Blaze left button stopped working.

[CatherineU]

My Blaze left button stopped working yesterday. I cannot swipe right of left either. It's stuck on the same screen which shows my steps, heart rate and calories burned. Unable to access the clock or alarms or select my workout or read text messages, etc. I've had it since May 2016. I think it died which makes me sad because I really liked it.

[IH8Usernames]

I had the same issue.

I assume the button still physically clicks? You can confirm it's functionality by putting it into the charger, which will switch the blaze back to it's main face. From there you can swipe to settings, and shut the blaze off. If you can start the blaze up again by pressing the left button, the button is still working, and the software is bugged. 

I found that popping the blaze in and out of the charging dock rapidly and repeatedly, then shutting it off, and resetting it by holding down the left and bottom right buttons, got it working again. (I also said some naughty words and threatened to dismantle it. This may or may not have been part of the proper magical incantation that made it function again. )

You will know the button is working again because if you hold down the reset button combination, the fitbit logo will stay on the screen, disappearing and reappearing every few seconds as the blaze reboots itself.  When that happens you can let go of the buttons, and let it boot up completely. 

Other users have had good luck with letting the battery run down entirely, or just inserting the blaze into its charging dock once...

[CatherineU]

Thank You very much for responding. I followed your advise and my Blaze came to life. I'm so relieved.

So weird. I don't know what happened to it the other day. Almost gave-up and then I read your message.

Appreciate your comments and tips. I know what to do now, but hopefully it won't happen again. I'll see if it works during spin class tomorrow...

[IH8Usernames]

Sadly, it reeks of planned obsolescence to me. It is quite obvious that the physical buttons still function, as evidenced by being able to reliably turn the device on with it said button, but once the Blaze boots up, the buttons cease to function.

Naturally, there are no bug fixing firmware updates in the pipeline for the Blaze, as it's discontinued...

I have found that this problem re-emerges in very short order. It started doing this to me last night, and has repeatedly done it again. Now the bottom right button is joining in on the fun. 

I'm going to run the battery completely out, let it "self heal" for a day or two, and see if it will help. I'm not hopeful. 

[CatherineU]

Hi. Wanted to let you know that I ended-up buying a new Blaze - tracker only. Found a brand new one for sale for $84.00  Just set-it-up. Working great. Not ready to upgrade to the new Versa or Ionic. Had been really happy with the Blaze.  Since I already had a charger and multiple bands, I decided to purchase a replacement tracker.  Glad to be tracking my steps again and watching my heart rate and calories burned in spin class.   Thanks again for your comments/tips.