RingConn Gen 2 Air Review: A $199 Smart Ring With No Subscription Fees

Smart rings promise health tracking without the bulk of a smartwatch, but most come with a steep price tag or mandatory subscriptions. The RingConn Gen 2 Air takes a different approach: $199, no monthly fees, and a design so light you forget it’s there.

I unboxed this budget-friendly smart ring and put it through its paces, testing everything from the magnetic charger to the sleep tracking accuracy. At just 2.5 grams and 3mm thick, the Gen 2 Air felt more like a wedding band than a piece of tech during my first wear test.

The result? A capable health tracker with some clear strengths and a few notable limitations. Here’s what I found after extensive testing.

What I Liked About the RingConn Gen 2 Air

Battery Life That Outlasts the Competition

RingConn claims up to 10 days of battery life on a single charge, and real-world testing backs that up. Tom’s Guide confirmed roughly eight days of continuous wear, which still beats the Oura Ring 4’s five to six days in practice. Charging takes about 90 minutes through the magnetic USB-C dock, and the snap alignment makes it effortless to set down before a shower.

Comfort You Forget About

At 2.5 grams and just 2mm at its thinnest point, the Gen 2 Air disappears on your finger. I noticed it during my first wear test when putting it on felt no different from a standard ring. One Reddit user summed it up: “It feels like wearing nothing at all most of the day.” The stainless steel construction with PVD coating holds up to daily wear, and the IP68 rating means you can shower, swim, and exercise without removing it.

Health Tracking Without the Subscription

The Gen 2 Air monitors heart rate, HRV, blood oxygen (SpO2), skin temperature, stress levels, and respiratory rate around the clock. The RingConn app presents this data through four key scores: sleep, activity, relaxation, and vitals. Unlike the Oura Ring 4 which charges $5.99 per month for full access, every feature here comes included at that $199 price point. The app also supports menstrual cycle tracking with temperature-based predictions.

Sleep Tracking That Delivers

Sleep monitoring is where this smart ring earns its keep. It tracks total sleep time, sleep stages (REM, light, and deep), plus overnight heart rate and SpO2. Multiple users reported it accurately distinguishes between time in bed and actual sleep. As one reviewer noted: “Sleep tracking feels accurate for me. It was able to differentiate between time in bed and actual sleep, which is great since I often end the night reading or watching TV.”

The RingConn App Experience

The free RingConn app organizes health data into a visual dashboard with four petal-shaped scores. Each section drills down into detailed metrics with trend graphs over days and weeks. The app integrates with Google Fit, supports automatic nap detection and workout detection, and includes an AI assistant that answers questions about your health patterns. Available on both iOS and Android with no platform restrictions.

What Needs Improvement

Fitness Tracking Falls Short

The Gen 2 Air supports only six workout modes: outdoor running, indoor running, indoor cycling, outdoor cycling, outdoor walk, and hiking. There’s no strength training, swimming, or yoga tracking. Worse, heart rate accuracy during vigorous exercise is unreliable. Independent testing found readings up to 50% off during indoor running, with the ring reporting 150+ BPM when actual heart rate was closer to 100. If you rely on accurate workout heart rate zones, a dedicated fitness tracker or smartwatch is the better choice.

Step Counting Needs Calibration

Multiple users documented step count inflation. One careful comparison against a Garmin showed the RingConn logging 9,713 steps versus Garmin’s 5,547 on the same day. The ring consistently overcounts, which means your daily totals look better than reality. For relative day-to-day trend tracking it still works, but don’t treat the numbers as precise.

No Sleep Apnea Monitoring

The standard RingConn Gen 2 at $299 includes sleep apnea detection, but the Gen 2 Air drops this feature to hit the lower price point. If breathing irregularity monitoring matters to you, you’ll need to spend the extra $100 on the full Gen 2 model or consider a different device entirely.

Charging Dock Instead of Charging Case

The Gen 2 gets a portable charging case with a built-in 500mAh battery that stores up to 150 days of charge. The Gen 2 Air ships with a USB-C magnetic dock that must be plugged into a wall outlet. For travel, this means carrying an extra cable and finding a power source when the ring needs juice.

How the RingConn Gen 2 Air Compares

vs Oura Ring 4

The Oura Ring 4 remains the gold standard for smart ring health tracking, with validated research partnerships and polished sleep insights. It starts at $349 and requires a $5.99 monthly subscription for full feature access, adding $72 per year to the ownership cost. The RingConn Gen 2 Air matches Oura on battery life (10 days vs 8 days rated) and core health metrics, but Oura delivers more refined sleep stage analysis and VO2 max estimates. If detailed sleep data is your priority and you don’t mind the subscription, Oura is the better tracker. If you want 80% of the functionality at less than half the total cost, the Gen 2 Air wins.

vs Samsung Galaxy Ring

Samsung’s Galaxy Ring costs $399 with no subscription, but it’s designed primarily for Samsung device owners. The full feature set requires a Samsung phone, limiting its appeal for iOS users. The RingConn Gen 2 Air works identically on both iOS and Android, lasts longer per charge (10 days vs 5-6 days in practice), and costs half as much. Samsung offers stronger ecosystem integration with Samsung Health and Galaxy AI features, but the Gen 2 Air delivers better cross-platform value.

vs Ultrahuman Ring Air

The Ultrahuman Ring Air at $349 offers a titanium build and no subscription fees, similar to RingConn’s approach. However, its battery life is shorter at 4-5 days initially, and users report degradation to 3 days after 18 months. The RingConn Gen 2 Air uses stainless steel instead of titanium, making it heavier by about a gram, but delivers double the battery life at $150 less. For users who value battery longevity over premium materials, the Gen 2 Air is the stronger choice.

Final Verdict

The RingConn Gen 2 Air delivers solid health and sleep tracking in a featherlight package that costs less than half of its closest competitors. I’m giving it a 4.0 out of 5.

It nails the fundamentals: long battery life, comfortable all-day wear, accurate sleep tracking, and comprehensive vitals monitoring with zero subscription fees. The stainless steel build holds up to daily use, and the RingConn app presents data clearly without overwhelming you.

Where it falls short is fitness tracking. Inaccurate exercise heart rate readings and inflated step counts mean athletes should look elsewhere. The missing sleep apnea monitoring is a trade-off for the lower price, and the charging dock can’t match the Gen 2’s portable case for travel.

Bottom line: For $199 with no recurring costs, the RingConn Gen 2 Air is the smart ring to buy if you want everyday health monitoring without breaking the bank. Serious fitness users should pair it with a dedicated sports watch or consider the Oura Ring 4 for more precise data.