NOT SUCH A SMART HEALTH RING AFTER…
NOT SUCH A SMART HEALTH RING AFTER ALL..!
Ever since the first Smart Ring came out, these have been much more ‘handy’ – excuse the pun – Health Monitoring systems than the more ubiquitous wrist-worn units.
At least, that is my personal experience and belief.
So, having previously bought – also via Kickstarter and used for the last three years – a ring made by RingConn, and not been satisfied with the poor battery life – I decided to look at a new, more cost-effective offer also now being touted on Kickstarter by Chrosium, called the IDR01.
It’s not that RingConn are not good – they are, and the software is OK too: it’s just that ALL these rings seemingly have a battery shelf-life that essentially means you can throw it away after a year or 15 months.
RingConn at least regularly makes offers to discount new products with a buy-back for the old ring: but their prices are now almost as high as the original Finnish ‘Oura’ – the 2015 market leader's – so not so interesting, even though less bulky.
Now – IDR01 promised better sensors and whole more ‘blah-blah’ that made them sound really competitive and ‘avant-garde’.
It’s normal – tech progresses, as we know – according to Moore’s Observation (some erroneously call it a Law) every 18 months or so and as a consequence, I had high hopes that at the much more attractive Kickstarter launch-price it would be able to replace my fading RingConn…
As usual, and as with many Kickstarter projects, the Campaign updates were sufficiently sporadic to cause general alarm amongst the Pledgers and the final delivery dates stretched WAY beyond the initial promise.
However, it dod eventually arrive a little more than a month ago and I happily wore it for… 26 days: before it crapped-out on me and the Bluetooth would no longer connect for it to be ‘paired’: it could be ‘seen’, but evidently something had failed in the internal reciever.
Inquiry amongst other Kickstarter supporters on the campaign page solicited a few replies that reiterated my own experience.
IDR01 is made by IDOOCN – Shenzhen – who claim 1300 employees and to manufacture to high production standards – with a product range that includes electronic watches of all kinds and the previously – and still – well supported health-monitoring wrist bands.
The IDR01 was launched through some ‘HK-based window’ called CHROSIUM and when an attempt was made to contact a certain Mr. Wang in After Sales Service at the main IDOCN factory, all I received was a total brush-off mail telling me to contact CHROSIUM – which then reverted back to the main factory.
So a complete ‘round-the-ring-a-roses and a pocketful of posies’ total BS support response.
Bottom line: TWO conclusions.
(1) IF you should venture into the buying of ANY ‘so-called Smart Ring’, be aware that at some point it should be considered as a ‘disposable’ item.
(2) DO NOT buy from THIS particular company as they simply DON’T CARE to stand behind their products – because even though they claim the ISO9001 quality manufacturing standard, you’ll be wasting your time as – with regard to ‘Support’, it's all just the usual ‘I’ve taken your money and so now enjoy our freely available Chinese Hot Air’…
I have to say, China is really living-up to its now well-earned reputation as an ‘ideas-copying’, supplier of shonkily produced, pseudo-original, ground-breaking products of little real long-term value.
Ironically, this rep is exemplified on a MUCH larger scale by their Space Rocket program and their inflated claim that they will equal STARLINK’s presence in the skies – times nine-fold – by 2030…!
As I state: all HOT AIR and BS…
No wonder so many authentic companies are giving China a miss and moving elsewhere…!
4 May 2026
Unprompted review
