WHICH IS BEST FOR SLEEP TRACKING?
Battery Life
The battery life of the Oura Ring is up to seven days, while that of the Garmin Venu 3 depends on the features enabled on the watch.
If the smartwatch is set in a mode with activity tracking and continuous wrist-based heart rate, its battery life is up to 14 days. With a battery saver, it can run up to 26 days. Set in GPS Only mode, it can run up to 26 hours. The All Systems GPS, All Systems GPS with music playback, and Always On display modes have up to 20 hours, 11 hours, and five days of battery life, respectively.
Water Protection
The Oura Ring is water-resistant up to 100 meters. Therefore, you can wear it while showering, swimming, and snorkeling, but not when scuba diving.
Meanwhile, Garmin Venu 3 is not waterproof, but it has a water resistance rating of 5 ATM. Like the Oura Ring, it can be worn while swimming and showering, but not when scuba diving or when the wearer is involved with high-pressure water activities. Moreover, Garmin Venu 3 can withstand water immersion up to a 50-meter depth.
ALSO READ: FITBIT CHARGE 5 VS. OURA RING 3: WHICH IS MORE ADVANCED HEALTH AND FITNESS TRACKER?
Oura Ring vs. Garmin Venu 3: Pricing and Availability
The Oura Ring, particularly its Gen3 variant, ranges from $299 to $549 depending on the smart ring’s style and finish. You can buy it from the official website of Oura Ring.
On the other hand, the Garmin Venu 3 is presently being offered at a sale price of around $449. You can buy this smartwatch from the brick-and-mortar stores of Garmin worldwide and Amazon.
The Verdict: Which Is Better for Sleep Tracking?
The Oura Ring and the Garmin Venu 3 edged one another in terms of each of the features discussed above. For instance, when it comes to fitness tracking, Garmin Venu 3 is the runaway winner. But, when it comes to their prices, Oura Ring is more affordable.
To answer the question about which wearable is better for sleep tracking, the answer is Garmin Venu 3. You can get the sleep tracking features from Oura Ring on Garmin’s smartwatch. Plus, Garmin Venu 3 also tracks your movement while sleeping and even provides a “sleep coach” – things that Oura Ring doesn’t offer.
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