Best Buy reports the Blaze is discontinued

[summitbid]

 Purchased a new blaze yesterday, and the buttons did not work so I returned it. (Hours wasted). 

I asked for for an exchange and they told me it had been discontinued!

if that’s true, I wonder for what reason it’s been discontinued. 

[takajiinouye]

The reason the Blaze might have been discontinued regards the battery. I received mine for Christmas from my brother, which was a upgrade from the Charge2, I still wear. The Blaze would show fully charged and within a couple of hours the watch face would show a Red X. When charging it, the battery indicator would show 3/4 charge remaining and within 30 minutes would show fully charged again. I would workout and by the time I completed my 2 hour workout, only a 1/4 of the battery life remained.

Chatted with FitBit and they told me to disable some features to minimize battery use. After the representative checked my profile again, I was told I qualified for the replacement offer. I was mailed a link to submit my request for either a 50% discount towards a upgrade or to have a replacement Blaze shipped. I chose the latter and the tracking shows it will arrive May 19.

If I would have saw the Blaze was discontinued, I would have opted for the upgrade to the Iconic or Versa. The Versa is the same price as the Blaze sold for, $199.95.

There was not explanation how I could have the battery replaced so I could keep my Blaze, but I hope the replacement will last longer, because $199.95 is a lot to shell out every year.

A lot of my friends who had Fitbits until they broke have moved on to the Apple or Garmin watches instead.

Whatever you do, don't get rid of your Charge2, if you still have it. It works like a charm and the battery lasts at least 5 days without a charge.

I guess simple is better, regarding Fitbits. My brother's HR is working fine and he has never had an issue with it. The battery life is solid and the watch does its job well.

Good luck.

Tim

[Fands]

The Blaze is now the weekly special from QVC--they are notorious for buying something that is soon to be extinct and offering it as a big value.  they probably bought them all out.

[McDoogan83]

I am now on my third replacement in the past 6 months or so. I love my Blaze but the battery on my original, which last about 18 months, started draining really quickly (within 1-2 days) so they provided me a replacement, which I didn't expect as I assumed that battery as a consumable would not be covered under warranty. I was really pleased with the customer service and that I had a new one I didn't have to pay for. Then a few months later, exactly the same issue with the new device. Again they provided me a replacement FOC. However since day one, the second new device didn't track sleep properly. So I got back in touch and they suggested various trouble fixes which didn't work, then said it was a known issue which was being worked on but as it wasn't a core function of the device I should enter my sleep manually. About a week ago I had a thought to try the previous Blaze device for a few nights and guess what, sleep tracked properly, meaning I had yet ANOTHER defective device. So I've just received the email offering a replacement Blaze or 50% off an alternative product, but it cannot be used on the Versa or Ionic  so the Blaze is no longer for sale but you can't use the discount on the replacement product - go figure. Not very impressed now. And once this one inevitably passes its use by date, I will likely move to a different brand altogether. 

In summary, I loved my Blaze when I got it, and I still love it when it works, but too many issues have dented my confidence in the brand. 

[takajiinouye]

Thank you for the information. I am using my 2nd Blaze now. So far the battery has kept its charge for four days. Were there any issues regarding the Versa or the Iconic?

[5arahr]

My blaze was just replaced as well... And I was upset when the 50% off would only apply on lesser models. I understand it not going towards the Ionic, but the Versa is replacing the blaze... That 50% off discount should be able to go towards the replacement of the discontinued item especially when your current device is defective.

[takajiinouye]

Let's hope our replacement FitBit devices will hold up for a couple of years. So far my Blaze is holding its charge well. I keep checking the battery because I worry the problem will show up again without notice. Good luck and have a nice summer.

[McDoogan83]

@5arahr I completely agree and I've submitted feedback as such to them. Had a response to say 'they hear my feedback on their policy'. Well thanks, that's great 

[Kimhix]

Nope, it’s not there