Apple Watch Ultra and Oura Ring Jason Hiner/ZDNET
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I've been wearing an Apple Watch every day for the past decade and I've been using it to track my sleep every night since 2019. Over the past few years, I've known more and more friends, family, and colleagues opting for smart rings instead of smart watches to track their health. I've also personally tested the Oura Ring, the Samsung Galaxy Ring, and the Ultrahuman Ring Air.
But eventually, I keep taking off the rings and coming back to the Apple Watch as my sole health tracker.
Also: I switched to the Apple Watch after a four-year hiatus - here's why it's near perfect now
The funny thing is that I had quit wearing a watch for years before the Apple Watch arrived in 2015, preferring to just use my phone to keep track of the time. But during the past two years, I've been wearing the Apple Watch Ultra -- the largest and most bulky watch in the lineup.
So why do I prefer the Apple Watch to much smaller and more discreet smart rings? It comes down to three reasons.
1. Comfort
Despite wearing the heavy Apple Watch Ultra while I sleep, I've gotten so accustomed to wearing an Apple Watch that I'm not very conscious of it when it's on my wrist -- either during the day or when I sleep.
I can't say the same for smart rings. The Oura Ring 3 and 4 and the Ultrahuman Ring Air are particularly bulky for rings and not very comfortable to wear when I'm sleeping. The Samsung Galaxy Ring is a little bit better because it's thinner and lighter. It's amazing how much technology is packed into these tiny rings, but I still find them a lot more noticeable and uncomfortable to wear compared to my wedding ring, for instance.
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