QALO QRNT smart ring review – A health tracking ring without an annoying subscription

REVIEW – Health tracking rings have been everywhere lately and while I have a smart watch, I sometimes doubt the accuracy of it.  I mean, my watch does a lot of stuff, and I think it masters none of them.  I became curious about whether a smart ring can do any better, since most of them focus on health tracking and nothing else.  Enter the QALO QRNT:  the health tracking ring with an annoying name but no annoying subscription!

⬇︎ Jump to summary (pros/cons)
Price: $189.95
Where to buy: QALO

What is it?

The QALO QRNT is a smart ring that tracks your workouts, health and sleep.

What’s included?

• The QALO QRNT ring
• The charging case
• A USB-C cable
• two silicone covers

Tech specs

• Weight: 3-4g
• Size: Width 8.0mm; Thickness 2.85/2.9mm
• Available in sizes 6 – 13

Design and features

The QALO QRNT ring is a relatively plain looking ring in titanium alloy on the outside and what I think is plastic on the inside.  There are some small bumps and sensors on the inside, along with a green LED that you flashes when it’s measuring something. The QRNT is water resistant and can be worn while bathing.  It is FSA/HSA eligible, and it works with Apple Health as well as Android phones.  It requires an app to look at the data and I found the interface very nice, with menus that allow you to dig a little deeper into any of the metrics it measures.

Assembly, Installation, Setup

I started on my QRNT journey by charging the ring and installing the app.  I found that a charge lasted a couple of days, but that varies depending on the frequency of measurements.  QALO says the QRNT can last an entire week on a charge, but I think that is with less frequent measurements.  The charging case is about the size of an earbud charging case and you just put the ring on a post inside. The bumpy sensors on the inside of the QRNT must line up with indentations on the post, so in that way, it was a bit fiddly, but otherwise, it was easy to pop it in for a charge while I got ready in the morning.

Once charged, I put the QRNT ring on and it was too small for my index finger (which is where most people wear it).  I used my own ring sizer and the QALO ring sizer and ordered accordingly, but I think the small bumps on the inside of the ring threw it off.  I wish QALO had similar bumps on their ring sizer — I think that would go a long way to help get an accurate measurement. If you are on the fence about which size to order, I would order a full size up.  Fortunately, the QRNT fit fine on my middle finger and I was off on my health tracking journey.

I was re-decorating an apartment in London for most of the time while testing the QRNT, and that meant that it took a lot of bumps and scrapes.  I wore it while I showered and washed dishes.  It got a good workout and it passed.  I ran into a friend who owned the Oura ring (another one with an annoying name), and we compared them.  His had more sheen, but it looks very similar and in fact he thought I had the Oura as well.  The QRNT shipped with two silicone covers (in black and white) in case you are worried about it getting a bump or ding or if you just want to change up the look.  QALO also sells a bunch of other colors as well, but I found it just made the ring look bulkier, so most of the time I wore the QRNT by itself.

Performance

It’s tough to get a good shot of the inside sensors, but I think you can see there’s a lot going on in there!

At the end of the day, smart gadgets that collect data are really only as good as their apps, and I really liked the QRNT app.  For one thing, you own your health information.  The data it collects is stored in the US and if you delete your account, the data disappears, so no worries that your health insurance is going to spy on your activity levels!

The  QALO QRNT ring measures your steps, sleep, heart rate, skin temperature and oxygen level.  It gives you a “Q” score (which stands for quality of life) and also uses the data to measure your overall stress.  It uses heart rate data to measure how you manage stress and recover from exercise to offer a “vitality” score. It uses your physical activity to offer a movement score.  All of my scores were pretty lackluster, mostly because I had a really bad cold for about three weeks of my testing!  Don’t judge!

Aside from my lackluster Q and Vitality scores, I did get a lot of steps in and when I compared the data to my smartwatch and my boyfriend’s phone, I would honestly say that I think the QRNT results were far more accurate than my smartwatch.  My steps more closely matched my boyfriend’s data, and we went everywhere together, so they should have been close.  He has a longer stride than me, and that is reflected in me having a few more steps than he did.

Also more accurate is the QRNT blood oxygen level.  My cold moved into my chest, and since I have a touch of asthma,  I like to keep track of my oxygen levels, especially while I sleep.  My smartwatch regularly got a blood oxygen reading of 70% while I slept, either with a cold or without.  I’ve had a sleep test for apnea in the last few years, so I know that couldn’t be right.  I mean, 70% is life-threatening, and while I often sleep like the dead, I am fairly healthy overall.  The ring never got a reading that low.  I stayed in the normal to low normal range every night, even when I was hacking up a lung during the day.

I liked the way you could drill down in the menus on the app for the QRNT and see your data graphically as well.  It is a robust interface that I think offers useful information in a user-friendly way.  And the best part: you don’t have to pay for it monthly!  That’s right!  No subscription costs like many of the competing smart ring brands.

The only complaint about my daily wear is that the LED on the inside of the ring is a bit too bright.  While I was sleeping, sometimes my hand would be up by my face and the boyfriend said that it was like that green LED was flashing right in his eye.

Final thoughts

I really enjoy my QALO QRNT ring and the accompanying app.  I think it gives useful data and is reasonably priced.  I especially like that they respect my data and don’t charge me for a subscription!

What I like about QALO QRNT

• No subscription cost
• My data is private
• Thoughtful, useful app

What needs to be improved?

• Sizing.  If you sell a sizing kit, it should be accurate.
• The LEDs are bright!

Price: $189.95
Where to buy: QALO
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by QALO. QALO did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.

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