While you might assume Acer would take the opportunity to launch a bunch of PC and laptop hardware at a PC-focused conference like Computex, it actually took the opportunity to announce something completely out of left field: a new smart ring.
Dubbed the Acer FreeSense Ring, the company’s new smart ring looks to directly compete with established brands in the burgeoning field of wearables, including RingConn, Ultrahuman and, of course, Oura.
But, reader, I don’t think Oura has much to worry about where the FreeSense Ring is concerned.
Acer’s back in the wearable game
Unveiled at Computex in Taipei, there’s still a lot we don’t know about the FreeSense Ring – including key details like how much the wearable will cost, or when it’ll go on sale – but it’s definitely a ‘thing’ that’ll be coming to select markets in the near future.
And, for the most part, it does what practically every other smart ring on the market does – tracks your health and fitness metrics, though with an added dose of ‘AI-enhanced’ wellness insights.
Acer claims that the ring tracks “physiological metrics such as heart rate, heart rate variability, blood oxygen levels and sleep quality” with a companion app for iOS and Android to delve deeper into those metrics.
It also looks similar to its competitors, with Acer claiming it’s made from “ultra-light titanium alloy” that weighs in just 2-3g, and is set to be available in both Rose Gold and Black finishes in sizes 7-13.
It even matches the best smart rings around when it comes to water resistance, with a 5ATM rating that means it’s both shower and swim-safe, though whether it’d survive a proper dive is dubious.
Oura shouldn’t be too worried
Oura was the OG smart ring on the market, offering many of the same metrics and features offered by the growing competition – but even with the massively increased competition, the Oura Ring 4 remains the go-to for smart ring fans in 2025.
Heck, the Oura-branded ring is now in its fourth generation, the result of years of iteration and improvement, and as such, offers a more refined experience overall when compared to the likes of Ultrahuman, RingConn and, now, Acer – especially when it comes to the all-important companion app.
It’s here that Oura really sells itself and stands head-and-shoulders above much of the wearable competition, not just in the smart ring space.
It’s not that it offers different data from other wearables, but rather how that information is delivered to you within the app. It’s extremely well polished, with a sleek interface that’s easy to use, but more importantly, it showcases your health data in genuinely useful ways.
It breaks your data down into different areas, including highly specific metrics like Stress Resilience and an overall Readiness Score, as well as daily, weekly and monthly trends.
The Vitals tab is also rather unique in the space, offering an at-a-glance look at your overall health and wellbeing with summaries of your readiness and sleep scores, activity levels and other information, as well as actionable suggestions on how to improve your results over time.
It also has AI smarts in the form of Oura Advisor, which aims to deliver more personalised feedback on your data, as well as personalised exercise ideas.
But overall, it’s how charming and sleek it looks to the comparatively barebones RingConn companion app that keeps fans flocking to Oura – and I can’t see Acer changing that anytime soon.
Besides, this isn’t Acer’s first foray into the world of wearables; the company had a range of wearables under the Acer Leap line in the early- to mid-2010s, but none quite made an impression compared to more established fitness trackers from Fitbit and the like. Could we see that once again with the FreeSense Ring?
Pricing could be key, though
The one area where Acer could one-up the Oura ring is around pricing – one of the key details yet to be revealed. However, the brand has confirmed that there will be no monthly fees for using the wearable or accessing the full breadth of your data in the companion app.
You can’t say the same about Oura, though; despite coming in at £349/$349, or even more depending on the finish you go for, you’ll also need to pay £5.99/$5.99 per month to get access to all the features and functionality the Oura app offers.
This is tricky; while the idea of selling a ring with a subscription is certainly harder than those without, Oura has proved its logic.
By having a continuous flow of money, Oura has been able to bring improvements and new features to the ring via the app – like Oura Advisor – without the need to launch new hardware. This essentially means that your ring continues to get better and more capable over time, without the need to buy an upgrade.
It’s a similar model to Whoop, a fitness tracker, though there’s no need to pay upfront for a Whoop wearable; it’s all included in the monthly subscription.
Still, Acer could tempt those on the smart ring fence with its promise of a subscription-free experience – we’ll just have to wait and see for now.
