Screenless fitness trackers promise comprehensive health tracking without the distraction of a screen, and the idea has caught on. Whoop’s screenless fitness bands are gaining traction and the product category has grown rapidly, with Google, Garmin, Polar and Amazfit all now offering their own screenless options. I wear an Oura Ring 5 every day, but before that I spent a year with the Whoop MG strapped to my wrist.
Oura calls the Ring 5 the world’s smallest smart ring – and even 40% smaller than its predecessor – with a battery that lasts between six and nine days. Since it looks like a normal ring, people may not even realize it’s a health tracker. Whoop takes a similar approach, but on the wrist. Its latest bands promise more than 14 days of battery life per charge, something no mainstream smartwatch can match except some Garmin watches. When I reviewed the Whoop MG, I found the 27-gram group light enough to forget about it, even under a shirt sleeve. Google’s Fitbit Air joined the category this year as a $99 screenless tracker, and if you’re looking at it, it’s worth reading how the Fitbit Air compares to Whoop’s screenless bands.
After using these devices for over a year, I’ve learned that screenless tracker territory comes with compromises. Many aren’t a problem for me, so I still wear my Oura Ring 5. But that doesn’t mean I don’t experience some of the drawbacks. Broadly speaking, these drawbacks fall into two camps: the information the device can’t transmit to you, such as live activity stats, and the part of the experience that actually ends up on your phone, which is the only place you can see your fitness data.
Activity detection on screen-less fitness trackers can be iffy
Screenless trackers rely on automatic activity detection; without a screen or buttons, there is no way to manually start an activity. TechRadar’s Whoop MG review found that the band excels at recording regular workouts once its software has learned your habits, and the Oura ring’s automatic activity detection feature works similarly. The Oura Ring 5 and Whoop MG handled my runs and walks well, but they measured my lifting sessions and swims less accurately.
The problem is not specific to these two devices. Tom’s Guide experienced the same issue with Amazfit’s screen-less Helio Strap, finding its workout detection unreliable for certain types of activities, like cycling. Oura’s latest software, launched with the Ring 5, lets you start a workout in the app to view real-time stats. However, this still means unlocking your phone and going through menus to see your data. A smartwatch does the same job with the press of a single button, which brings us to another drawback.
Let’s say you wanted to enjoy a workout without a smartphone. Like all screenless rings and smartwatches, the Whoop MG can’t send you notifications, so you might miss important alerts without having your phone within reach. If staying contactable is important to you, this should factor into your choice between purchasing a fitness band or a smartwatch. For me, a (slightly silly) solution to the problem was to wear my Apple Watch on my left wrist and the Whoop on my right. If you’re hoping to reduce your daily carry, it’s a bit of a disadvantage to carry a wearable health device that prompts you to buy a second one, especially when you need your phone to check your readings anyway.
Useful health data only resides on your phone, not on the wearable
For all screenless wearable devices, companion apps are the only way to interpret readings. For example, if lifting heavy objects produced rapid changes in heart rate, with screen-less wearables you would only be able to tell by checking your phone. This way, a device that aims to keep you off your phone manages to bring you back to it – and thus to distracting notifications.
Outdoor sports rely even more on smartphones. No Whoop models have built-in GPS, so they can’t track your route, pace, or altitude. You can use another GPS-enabled device without a screen for this purpose, but you won’t get any maps or pace distributions. But it’s not just a Whoop quirk. No current screenless health tracker includes built-in GPS. This is particularly disadvantageous for swimming, since live stimulation completely disappears when your phone is in a locker. For trail running, open water swimming, or split sessions where live pacing is essential, screen-less trackers are less than ideal. Compare that to Apple Watches whose built-in GPS manages distance, pace, and route mapping during workouts, all without the need for an iPhone.
However, many screen-free health wearables are still excellent at their primary job. Oura’s sleep data is the best I’ve seen. I wear my Oura ring daily because it blends into my outfits in a way other wearables can’t. Cost is also a plus, although there are a few things to know before purchasing an Oura ring beyond the sticker price. The Oura Ring 5 costs $399 and requires a monthly subscription to access all features. Meanwhile, Whoop bundles its hardware into its subscriptions, with the Whoop MG tied to the $359 per year Life plan. That’s smartwatch money for a device with fewer capabilities, so it’s worth considering whether there’s any point in owning a wearable without a screen if you’ve purchased a smartwatch.
