Can't sync HR data from Pixel Watch 2

[fix_hr_sync]

I can see the data on the watch just fine, but it *will not* sync to the phone app or the web dashboard (more on that later).

Rest assured I have tried every solution available online. Clearing caches on both ends, uninstalling/reinstalling updates, uninstalling/reinstalling the Fitbit app, factory resetting the PW2, creating an entirely new Fitbit profile and starting everything over from scratch, etc. and then some.

I can see HR data being gathered on the watch in all HR-related views, but it won't sync to the app. Or if it does, it syncs one day and then just stops. For 2 days of I uninstalled the mobile app and cleared cache on the watch, it would sync HR data, but that has also stopped working.

I bought this solely for HR data. I don't care about steps or exercises or otherwise. My previous smartwatch worked perfectly, but it's size was not great.

Does anyone have any other ideas? I would honestly be 100% fine if there was a debug mode / ADB way to pull the raw HR data off the watch only, that would suffice for me. As it stands since wearing this from ~Oct. 13th, it has successfully synced a whopping 5 sporadic days of data.

And again, all the data is on the watch (unless the graphs are lying), but no data makes it to fitbit. I even tried exporting the Fitbit data to see if it was syncing but just not showing, but no, no data.

edit: See my reply below for more information and one way of getting at the raw data via data export requests.

[Gr4ndp4]

Hi, @fix_hr_sync welcome to the community. You may find these articles of interest How do Fitbit devices sync their data? & Why won't my Fitbit device sync? May I suggest you also review the settings in the Fitbit app on your phone?

From settings>apps>Fitbit>permissions (allow all)>storage & cache (Clear cache)>mobile data & WiFi (allow background data & unrestricted data usage)>app battery usage (unrestricted) I note you may have already gone through this process but not necessarily in this order.

Also, check in app permissions swipe up to the bottom & ensure "Pause app activity if unused" is turned off. Some mobile phones do not treat the Fitbit app as essential whereas we need it to run constantly in the background.

Permission settings can cause unintended consequences depending on other phone settings, the point is to allow them all to prevent this. You can always go back & disallow those you are uncomfortable with one by one to identify any disruption culprits. The first order of business is to get your device & app syncing.

Clearing the cache will remove any previous ghosts in the machine that might disrupt syncing or cause the app to close down or disconnect.

Mobile data & WiFi are needed, uninterrupted, to sync If the settings "allow background data & unrestricted data usage" are not allowed your devices may stop talking to each other. If these settings are absent data usage may be interrupted at any time.

If the App battery setting is not unrestricted the app may close down without warning.

Once you have these settings adjusted, manually sync (by sliding your finger down the "Today" screen & releasing)

Restart your phone.

Let us know how you get on by posting here again. FYG I am not having this problem with a PW2 watch & Pixel 8 Pro.

Cheers

[fix_hr_sync]

I've tried all of the above - no go. Still not syncing the data for days I can clearly see on the watch to the mobile app.

Also the heart rate tile disappeared from my desktop web dashboard and there isn't an option to add it back. It is almost like it thinks my device/account isn't HR compatible or something? (Except on the random moments or days it does).

edit: I should also add that all other data is syncing fine (at least that I am aware of). It is literally only HR data that can be viewed in the form of dailies by clicking the Heart tile that isn't showing up. Weirdly, the HR range (x-y bpm) shows up on the tile for each day, but the data/charts available for each day when clicking into the tile do not. This doubly confirms to me that the data is there, that it is syncing (at least partially?), but it just never fully displays or is available in exports.

edit 2: Confirming sync status and firmware version...

*** Half a win *** edit 3: I found some HR data under the Global Export Data JSON files. For now, this will suffice as I will just have to export my FitBit data every day, consume these JSON files, and create my own charts - but the fact that I have to do this is kind of silly. This triply confirms the data is being read, being stored, and it seems like it is even being synced! To me this clearly indicates an issue with the Android mobile app.

[fix_hr_sync]

It's been multiple days and still no resolution. Support is useless and all fix suggestions online don't help.

For now, I've taken to requesting a full data export each day and then parsing the data points myself since the Android app seems to fail to do so.

No amount of cache clearing, force app closing, update checking shenanigans fixes it. There is very clearly an issue with either the Fitbit mobile app for Android or Fitbit's sync system as a whole bit they seem oddly mum about it.

For now, I've been proactively advising anyone to look elsewhere since it is so unreliable and support is non-existent.

[Gr4ndp4]

Hi, @fix_hr_sync, I note the image in your post of the 2nd November says Pixel Watch 2 but the device is not a Pixel Watch 2. Can you confirm you only have a PW2 linked to your Fitbit app.?

Cheers

[fix_hr_sync]

Definitely a PW2. It is a brand new Fitbit account I created and this is the only device ever added. I created a brand new account after my previous account of 11 years also stopped displaying HR data in the Android mobile app.

[Gr4ndp4]

Hi, @fix_hr_sync Please check that you have updated your PW2. Note this thread  Re: Fitbit app not capturing heart rate on Pixel w... - Page 2 - Fitbit Community. Let us know how you get on.

Cheers

[fix_hr_sync]

Everything is updated. Caches cleared. Apps force closed and reopened. Devices rebooted.

This feature is absolutely broken and it appears to be a mobile app bug. I haven't yet taken the time to decompile it and see why, but it's on my to do list.

Meanwhile, I'm going back to Galaxy Watch. It has historically tracked and synced flawlessly. I'm a little bummed because I like the PW2 form factor, but this shouldn't be this hard.

[fix_hr_sync]

FYI, I got my hands on an iPhone for testing purposes. All my data shows up in the iOS app just fine (without any additional syncing). This seems to be a display bug with the Android app, because the data is there, it just isn't showing. Hopefully they can fix it.

edit: HR data is absolutely broken on the Android app. Nobody will admit it, customer service won't acknowledge it. As I have found, if you request a data dump from Google, the HR data points are there, but the mobile app isn't rendering them for Android (sometimes). As stated previously, if you login on the iPhone app, all the data shows up. This indicates an issue with the Android app, but who knows when it will be fixed. I've since switched back to my Galaxy Watch (much to my dismay due to the form factor), but at least it is consistent in capturing data. Wake me up when Google/Fitbit decides to care.