Oura Ring UX Case Study: Enhancing Sleep Tracking & Readiness Score Usability | Wearable Tech | User Experience
Timeline: 1 Week
By Pooja Chaudhari
My Oura Ring :)
Day 1: Project Kickoff & Defining Research Goals
I started by defining the key objectives for my research:
Readiness score in Oura
Sleep Score in Oura
Day 2: Competitive Analysis & Literature Review
To get a broader perspective, I conducted a competitive analysis of similar wearables like WHOOP and Fitbit. I also gathered existing user feedback on Oura Ring from sources like app store reviews, Reddit, and blog posts.
I identified recurring pain points: users often struggled to understand the significance of various sleep metrics, found the abundance of data overwhelming, and wanted clearer actionable insights. Additionally, the subscription model seemed to be a point of frustration.
Day 3: Conducting User Interviews
I conducted in-depth user interviews with 7 participants, including casual users, athletes, and health-conscious individuals.
Key findings:
Sleep tracking: Users found the variety of metrics (deep sleep, REM, disturbances) overwhelming and confusing.
Readiness score: Participants were unsure about how heart rate variability and other factors affected their readiness score.
Actionability: Many users did not know how to act on the data provided. For instance, when seeing a “low sleep score,” they didn’t know how to improve it.
Day 4: Usability Testing
On Day 4, I conducted usability testing with 4 participants, asking them to perform tasks like interpreting their sleep scores and readiness scores.
I noted several usability barriers:
Users struggled to understand the meaning behind certain metrics (e.g., “How does sleep latency impact my score?”).
There was confusion around what the readiness score actually meant and how it related to activity recommendations.
Day 5: Survey Distribution & Data Collection
I then distributed a survey to 10+ Oura Ring users to gather quantitative insights. (Luckily I have friends and colleagues who were ready to take a survey, finding them was difficult but doable since I like to talk to people about their experiences and learn their ways of experiencing things in life :)
How easy is it to understand your sleep and readiness scores?
How useful do you find the recommendations based on these scores?
What additional insights would help you make better decisions based on the data?
The survey results revealed that 55% of users found the sleep and readiness scores helpful, but only 30% felt they could act on the data effectively.
Day 6: Data Synthesis & Analysis
I spent the day analyzing the data from the interviews, usability tests, and survey.
Key findings:
1. Confusing Data: Users were overwhelmed by the amount of data, and many struggled to interpret sleep stages and readiness scores.
2. Lack of Personalization: Many users felt the app didn’t provide actionable, personalized recommendations based on their data.
3. Subscription Frustration: Users voiced their frustration over the subscription model required to access premium features.
Day 7: Design Recommendations & Case Study Documentation
Finally, I developed a series of design recommendations based on the insights:
Simplify Data Presentation: Highlight key metrics, like sleep quality and readiness, and remove unnecessary details for casual users.
Personalized Recommendations: Provide users with actionable advice based on their scores, such as “Your readiness score is low—consider a rest day” or “Your sleep score improved—keep up the good work!”.
Customizable Dashboards: Allow users to choose which metrics they want to see first, catering to different user preferences.
I then compiled all findings, insights, and recommendations into a detailed case study that outlined how these changes would improve the overall user experience.
Outcome:
After completing this 1-week research study, I had gathered both qualitative and quantitative data that highlighted the areas for improvement in the Oura Ring’s sleep tracking and readiness score features. The recommendations I proposed aim to simplify the user interface, provide actionable insights, and offer personalized advice, which will ultimately make the app more useful and intuitive for all user groups.
This condensed timeline illustrates how I conducted thorough research, synthesized valuable insights, and provided actionable recommendations to improve the Oura Ring’s usability.
You would wonder why did I choose this topic? Well, I have been an Oura user and have always been fascinated with wearable tech. I started with wearing an apple watch and then transitioned into using Oura ring. I have been intrigued in learning about my health and understanding my body better.
I was in awe of my new vacay nails back in November :P, hence the picture <3
