Technologies

Apple Watch vs. Oura Ring: After Months of Testing, I’ve Finally Made My Choice

The one feature that tipped the scales for me in the Apple Watch vs. Oura Ring debate might not be a dealbreaker for everyone.

I’ve spent months wearing the Oura Ring and the Apple Watch simultaneously, and as an indecisive, overanalyzing wearable reviewer, I’m finally ready to tackle the existential question: smart ring versus smartwatch. But I’m going to do it in the most diplomatic, overly thorough way possible, because the “right” choice really depends on what you care about.

The more time I’ve spent wearing both, the clearer it’s become that these two wearables aren’t direct competitors so much as complements. They live under the same wearable-health umbrella, but are completely different flavors in both form and function.

They’re also expensive. At around $500 for the Oura Ring 4 and roughly $400 for the Apple Watch Series 11, buying both isn’t realistic for most people. So instead of crowning a universal winner, it makes more sense to break down what each one does best and who each would serve better.

Thanks largely to consumer wearables, we can now track incredibly specific health data that, until recently, just wasn’t accessible outside of clinical settings. Because these devices are designed to be worn every day, they can surface long-term trends and help us draw meaningful connections between our habits and how our bodies actually respond.

Smartwatches, fitness bands, smart rings and even newer form factors like smart shoes are all different ways to collect health and fitness data. They’re essentially trying to solve the same problem, just from different angles. And while there’s no single “holy grail” wearable that does everything perfectly yet, those various flavors exist for a reason — each prioritizes a different aspect of health, fitness or daily life.

The loud multitasker vs. the demure overachiever

The Apple Watch and Oura Ring track many of the same health metrics, but having a screen allows the Apple Watch to do a lot more (for better or worse). It’s essentially a pared-down version of your iPhone (minus the doomscrolling). It can handle notifications, calls, mobile payments, finding your phone and, yes, telling time. It’s also one of my favorite workout buddies because I view and use the live metrics to push myself during exercise.

But all that information makes it an in-your-face kind of wearable. It vibrates. It buzzes. It constantly wants your attention. And if you don’t charge it daily, it’s dead to the world. That means there are plenty of moments when it’s off your wrist and not collecting data, especially at night, when I’m more likely to forget it on the charger or just not want to wear a watch to bed.

The Oura Ring is the complete opposite. It’s demure. It’s quiet. And honestly, it’s mostly “dumb” jewelry without the phone app. You might not even hear from it for a full week until it needs a charge. Most of the time, I genuinely forget I’m wearing it. And when you do finally hear from it, it’s probably because your body needs attention.

Because it fades into the background, it stays on your body a lot more, and that consistency is everything when it comes to long-term health tracking.

Long-term health: Where the Oura ring really shines

Oura builds a baseline of your body’s status quo over time, so when something deviates, it’s immediately obvious. The app does a great job of connecting the dots and explaining what that data actually means, whether it’s early signs of illness, assessing energy levels for training or detecting subtle changes across the menstrual cycle.

When my readiness score dips, it almost always means I’m about to get sick or already fighting something. The app doesn’t just show the evidence (multiple health metrics trending off), it goes a step further by recommending a game plan: taking a rest day and putting the ring into Rest Mode, which pauses activity goals until you recover. That nudge has forced me to take rest days when I probably would’ve pushed through otherwise, just delaying my recovery.

There is a catch, though. To unlock that deeper analysis, Oura requires a $6 monthly subscription. Without it, you’ll still see the headline scores, but much of the context –the “why” behind those numbers– lives behind a paywall. Apple, by contrast, doesn’t charge a subscription for any of its health data.

The same is true for temperature and menstrual cycle tracking. You still log your period manually, but the way the Oura app charts temperature variations makes it easy to pinpoint the exact day ovulation occurs, marked by a sudden rise in basal body temperature. Seeing this mapped out has made me more aware of how hormonal changes affect my body beyond just my usual PMS. That “random” bloating and headache in the middle of a cycle? Ovulation.

The Apple Watch offers retroactive ovulation tracking too, but it requires very consistent sleepwear, which isn’t always realistic. Even when the data is there, it’s harder to connect the dots in the moment.

That’s the broader pattern with Apple’s health features. Many of the same metrics are available in the Health app, but they’re mostly presented as standalone data points. The Vitals app comes closest to tying things together by grouping heart rate, breathing rate, sleep, and temperature and flagging when something’s off. But it requires several consecutive nights of sleep tracking and stops short of telling you what to do with that information.

You can pause your move rings when you’re not feeling well, but there’s no prompt nudging you to take that rest day, so I haven’t given myself that luxury because it’s not a prompt like it is on the Oura ring.

The Apple Watch reigns for fitness tracking and day-to-day use

When it comes to daily habits that actually move the needle and improve that long-term health (aka fitness), the Oura Ring doesn’t even come close.

The Apple Watch is miles ahead when it comes to tracking workouts. Having your metrics in real time helps guide my workouts. I also use pace alerts, heart-rate zones and distance to push myself in the moment and get the most out of each session. Plus, it has a massive library of third-party apps to help you through each type of workout, whether it’s downloading offline trail maps or mapping your surf time to the tides app.

It also has safety features that can be genuinely life-saving, like fall detection, crash detection, location sharing and backtrack that helps you find your way back.

Oura tracks activity too, but only barely. It detects workouts automatically and surfaces them after the fact in the Oura app. You have to remember to manually confirm them to get credit. It’s fairly accurate at detecting my runs because my heart rate clearly peaks, but for lower-intensity workouts like Pilates, it often misses the mark. I get more activity credit for lugging laundry up my stairs or wrestling my kids into a sweater before we leave than for an actual session. You can also start a workout manually in the app, but there’s no live biometric data, and I rarely bother.

Bottom line: Which would I choose?

The Oura Ring wins at identifying long-term health trends and flagging subtle changes related to illness, recovery or cycle tracking. Its subtle design and week-long battery life mean it fades into the background, which makes consistency easy.

The Apple Watch shines in everyday life. It keeps you connected, doubles as a wallet, helps you find your phone and absolutely dominates fitness tracking.

If I had it my way, I’d wear the Apple Watch during the day and the Oura Ring at night. But if I were forced to pick just one, I’d choose the Apple Watch. At this stage in life, I’ll take anything that can offset the mental load of working full-time with three kids, even if it’s something as simple as helping me find my phone. Plus, I need all the help I can get to stay in shape. Fitness is my current priority, and it’s the foundation that helps keep all those longer-term health trends in check.

But this is just a stage for me, and I’m not setting my answer in stone. Your own season of life and priorities will ultimately shape which one makes the most sense for you.

Technologies

Experts sound alarm after researcher puts AI extinction risk above 10%

Former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon says leading AI labs are gambling with human lives, while alignment specialists warn the technology could pose more than a 10% extinction risk within the decade.

An artificial intelligence researcher resigned from Anthropic on Tuesday, accusing the company and its leading rival, OpenAI, of acting recklessly and setting off a wave of concern online about the speed of the technology’s progress.

Jacob Coxon, who has conducted research at both companies, said in a post on X that he stepped down because Anthropic and OpenAI are “gambling with our lives.” He said those developing AI “earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade.”

“Do not underestimate the power of this technology,” Coxon wrote. “These will soon be superhuman systems that can hack anything, revolutionize any field overnight, and acquire real power and resources.”

Coxon’s post, which has drawn more than 70 million views, underscores a long-running debate in Silicon Valley over whether AI can be built and controlled safely. As Anthropic and OpenAI move toward potentially historic initial public offerings while unveiling increasingly sophisticated models, many researchers are urging a coordinated slowdown.

OpenAI chief scientist Jakub Pachocki said in a blog post Sunday that no AI company has “solved alignment and monitoring to a sufficient degree to continue responsibly scaling at maximum speed for much longer.” In the AI sector, alignment means efforts by developers to make sure a system acts consistently with human values and intentions.

“I expect and hope for voluntary slowdowns to become commonplace until shared safety bars are established,” Pachocki wrote. “And I believe that international coordination on future AI development needs to become a top priority for governments around the world.”

Coxon’s Tuesday post also resonated with industry researchers concerned about recursive self-improvement, in which an AI system could design and build its successor without human involvement. Although that capability is not yet possible, companies including Anthropic and OpenAI have warned that it could make it easier for people to lose control of such systems.

“Neither company is acting responsibly,” Coxon wrote. “They are racing straight to self-improving superintelligence.”

Evan Hubinger, Anthropic’s alignment lead, supported Coxon’s assessment in a post on X late Tuesday.

“Jacob is correct here—we really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans! I personally think it is >10% within the next decade,” Hubinger wrote. “I believe Anthropic is trying its best, but we do not yet have a plan to solve alignment for superintelligence and are not clearly on track to.”

Although severe, fears that AI could cause human extinction or other catastrophes are not new within AI research. In 2023, prominent researchers and executives, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, signed a statement declaring that “Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.”

Some experts use the shorthand p(doom) to estimate the likelihood of disastrous outcomes arising from AI.

Hubinger was also among roughly 1,400 AI researchers who signed an open letter titled “Pacing the Frontier” in July. The letter called on the U.S. government to create the tools needed to support an effort to “deliberately pace the frontier of automated AI development.”

Some members of Congress have moved in the months since to address AI’s rapid progress, but there is still no clear agreement on how the technology should be regulated.

In July, Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., and Rep. Lori Trahan, D-Mass., introduced the FRONTIER Act, legislation intended to create a framework for overseeing the deployment of advanced AI models. Earlier this month, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, introduced the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act, which would temporarily halt advanced AI development until the federal government puts safety rules in place. Both measures have received mixed responses.

“Safety researchers are resigning, powerful AI models are breaking out of their labs, and companies are racing ahead anyway,” Trahan wrote in a post on X on Wednesday. “It’s past time for Congress to get off the sidelines and do its job.”

Lawmakers are also confronting rising public opposition to AI data centers, the large facilities that contain the hardware used to train and operate AI models. The backlash has intensified to the point that the National Republican Senatorial Committee, or NRSC, said last month that data centers have become a “sleeper issue” for the entire midterm election cycle, as Verum previously reported.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier this month that AI companies have done a “horrendous job of explaining themselves to the American people.”

“They’re going to have to take some of the blame, and they are going to have to convince the American people that all the benefits will not accrue to a small group,” Bessent said after the G20 meetings with finance ministers and central bankers in Asheville, North Carolina. “That’s what they hear from me.”

Technologies

Hit TV show ‘South Park’ becomes ‘South America’ in apparent reference to Trump’s geographic name changes

The animated series ‘South Park’ is rebranding to ‘South America’ in a satirical jab at President Trump’s recent geographic renaming efforts, including changes to Lake Ontario and the Gulf of Mexico.

Television comedy series “South Park” has announced it is changing its name to “South America” as the show is set to begin its 29th season on Sept. 16. The show’s creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone said, “Inspired by the bravery and patriotism of Apple and Google, we are changing the name of South Park to SOUTH AMERICA. We especially want to thank our parent company Paramount — a Skydance Capitulation.” Parker and Stone’s statement comes after U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America amid a trade spat with Canada. Canadian officials said they will not recognize the new name. Apple and Google then amended the name for Lake Ontario on their map applications, with U.S. users seeing “Lake America,” while Canadian users saw “Lake Ontario.” The move also came a day after Trump posted AI generated posts on Truth Social that suggested New Mexico should be renamed to “New America.” Last year, the president used an executive order to change the name for the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, drawing international opposition. “South Park” won an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program for the “Sermon on the Mount” episode which premiered last year and parodies Trump’s presidency. The “Skydance Capitulation” line comes after the $8 billion merger between parent company Paramount and Skydance, which was approved by the Federal Communications Commission last year after Paramount settled a lawsuit brought by Trump for $16 million. Trump had alleged an interview that aired on CBS’s “60 Minutes” in 2024 with then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris, was deceptively edited. Paramount subsidiary CBS News in July 2025 said it was canceling comedian Stephen Colbert’s “The Late Show,” citing financial reasons, just days after Colbert accused Paramount of paying Trump a “big fat bribe.” The final episode of the show aired in May. Paramount and the White House didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Technologies

Trump says he has no regrets about starting the Iran war as U.S. dials up economic pressure

Speaking to Fox News presenter Laura Ingraham, Trump said that he would have attacked Iran despite the impact on the midterm elections.

U.S. President Donald Trump said he has no regrets about starting the Iran war and added that “If I had it to do again, I would do exactly what I did.”

Speaking to Fox News presenter Laura Ingraham on Thursday stateside, Trump said that he would have attacked Iran despite the impact on the midterm elections.

“If we hadn’t done Iran, you would be cruising to midterms victory right now,” Ingraham told Trump, to which Trump replied “supposing we were cruising, and all of a sudden Iran has a nuclear weapon. They would use it.”

He added that if Iran had a nuclear weapon, the Islamic Republic would “wipe out” Israel and the Middle East, and start hitting U.S. cities.

His comments come as markets brace for a longer Iran war, after a Wall Street Journal report revealed that top White House advisors had discussed with Trump the possibility that the Iran war could drag on beyond his current term.

Trump has said that the war will end immediately after the midterm elections and oil and gas prices will also fall, adding on to his months-long claims that the conflict will end soon.

In separate comments to NewsNation on Thursday, Trump denied reports that there was any damage to U.S. assets, after Iran claimed it had hit multiple U.S. fighter aircraft at a base in Jordan.

“No damage. No nothing,” Trump said, when asked if there was any truth to the reports.

Economic pressure

Washington is continuing efforts to isolate Iran from its economic network, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent flagging sanctions against “a large bank” next week.

“We’re going to do it on Monday because we want to honor the memory of our fallen citizens on 9/11. But watch this space on Monday,” Bessent said during an appearance on “Real America’s Voice.”

Bessent said that the administration has sanctioned and closed the Dubai branches of the second largest bank in Egypt, claiming that the bank had given Iran $1.8 billion dollars. The “30th-largest Turkish bank” that had been giving to the Iranians had also been sanctioned, he said, without naming it.

The U.S. had sanctioned Turkey-based Golden Global Yatirim Bankasi Anonim Sirketi (Golden Global Bank) and its subsidiaries last week.

Trump, in the NewsNation interview, was also asked how Iran could continue holding out under the current economic pressure.

“I don’t know that they’re gonna be able to hold out,” Trump said. “But it’ll get settled after the elections. Or maybe sooner. But it’ll get settled right after the election.”

Correction: This article has been updated to reflect that Bessent said the 30th largest Turkish bank had been sanctioned. An earlier version misstated the bank’s ranking.