Charge 2 GPS distance inaccuracy after 2.66 - RESOLVED w/ 2.67.1

[AlessFitbit]

Fitbit Update: 3/12/18

Hey, there!

I wanted to check-in with everyone as it seems that GPS distance and accuracy has improved with version 2.67. Thanks for letting me know that its better!

Today, we released the Fitbit for Android app version 2.67.1. Please update the app and let me know how it goes with this version. As always, we recommend updating whenever there is a new app version released as this ensures your tracker works as expected.  

If this continues even on the latest version, I'll need to gather some more specific data from some of you to pass this along to our engineers. Thanks for all your help and cooperation! 

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Fitbit Update: 2/21/18

Thanks for all the responses! 

As mentioned, this issue with Connected GPS has been escalated to the appropriate team for investigation. I would really appreciate everyone's patience in the meantime. When a fix is in the works, I'll make sure to update you all here. Stay tuned for any updates! 

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Fitbit Update: 2/16/18

Thanks for all the great information, everyone! I have merged in some additional threads to get one unified conversation. 

I really appreciate you all taking the time to share the details of your current experience with Android app: 2.66. I understand how important accuracy is to all of you. This has been escalated to our team for review! I will provide updates here in this thread when more information becomes available. Thanks for your help. 

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 Hi, everyone!

Thanks for reporting and bringing this to my attention. Sorry to hear that you are all getting inaccurate distance measurements after recording GPS Runs with your Charge 2. 

Please help me narrow down and confirm the following:

-Did this issue begin with the last Fitbit for Android app version: 2.66?

-Is this distance discrepancy also happening with Mobilerun or only when using Connected GPS? 

-Which error message are you seeing on the tracker, if any? 

If you haven't already, please try a restart and take a look through this help article for more troubleshooting suggestions. Let me know if this changes anything or the same issue persist! 

[foofarley]

@HeydyF @AlessFitbit

I love my Charge 2 and Fitbit app.  They are integral part of my health, fitness, and training regime.  I am a software developer so I understand that bugs happen and sometimes get out in to the wild.  
For me personally, the state of the Fitbit app under v2.66 rendered it useless to me.  It provides false information that completely throws off my ability to train properly as well as presents the potential to cause injury.  

v2.66 transformed my Charge 2 into a simple wrist watch.  I was prepared to purchase a new fitness device from a competitor until I figured out how to downgrade.

It baffles me why Fitibt is resistent to provide loyal users like myself the ability to apply an easy, temporary fix, such as downgrading to 2.65.1. 

[Marc_PL]

I can also confirm that this issue is resolved after rolling back to 2.65.1 a couple of days ago. 

No sign of any bugs affecting my Charge 2 or Fitbit App, everything is working as normal.

It is also worth noting that prior to rolling out the 2.66 update we were all running 2.65.1 and I cannot recall any bugs or issues with this version.

[penyfaimike]

Yeah this is frustrating. My 5k just measured as 3.8k. as a result stats look awful. Not impressed!

[TravisH]

It's really frustrating that in 2018 a giant company like Fitbit with a team of engineers isn't able to figure out a solution for their customers in a timely manner, or even provide an eta for when this will be fixed.

[MotherM]

Wondering if the update also explains the Charge2 message "check fitbit app" each time I start a walk or hike?  confirming the distance inaccuracy as well.  My heart rate is also ridiculously low on a hike: up hill is strenuous for me as I have lung disease.  A recent climb with my Charge2 gives me 28 aerobic (combo cardio and peak) while a Polar strap gave me 63.  Plenty more data to confirm.

[Lorna0910]

I've done 2 Parkruns now with my Charge 2,- one whilst simultaneously recording strava and one without and just my FitBit. Both showed a definite 3.1mile race as 2.65miles. Used to be fine until the fitbit updated - so annoying! 

[Lorna0910]

But what's the point of having a GPS to track distance then?! Surely it's more accurate to simply track the distance, speed and time rather than steps as what about if you run up a hill - your steps are smaller and more frequent which would then, therefore,  be calculated as a further distance??

Additionally, on two occasions my map has been off as it recorded me running straight over a lake! There's definitely something wrong with fitbit recording distance which has nothing to do with stride length

[KSS1]

Same issues here. Reverting to the the previous version of the android app fixes the incorrect distance problem. Upgrade to the current version and the issues reappear. Fitbit support seem to either accept there is an issue but don't know when it will be fixed or suggest the same old steps to reboot your device, change stride length etc. 

(Previous version of this post was removed by the moderators for being 'inflammatory, with negativity' - well, it's hard to be positive about Fitbit when this issue has been reported by many people for almost a month and a few people have now confirmed going back to a previous version of the app fixes the issue)

[Lorna0910]

Ha, I can't believe it got deleted! How did you revert back to the older version? I feel my fitbit is pointless now.

[SunsetRunner]

@Lorna0910 check page 9 of this thread. The post by @foofarley may help you.

Since I've downgraded to 2.65.1, I'm happy with how things are working ... and on 2/21, on this thread's front page, @AlessFitbit indicated they had escalated this issue to their development team. If I believe that (and I have no reason not to), then I'm hopeful we'll see a fix for either 2.66 as a patch, or a new version of 2.xx soon. I work alongside many software developers daily, and I know how these things go sometimes. It's highly annoying, sure, but as long as you can downgrade, you should be in good shape to wait until they fix things with a newer release.

[tjmyc]

OK, so I did a parkrun (5km) this morning using the downgraded app (v2.65). The map looks better, less jagged lines but in the past Fitbit measured the run as at least 4.8km, and this comes out as 4.6, still a big improvement on 3.23km from last week!

As per my previous post, I use Strava as a middleman to save all my exercise ultimately to Google Fit should I change my tracker in the future I don't lose my data (which given the current situation feels more likely!!), on Strava I can recalculate the distance where presumably Strava remeasures the map rather than using the distance data from Fitbit, it corrected today's run to 5km which should be correct and gives a more accurate pace. I'm attaching photos of today's parkrun compared to last weeks then the Strava correction of today's run, should any of that be of interest.Today's run Fitbit v2.65

Last week's run Fitbit v2.66

Today's run (Strava recalc of distance)I wonder if the Android security patch update could also be at play here?

[Treb]

@tjmyc Are you using 2.65 or 2.65.1?  I've tried both and found that the Keep Alive Widget introduced in 2.65.1 produces more accurate maps.

[Chrispeck400]

How did you guys get back to the older version. I'm getting really sick of
fitbit not helping here. One of those other app sites looked like a virus
to me.
TIA.
Chris Peck

[SunsetRunner]

I don't see the problem with us rolling back to a previous version. Why are fitbit so against it when it is helping us all to carry on using their product in an effective way? 

[tjmyc]

Sorry, should have said it is 2.65. 1

thanks

[Treb]

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@SunsetRunnerwrote:

I don't see the problem with us rolling back to a previous version. Why are fitbit so against it when it is helping us all to carry on using their product in an effective way? 

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The moderators are dissuading users from rolling back to 2.65.1 because any app installed outside of the Google Play Store is deemed unofficial and comes with potential security risks.  Why Fitbit won't officially pull 2.66 off the Play Store is the real question.

The fact that users have disregarded the potential security risks and Googled up ways to obtain 2.65.1 on their own is testament to how big this problem has become.  As professional as the moderators are trying to be, it's hard to dismiss comments like "sorry for the inconvenience" as insults to users.  Having our Fitbits transformed to mere wrist watches -- as @foofarley so delicately put it -- is not an "inconvenience"; 2.66 bricked our devices and made them unusable.  It doesn't help that it's been 20 days since 2.66's release -- 20 days of users unable to use their Charge 2s with full functionality and zero workarounds (I don't consider starting a workout via Fitbit app to be a viable solution, even though it fixes mapping problems, because my phone is stowed behind me/unreachable when I begin my workouts).

Here's to hoping we get a real fix soon.

[franklelee]

I started having this problem using a Nexus 5 (Android 6.0.1). Changed my phone to Essential PH-1 (Android 7.1.1) and still couldn't get the right measurements. Upgraded my phone to Android 8.1 (beta) and this still hasn't fixed the issue. Since I didn't change my watch's firmware, this further demonstrates that the mobile application is to blame.

[JimP1097]

Mine was accurate on Feb 15th but undercounted by about 25% on Feb 20th, and by about 50% on Feb 25th (that time, halfway through a walk, I started the Strave app on my phone that gave the correct distance.  

The map is correct, it's just that the distance is wrong.  On Feb 20th, I used it for the same 20km cycle commute as on Feb 15th and it came out as starting and finishing in the correct places, and following the same route on the map,  but only 15km.  

Similarly with the walk.  It was a roughly circular walk or three and a half hours, and one and a half hours in I started the strava app.  This gave 8.1km, whilst the fitbit charge 2 gave 9.1 km for the whole walk.  

[SunsetRunner]

Says I walked only 860m with a pace average of 22 min a km. ...

I walked. ... not crawled

[DNotice]

So what I'm gathering from this thread is that you guys pushed another buggy update to once again fix something that wasn't broken, broke it, and for the past couple weeks have refused to just put it back to the way it was until you figure out what you broke? Does that about sum it up? 

For the past couple of weeks my Charge 2 won't immediately connect to the app when telling it I'm going on a run or walk. I get the 'not connected, open the app' error message which doesn't do anything at all. I restart my fitbit and phone almost daily. App is set to automatically measure stride length. I have 'All-Day Sync' set as well as 'Always Connected' and 'Keep-Alive Widget', none of this seems to do anything but put an annoying reminder on my screen that the fitbit app is running. GPS is terribly inaccurate now as well but now that I see that other running apps don't have these problems I'll just have to switch to another app.