Alta HR does not connect to any device

[Ludonix]

Hi there, 

My mom is using an Alta HR for almost a year now. Recently it started to have connectivity issues with her phone. The device refused to synchronise to the phone. I have followed every procedure I could find to fix this including:

- Resetting the Alta HR using the cable

- Trying to connect to multiple other devices

- Letting the battery run empty and recharging

When trying to connect it, I get to the step of having to enter the code from the watch on the phone. When entering the correct code I get a timeout after a little while. When entering the wrong code, I get an error message that the wrong code has been entered. This indicates that there is some form of connection but for some reason it is not working properly. 

Are there any other steps I can take to solve the connectivity issues?

Kind regards. 

[mcecho0846]

I'm having a similar problem in that my Alta HR was working perfectly for a year and a half. All of a sudden, it wouldn't sync, and now I seem to have isolated the problem to the device's Bluetooth not working. The battery also spontaneously decides to die. 

[unhappyuser2]

Same issue - battery went dead, after recharging it would not reconnect to anything - lap top, phone or tablet. Over an hour with technical still not work - they sent me to feed back (I think they wanted to be rid of me). 18 months old and it **ahem** to bed!!

[StanDm]

Same issue here. The tech support on email was utterly useless. First, they pulled someone else's account and addressed me by someone else's name which is nothing like my name. Second, they told me to do all the steps I already did (which in my initial ticket, I told them I followed all published troubleshooting steps and provided the URLs I followed). Third, after saying I followed the troubleshooting steps, I get a rude reply saying only "Thanks for providing additional information. Unfortunately, your product doesn’t meet the replacement requirements of our warranty policy. For details about our warranty policy, see fitbit.com/returns." and nothing else to help me get connected. I then replied asking for some useful information. They replied with "Thank you for your reply. To get connected again please follow the link below. https://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/1872"

What a piece of junk and horrible tech support. I am proactively telling people to never buy a Fitbit. No wonder people buy Apple and Garmin fitness trackers. Not only is Fitbit's quality hardware and software engineering very poor (I am a licensed computer engineer), but even basic customer-facing tech support is atrocious. Fitbit is a terrible company. I have given them 3 easy opportunities to prove me otherwise. All I asked for, 3 times, was to get the Alta HR connected to my Android phone. Such junk and waste of money.

[Ludonix]

I am pretty sure it is a bluetooth problem with me as well...

[Rich_Laue]

Not sure what phones your having issues with? 

If trying through multiple devices, make sure only one device has its Bluetooth on. 

@Ludonix I'm not sure why you would need to setup the tracker again. 

[Ludonix]

Thanks for the answer. I completely reset it and made it forget the device because it would not sync anymore. Other bluetooth devices are turned off when trying to connect it to one of the others. I do get a code for confirmation on all phones, but when I entered the code, the watch will show a loading screen and never completes the sync.. 

[StanDm]

After email tech support stopped responding to me, I decided to phone the tech support line. Someone there was actually helpful. Here is what I did when my Blackberry KEYone (Android 8.1) could not get past the 4 digit pairing screen:

1) Get ANOTHER phone with the Fitbit app installed (I used a Samsung A5 with Android 8.1)

2) If it's logged in to someone else's account, log out and then log in using you own Fitbit account

3) Pair your Alta HR with that second phone, while logged in to your own Fitbit account

4) On your primary phone, open the Fitbit app and verify that the Alta HR is now tied to your account

5) Log out of the secondary phone, then ensure you have Location Services and Bluetooth enabled on your first phone

6) In the Fitbit app, enable Always Connected as well as All Day Sync

7) Force a manual refresh by going into the Account->Devices section and tapping the circular sync button. It may take a few minutes or take a few tries even (mine showed a red exclamation mark several times), but eventually it synced to my first phone without doing the Bluetooth 4 digit PIN authentication.

So long as the exact Alta HR is tied to your profile (not your phone necessarily), via the use of another phone or computer, you can bypass the 4 digit PIN pairing process, and the device refresh should work on any other phone you log into, so long as the Fitbit app is installed and the pre-requisites to refreshing (Location Services AND Bluetooth enabled) are there.

Battery Saver, Data Saver, and WiFi has no impact on the refresh - refresh/sync works fine whether they are on or off.

[Rich_Laue]

Glad it worked,,I suggest doing this at least ounce a month. 

The reason it works is that the app sets up the tracker to your Fitbit account. Once setup the app them connects the tracker to the phone.