The Oura Ring is getting an upgrade with three new features that will improve the device’s performance for its users. The three new features are Daytime Stress, Reflections, and Resilience. Additionally, a new finish will be available for purchase.
According to Oura, the new features will help users understand how and when they experience stress and recovery in their daily lives. It will also enable them to balance daily behaviors that build resilience and avoid the negative impacts of chronic stress. The new features (and the new color) are being announced at the 2023 HLTH Conference in Las Vegas, featuring Oura CEO Tom Hale.
Daytime Stress
Beginning today, October 10, the new Daytime Stress feature will be rolled out to Oura users. It has been designed to identify stress triggers by continuously measuring tiny changes in biometrics such as heart rate, HRV, and temperature.
The information collected every 15 minutes will help users see which experiences add stress to their day and which ones help them recover.
Reflections
For iPhone users in beta, the new Reflections feature is already available. It provides an AI-powered journal function in the Oura app that lets users quickly record short journal entries and track mood and mental state.
The text is transcribed by speech recognition, while AI-powered auto-tagging automatically creates a context for the user’s Oura data.
Stress Resilience
Finally, the Oura team aims to roll out the new Stress Resilience feature this winter. The feature assesses users’ ability to withstand physiological stress by tracking daytime stress load, daytime recovery, and recovery during sleep.
With the new Daytime Stress feature, Stress Resilience will provide users with insights, education, and recommendations to manage stress and improve overall health.
A new titanium color
Meanwhile, the latest addition to Oura’s Horizon lineup is its new brushed titanium color. It features a matte surface that looks sophisticated and understated. The finish is designed with medical-grade durability in mind, ensuring that it is sturdy enough for everyday wear. The new brushed titanium finish joins Oura’s existing silver, black, stealth, gold, and rose gold lineup.
Holly Shelton, Oura’s Chief Product Officer, explains the new features: “Being human is inherently stressful. We all experience stress and it’s often depicted as something we need to eliminate and avoid at all costs. When understood and managed well, stress can be your ally in boosting productivity, flexing your creativity, and building resilience. That’s the power we’re helping our members harness with our new stress offerings.”
Oura has recently expanded its range of wellness tools to benefit users. One significant development was the partnership with Talkspace, an online behavioral health service provider, announced in August. This collaboration allows Oura users to share their personalized sleep data with a licensed therapist. By analyzing the individual’s sleep patterns and daily activity level between appointments, the therapist can create customized treatment plans and set better objectives.
Another recent addition is Oura Circles, which enables users to share three main data points (Readiness, Sleep, and Activity) with professionals and family members. Additionally, in late 2020, the company partnered with Therabody, the makers of the Theragun percussive recovery muscle massager.
The Oura Ring comes from Finnish-based Oura Health Oy. It’s a well-received smart ring that tracks a user’s physical activity and sleep patterns. It’s available for purchase from the Oura website starting at $299. A monthly membership plan is $6.
