Smart Rings Released in 2026: What's New and Confirmed

The Oura Ring 5 is the biggest smart ring release of 2026. It went on sale on 28 May (reaching the UK on 4 June) and is billed as the world's smallest smart ring - around 40% smaller than the Ring 4, at just 2 to 2.69 grams. Battery life rises to 6-9 days, and two new health metrics headline the launch: Blood Pressure Signals, which track overnight cardiovascular patterns, and Nighttime Breathing.

It starts at £399 for Silver and Black, rising to £499 for premium finishes, and like every Oura it needs a membership (£5.99/month or £69.99/year) for the full insights. It is available from Oura directly, Boots and Amazon UK. For most buyers wanting the best all-round smart ring, this is the one to beat.

RingConn launched the Gen 3 on 5 May 2026, and its headline addition is one no other ring had cracked at this price: a built-in vibration motor that delivers haptic alerts straight from the ring. Until now, a ring could log a high heart rate or an irregular pulse but had no way to tell you without opening the app - the Gen 3 buzzes on AFib warnings and high-stress alerts directly on your finger.

It also adds a vascular-insights tab reporting blood-pressure trends, keeps RingConn's class-leading battery (around 11-14 days), and - crucially - charges no subscription. At roughly £349, it is the strongest no-subscription alternative to Oura for anyone who wants real-time health alerts.

Ultrahuman shipped the Ring Pro on 27 February 2026 as a flagship-tier challenger to Oura, sitting above its Ring Air. The standout is battery life: Ultrahuman claims up to 15 days per charge, more than double most rivals, and the included charging case extends that much further - ideal for travel-heavy users.

It pairs a titanium unibody with a real-time biointelligence layer (branded Jade) that surfaces insights and triggers events like AFib detection without round-tripping to the app, and stores 250 days of health history on the ring itself. UK pricing is £419 with no subscription, which widens the cost gap against Oura the longer you own it.

The Circular Ring 2 rolled out from late 2025 into 2026 and is the most feature-ambitious of the bunch, headlined by ECG capability with FDA-cleared AFib detection - rare at its price. It offers an eight-day battery, no subscription, and a redesigned app, at around £280.

The catch is execution: independent reviewers consistently praise the hardware but find the companion app underbaked next to Oura's polished analysis or RingConn's clean data. It is one to watch as the software matures, rather than the safe pick today.

The most anticipated absence of 2026 is the Samsung Galaxy Ring 2. Despite expectations of a 2026 follow-up to the original Galaxy Ring, Samsung has pushed it back to early 2027. The widely reported reason is an ongoing patent dispute with Oura, first filed in late 2025, which has complicated launches across the category. For now, Samsung-ecosystem users wanting a ring are left with the first-generation Galaxy Ring.

The same litigation has rippled through the market: Oura secured a US import ban against RingConn earlier on, which RingConn later resolved by agreeing to pay royalties. None of this affects UK buyers' ability to purchase any of the rings above, but it explains why the 2026 line-up looks the way it does.