Ultrahuman thinks its 18-karat gold smart ring is worth $1,900

CES 2025 is officially underway, and the adrenaline rush of a day of racing in Las Vegas is fading fast. But I can’t sleep. Probably because I replayed the same three product teaser videos over and over. It opens with the familiar frantic strains of Vivaldi Four Seasons violin concerto, panning towards a CGI desert, where grains of sand blow in undulating whorls. The words “Rare by Ultrahuman” emerge on a black background. Then, from the depths of a CGI dune, a smart ring emerges.

The other two videos are carbon copies, except in one, the desert is rose gold. In the other, a winter silver.

I checked the press release. The rings range from £1500 to £1800. It is about $1,900 to $2,200. It’s wracking my brain. The most expensive smart ring I can remember is Oura’s collaboration with Gucci, which I described in my writing like $950. I double checked that my tired brain didn’t screw up the conversion. He didn’t. My eye twitches.

Rare, the Ultrahuman press release says, is intended to be a luxury smart ring. It will come in three colors: desert pink, dune and desert snow. Or, you know, rose gold, gold and silver. They are apparently named so because the collection “captures the essence of nature’s most captivating phenomena. From the intricate fluid elegance of wind-sculpted dunes, each piece embodies the harmonious blend of beauty and resilience found in these landscapes arid

The rose and desert dune rings are made of 18 carat gold “supplied by the London Bullion Market Association”. These will cost $1,900. Meanwhile, the desert snow ring is “meticulously crafted from pt950 platinum, a metal of exceptional purity and prestige.” It will cost $2,200. While I’m thinking about how I’m going to make my monthly mortgage payment, I’m reading more purple prose about the symbolism of harmony between nature and technology, the gentle caress of a dune wind, and the rarity of snow covering the desert.

Squint at the press renders of these rings. They look like ordinary smart rings.

Spec-wise, Rare is the same as Ultrahuman Ring Air. The Ultrahuman Ring Air is a great smart ring and it has arrived this close to beat the Oura Ring in my battle royale smart ring last year. That ring costs $350 – a standard and reasonable price for a smart ring. The Rare series is about five to six times that price. According to Ultrahuman, that’s the price of artisan craftsmanship and complex engineering — and a lifetime membership to UltrahumanX, the smart ring maker’s extended warranty subscription. You also get access to all of Ultrahuman’s PowerPlugs, features that you buy a la carte on the Ultrahuman platform like period tracking, vitamin D tracking, and smart alarms. That includes any future PowerPlug. Is it worth $1,900 to $2,200?

I go back to my inbox and re-read the FAQ Ultrahuman sent me for the billionth time. Under the question, “Is there a demand for this” and “who is the target buyer?” there is passionate prayer. People have been using the Ultrahuman Ring Air—which I vehemently maintain is a great smart ring—for engagements and gifts for loved ones. Rare, say the FAQ, is a natural evolution towards jewelry becoming as smart as anything. The ideal buyer? “Rare speaks to those who seek exclusivity and purpose in the choices they make.”

The more I read, the more this feels like a fever dream from Jony Ive, because it’s the same doomed approach. Apple took it for its Watch Edition.

I don’t know what time it is, but I look at it Oura Ring 4 in brushed silver on my finger. So looking at the desert snow ring render on my laptop screen. My eyes darted back and forth several times. Hmm. Hmm.

At some point, I don’t know when, I realized that I have become The VirginThat’s Gollum. I am deprived of sleep, the dark circles that form under the eyes. My reflection in the hotel mirror as I take a sip of water scares me. But I can’t think of anything else. We got to see our precious $2,000 smart rings in person. Yes. We want it. We have to look at the exhibition plan because Rare will only launch in London and Paris in “selected premium retail locations” to begin with. Yes, we must see this, we must feel it on our finger, if only to answer the one burning question: What would make a $2,000 smart ring worth it?