Renpho Lynx smart ring review: $170 Oura alternative with no subscription
ZDNET tested the Renpho Lynx smart ring and found it to be a bare‑bones wellness tracker that costs $170, records basic health data and requires no subscription. The reviewer noted the Lynx’s distinct design and simple hardware: it comes in black and silver, sizes six through 13, features a thin line around its edge and a "skipping stone" charging case, and it has a seven‑day battery life (one day less than the Oura Ring 4).
The ring was tested alongside an Oura Ring 4 for comparison. The Lynx tracks activity, sleep and stress at a basic level, reporting metrics such as time in sleep stages, hours of sleep, calories, distance, heart rate, HRV and SpO2. It supports 30 exercises to record and the reviewer said they couldn’t record an elliptical session.
The device does not require a subscription for access to its data. The Renpho app’s interface and insights were criticized as underdeveloped: summaries and verbal feedback are largely absent, and some daily messages felt vague or unclear. The reviewer said data loaded quickly with no glitches, but observed discrepancies on one day when Oura logged 9,698 steps versus Renpho’s 10,088, and Renpho reported 285 calories burned compared with Oura’s 458.
Some in‑app messages accompanying percentage scores felt confusing. ZDNET’s buying advice is that the Lynx is a reasonable first smart ring for budget‑conscious buyers who want plain sleep and step tracking without extra features.
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