Oura smart rings have learned to detect colds in the early stages for winter – Samsung can’t do that

The new Symptom Radar feature in Oura Ring smart rings will inform the owner about the early symptoms of a respiratory disease. Symptom Radar is not a diagnostic application in nature and cannot accurately determine the type of infection. It is rather a “disease alarm” that notifies in advance of the first signs of illness and the need to take action, for example, rest, see a doctor, or start taking antiviral drugs.

Image source: Oura

«In all the scientific research we’ve done, we’ve seen that your physiology actually starts to change a day or two before you start feeling symptoms,” said Oura Chief Science Officer Shyamal Patel.

Symptom Radar works by assessing resting heart rate, heart rate variability, temperature trends, and breathing rate. This data is compared to the user’s long-term baseline. When synchronizing data, the owner of the smart ring will receive a notification about the presence or absence of potential signs of an incipient respiratory disease.

The Symptom Radar feature was introduced in beta as part of Oura Labs’ recently launched experimental features program. Patel noted that the developed algorithm is not 100 percent accurate and false positives and negatives are possible. He did not provide specific data on the accuracy of diagnosis.

«It will also be interesting to see how [people] recover from [illnesses]. That’s where I see some interesting things we could be moving towards,” Patel added. In addition to tracking early signs of illness, Symptom Radar can help identify factors that contribute to faster recovery, he says.

The official version of Symptom Radar will include a retrospective graph of changes in indicators to give the owner of the smart ring an idea of ​​how well-being has changed over time.

Symptom Radar will be available to all Oura Ring Gen 3 and Oura Ring 4 owners starting December 9th. Note that the main competitor of Oura rings, the Samsung Galaxy Ring, does not have the ability to detect early signs of a cold.