REVIEW – 2024 could be considered the year of the smart ring. While smart rings have been on the market for several years, this is the year that their popularity skyrocketed. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to review the RingConn smart ring, and it quickly became my favorite fitness tracking wearable due to its excellent battery life. While the first-gen RingConn was and still is excellent, now there’s a brand new Gen 2 version of the RingConn smart ring. Let’s see what’s changed and if it’s worth upgrading if you already have the original RingConn smart ring.
What is it?
The RingConn Gen 2 is RingConn’s latest smart ring that tracks your steps, activity, stress, sleep, heart rate, temperature, and now it can track sleep apnea symptoms.
What’s included?
- RingConn smart ring
- Portable charging case
- USB cable
- Quick guide
Tech specs
Click to expand
Battery life: 10-12 days
Water resistance: IP68 / 100m
Dimensions: 2mm thick x 6.8mm wide
Weight: 2g
Sizes: #6 – #14
Design and features
I already mentioned that I’m a big fan of the original RingConn smart ring. You can see it above on the left and next to it is the new gen 2 RingConn ring. The new version has the same light weight form factor with excellent build quality. But it’s noticeably thinner. I thought the first version was comfortable to wear 24/7, but this new version is even better.
The RingConn gen 2 smart ring is made of an aerospace-grade titanium alloy and is available in black (which is what I was sent), silver, and gold.
It comes with the same travel charger case that has its own built-in 500 mAh battery.
This little hockey puck shaped charger is awesome for travel since you won’t have to pack a cable or go looking for an outlet.
All you have to do is charge it up before you leave using the USB-C port and you’ll be ready to go for weeks because the RingConn smart ring can last up to 12 days on a full charge!
Frome what I can tell, the charger for the first gen and new gen 2 are identical. Both have a metal exterior and a status LED on the front.
A close look at the band reveals a slight squarish shape that may help prevent it from rotating on your finger throughout the day. You can also see electrical contacts and protruding sensors that will track a variety of health metrics, including Steps, Calories Burned, Activity, Stress, Standing Duration, Heart Rate, SpO2, HRV, Skin Temperature, Respiratory Rate, Duration, Sleep Stages, Movement, Sleep Efficiency, Sleep Stability, and Sleep Score, and Sleep Apnea Monitoring.
I found the new version of this ring to be even more comfortable than the first gen version. I put it on my finger and I forget about it.
RingConn app
I’ve been using the new RingConn smart ring for weeks and before that I was using the original RingConn. I have found that the app is unchanged except that it now has a feature to turn on Sleep Apnea monitoring. The main screen gives you a quick overview of your stats today and past days. You can also manually tag an exercise/workout by tapping the button that you see in the lower right. It’s too bad that there are only 4 activities to choose from and there’s not an Indoor Walking pick.
There’s also a trends screen that you can use to drill down into each area: Sleep, Activity, Stress, Vitals, etc.
The Sleep Apnea monitoring is a feature that you’ll have to manually turn on before you go to bed and then turn it off when you wake up. After your sleep session, the app will use the recorded sleep data that it collected, like your breathing and respiratory variations, to help identify potential sleep risk events that could signal that you may have sleep apnea.
I was impressed when the app alerted me to an abnormality with my heart rate. I was impressed because I was sick with COVID during that time and my heart rate was elevated (and still is – ugh). The app allowed me to tag the reason, which was a fever.
And you get all of this without having to pay extra for a subscription!
What I like about RingConn Gen 2 smart ring
- Long battery life
- Comfortable
- No subscription fees
- Sleep apnea monitoring
What needs to be improved?
- Nothing
Final thoughts
But should you upgrade from the first gen RingConn to the gen 2? I think the only real reason to upgrade is if you think you might have sleep apnea and you want an easy way to find out before you go to the expense of doing a sleep study with a doctor. I am not saying that this ring is a replacement for visiting a doctor, but it can give you valuable information before you go.
I continue to be very impressed with RingConn and their smart rings. The battery life is stellar, the comfort of the ring is perfect, and the app gives me all the information that I need in order to know if I’m getting the best sleep I can get, and any underlying issues that I might have going on which could be causing issues with stress, heart rate, etc. Now that they are even monitoring for sleep apnea, I think RingConn gen 2 smart ring is the smart ring to beat right now. The RingConn gen 2 smart ring is my new favorite wearable fitness tracker!
Price: $299 (currently $209 through early bird Kickstarter)
Where to buy: RingConn and Kickstarter
Source: The sample for this review was provided by RingConn. RingConn did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
