Read our Oura Ring 4 review and you’ll see there’s a lot to like about the smart ring launching in October 2024: we described it as being “the near-perfect fitness tracker,” while praising its battery life, tracking capabilities, and design.
However, the high score given to this review – 4.5 stars out of 5 – doesn’t mean the Oura Ring 4 can’t be improved, and we have some ideas about what kind of updates could make the rumored fifth-generation model a worthwhile upgrade.
Oura Ring 5: leaks and rumors
There’s nothing official about the Oura Ring 5 yet, but we have a feeling Oura is working on a new model of its smart ring. We got the company’s 3rd generation device in October 2021 and the 4th generation wearable in October 2024, so it makes sense that we could see something new later in 2026. The Gadgets & Wearables team notes that another Oura device has already been registered with US regulators.
While there are only a limited number of ways to design a smart ring, the Oura Ring 5 renders leaked by Android Headlines suggest that not much will change in terms of aesthetics – and the 5th generation Ring will apparently also come with the same charging accessories.
What might be different are the colors: the same source predicts that the current Rose Gold color will be replaced by Deep Rose. The existing matte black, standard gold and silver options are expected to be retained, with the silver one apparently available as a glossy and brushed option.
Other details are pretty thin on the ground, although Android Headlines says the Oura Ring 5’s battery life will be more or less the same as the current model (so around six days, based on our testing). There will be improvements in sensors and health tracking, the report says, although we don’t get any details.
More hints on what to expect come from Android Central, which highlights the patents Oura has filed for modular add-ons, GPS tracking, haptic feedback, and smart gestures support. As always with patents, it’s not always guaranteed that they will turn into actual features, even if the company involved is exploring a certain technology.
It looks like the Oura Ring 5 will offer an evolution of what we have with the Oura Ring 4 based on these leaks and rumors, rather than something radically different – although with perhaps still a few surprises to come in terms of software, sensors and fitness tracking capabilities.
Oura Ring 5: what we want to see
At this point, it’s probably too late in product development to convince Oura engineers to include features that may or may not have already been locked down, but it’s still worth talking about what we’d like to see from the next smart ring – if only to have a list to refer to when it arrives.
A thinner design
You can’t argue that the Oura Ring 4 is bulky, but there’s room for improvement here, especially when it comes to the larger ceramic version of the wearable. The standard Oura Ring 4 is 2.88mm thick, while the ceramic version comes in at 3.51mm (and it’s heavier, too).
The RingConn Gen 2 is only 2mm thick, while the Samsung Galaxy Ring is 2.6mm, so this is an area where Oura is currently beaten by its competitors.
Size and weight are very important for a wearable like this, which you’re expected to wear 24 hours a day, and Oura might be able to downsize the new ring.
A lower price
The starting price for an Oura Ring 4 is $349 / £349 / AU$569, which doesn’t compare too badly to the $399 / £399 / AU$699 you pay for the Samsung Galaxy Ring or the $299 / £269 / AU$269 starting price of the Amazfit Helio Ring. However, Oura has the possibility of becoming cheaper with Ring 5, especially considering the mandatory subscription.
An Oura subscription is not an optional extra: it’s required to use your device and will cost you $5.99 (around £4.40 / AU$8.30) per month. In reality, Oura isn’t going to take away this steady revenue stream from its users, but given this commitment, it would be nice to see the upfront price of the next smart ring drop.
A silicone sleeve
The Oura Ring 4 is great for a lot of things, but it’s not ideal for activities like racquet sports or weight training: the risk of damage to the device or to your own body increases, every time you do any sort of gripping or holding with your hands, and that’s not something you want to worry about.
One of the third-party solutions to this problem, especially when it comes to gym work, is a silicone sleeve to wear over the Oura wearable. If one of these were to be included in the Oura Ring 5 box, it would save the user additional costs (see above) and mean the device would immediately be more useful – without any accessories.
We’ll have to wait and see if the Oura team has been thinking along the same lines since the launch of the Oura Ring 4, but we’ll let you know as soon as there’s anything official about a new product (one that’s very likely to make our list of the best smart rings).
