Ultrahuman is adding red light therapy to its line of personal health and wellness products, with devices that sync with its smart rings. The Photon device, launched this week, is available for preorder and retails for $249.
Red light therapy is increasingly popular in the wellness and recovery space because it’s noninvasive and is believed to boost collagen production, improve skin texture and help with muscle recovery.
Ultrahuman is most known for its smart rings, Ultrahuman Ring Pro and Ultrahuman Ring Air. Photon syncs with Ultrahuman’s smart rings and uses members’ sleep and recovery data to suggest targeted recovery red light therapy sessions.
Ultrahuman CEO Mohit Kumar said the product adds a level of personalization to red light therapy, thanks to its connection with existing wearables and wellness tech.
“Photon adds another layer to Ultrahuman’s full-stack health ecosystem, offering structured daily guidance to support your wellness routine, personalized to your recovery data when used with Ultrahuman Ring,” Kumar said in a statement.
The company’s smart rings were briefly unavailable in the US market due to a patent dispute with smart-ring maker Oura. It returned to the US in March with the Ring Pro. That ring is available for preorder for $479, which comes with the charging case.
Photon provides dual-wavelength light therapy with red light of 660 nanometers and near-infrared light of 850 nanometers. For reference, experts recommend that for red light therapy to be most effective, it should offer between 630 and 660 nanometers, with between 830 and 850 nanometers suggested for near-infrared light. Dr. Eleonora Fedonenko, a dermatologist at Your Laser Skin Care in Los Angeles, previously told CNET that these two wavelengths are most commonly shown to promote collagen growth while reducing inflammation, which is important for recovery.
The Photon device is lightweight at 600 grams (1.3 pounds) and can be charged with a USB-C cable. Ultrahuman says it can be used for six sessions before it needs recharging and has a 10-minute autoshutoff function. The Photon comes with four guided protocols through the Ultrahuman app: Glow Ritual, Deep Restore, Wind-Down, and Morning Activation. Depending on the protocol, it may focus on skin, sleep, recovery or something else, based on the time of day.
The app will also recommend when and where to use the device and how far away from your body to hold it. The app add-on, known as the Photon Protocol Powerplug, will be free for owners of both versions of the Ultrahuman smart rings.
The company said it is currently working to meet the appropriate regulations in the US, the UK and the European Union. A representative from Ultrahuman tells CNET that Photon will not be undergoing FDA clearance because it’s classified as a general wellness product and not a medical device.
