Oura Health Tuesday launched the newest version of its health tracking wearable, the Oura Ring Generation 3. 

Oura said the Generation 3 includes daytime heart rate tracking, including live heart rate monitoring, improved temperature checks and menstruation prediction. The company said the period prediction feature is based on body temperature changes throughout the month.

Though not available at launch, Oura users will also have access to educational content on topics like medication and sleep, workout heart rate recording, improved sleep-tracking accuracy, and blood oxygen (SpO2) monitoring during sleep. The educational content and workout heart rate features will be available later this year, and the sleep and blood oxygen tracking will come in 2022.

Oura is also introducing a membership program, which will offer educational videos, guided audio sessions and personal recommendations in the Oura app for $5.99 a month. The Generation 3 Ring will cost $299 and ship in November. 

“With the Oura Ring Gen3, we’re challenging the evolution of the wearables industry,” Harpreet Singh Rai, Oura CEO, said in a statement.

“In addition to being one of the most accurate sleep trackers in the world, we've now added daytime heart rate and workout heart rate. But more importantly, we’ve remained committed to further researching our community’s most pressing problems. From investing in illness detection to women’s health, we see Oura functioning as a single tool to track and guide your holistic health, translating your body's hidden messages to improve how you feel, day and night.”

WHY IT MATTERS

Wearables are a big business in digital health. A report from the Consumer Technology Association in July predicted the wearable market would generate a record-breaking $487 billion in revenue this year. 

The Oura Ring differs from many health-tracking wearables in form, since many of its competitors are worn on the wrist. But a Fitbit patent filed in June suggests the Google-owned company may be working on its own smart ring offering. 

The fitness-focused WHOOP 4.0 can also be worn on other places on the body by placing the sensor in WHOOP Body training gear and sleepwear. 

THE LARGER TREND

In May, Oura Health announced it had completed a hefty $100 million Series C funding round, building on a $28 million Series B from March 2020.

The NBA’s summer COVID-19 protocols included offering players the option to track their health via the Oura Ring. 

But the wearable market is a crowded one. Last month, Amazon announced its new Halo View fitness tracker. Some Garmin smartwatches can now integrate with the Dexcom G6 continuous glucose monitor. 

Other big players include Apple, which recently added cycling features to its Watch, and Fitbit, which released the Charge 5 in August.