Fitbit Blaze step count inaccurate

[OmarLittle]

Hey there,

Today was my first full day rocking my Blaze. I went to an outdoor festival and had some solid step count, however, when I got home and checked my step count I noticed that the blaze tracked about 1/4 the steps I actually took. My iPhone health app logged about 10K and my Fitbit did about a 1/4 of that (2500). Also I noticed it did an auto workout and thought I had rode my bike. I think this is due to my sons stroller I was pushing. Any suggestions on how to calibrate? If I go for a run and use the GPS- will that help? Thanks!

[otherbeing]

I just recieved my Blaze yesterday, and prompty tested it out over an hour long treadmill session. I don't run on the treadmill thanks to a recent back injuyrt / surgery. However, I do set the treadmill to a steep incline, and walk at a relatively quick pace. Up until today my Charge HR has kept a pretty accurate step count while on the treadmill. Keep in mind that I hold onto the handle bars on the machine to whole time I'm on it. Regardless, the Charge HR didn't seem to have a problem with thisat all. However, the Blaze only seemed to register maybe 25% of the steps I took, and added less than 1,000 steps from my treadmill session to my daily count. Is this something others are experiencing?

This is an issue I've noticed with a few different fitness trackers such as the Microsoft Band; they work fine for normal walks and runs, but become pretty much useless on a treadmill when not flailing your arms about. The Charge HR is one of the only trackers I have used that don't seem to have an issue with this. I really like the Blaze, but if for some reason it is less sensitive than the Charge HR when it comes to the treadmill, I'll just end up going back to my trust Charge HR and sending back the Blaze.

[Brenda_Cooper]

I'm not using a treadmill but it undercounts when pushing a cart in a store.

Brenda Cooper

[Matt12345]

Exactly the same issue - counts OK when walking reasonable distances, but around the house, normal daily movements it picks up only a fraction of the steps.  As an example I counted 50 steps this morning walking to and from the bathroom and it recorded 12.  

[Carbashian]

My blaze is also consistently robbing me of steps. I can be running around, jumping and pumping my arms and it is not recording a step. Extremely disappointed.

[otherbeing]

Yeah. It's no where near as sensitive as the Charge HR, and I can't for the life of me figure out why. I've since returned it. It was half baked, and shouldn't have been released when it was.

[mPeace38]

Partial work around to Blaze steps... I have opened Dashboard and watched when it counts my steps. More accurate when my arm is bent 90degrees vs arm straight. Needs to get about 20 steps in a row I to get into "counting mode" where I can drink my water/push cart etc without moving my arm. Frustrating to me because I work in radiology to I lose all steps pushing equipment and wheelchairs. I often take smaller steps in our small rooms or not enough with arm swings for out too count.

That said I love the notifications. Last week I had my phone I the charger in the department and was across the hall and a few rooms down when I got a notification that my daughter's school was calling. So I went back and checked my phone and nurse had called. My daughter had broken her arm. I would not have checked my phone for hours though I know she would have tried my work # after a while.

[Rescue141x]

Last night I had my Blaze on my wrist and my phone charging so my Blaze logged about 3,000 steps before I went to bed. I went to the gym when I woke up and while I was walking I check both the Health app on my iPhone and my Blaze. My Blaze showed 6,000 steps and my iPhone showed 4,000. I walked about 4 miles or so at gym on their indoor track. At the end of the workout I checked both. Blaze showed 10,000 and my iPhone app showed 10,200 or so. Say what?? Right now my Blaze says 16,278 steps and my iPhone app says 17,660. I'm pulling my Charge HR out and testing all 3.

Sent from my iPhone

[Patty.G]

Just like to add my 2 cents and say that this issue is affecting me as well.

With my ChargeHR I used to average about 21,000 steps a day, as soon as I got my Blaze this dropped to about 17,000, and that's walking the same route to/from work that I always walk.

I reset the Blaze today and used a manual 'Clicker counter' for a half an hour walk to see how badly the Blaze was miscounting- the difference was 930 steps! The Blaze counted nearly 30% less steps than I was actually doing, that's almost the equivalent of missing 1 in every 3 steps!

I'm going to contact support today to see if there's anything they can do but if not I'm afraid I shall be returning my Blaze.

[CMichelle]

Oh, this post makes me feel so much better because I have been battling with my Blaze on under counting my steps every since the firmware update 17.8.104.1!  I too have used Fitbit for a long time and take similiar routes to work and during work outs so I knew immediately it was shorting me steps.  I have done a ton of testing with it inside my house, 100 count steps outside, long walks, short walks and every time, it is shorting me about 25-30% of my steps!  How can they put out a product like this that doesn't work for it's basic function??  

I truly do not want to return this but this is my 2nd Blaze and both had the same problem.  I love so many features of this product and it's quite the upgrade from the Flex I had for almost 2 years BUT, it is not acceptable to let us spend $200 on a product that doesn't work.  

What is everyone's thought on this?  Are you going to keep your device and hope they push out some kind of software fix or do we think this is a deeper hardware issue that may be corrected in future models?  I have already spent HOURS of my own free time troubleshooting, talking on discussion boards, calling Customer Service and frankly, I am fed up.  I don't want to spend one more minute on this - I should be able to just throw on my Blaze and not think about it again.  It should just do what it is advertised to do.

[CMichelle]

@markusbjolgerud  Thanks so much for all of the work you did on this!  Your graphs make my accountant heart sing.  LOL  

I wondered that as well - if over time, the device might adjust to our walking pattern, stride, impact, etc and become more accurate.  Kind of like when we get a new cell phone and the keyboard adjusts to our texting patterns and "learns" to be more accurate in what words we want.  Most of us complaining about under counting steps here probably have had our Blazes for less than a month, some of us less than a week or 2 but expect it to come out of the box working, as we should.  So far though, it looks like Fitbit's Customer Service response is grudgingly admitting there is an issue and offering work arounds without truly addressing the problem.  IF it were just a matter of allowing the device to adjust to us personally over time, couldn't they just tell us that?

I got my Flex so long ago, I honestly don't remember if I had any problems with accurate step counts in the beginning or not.  Something to think about though. . .I am considering hanging on to mine for a while to see if it improves but then I know you run the wish of being out of your warranty window, which is 45 days with Fitbit and 30 days with Amazon, where most of us bought ours.  

Decisions, decisions!

[Kat80]

Your not alone... I've done the same the Blaze is al lease 2000-4000 step calculating then the Charge HR.....  I've paid so much for it and bought a new leather band... Not happy!!!

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@RKSH2230 wrote:
We have had two Blazes in our household for three days now. Both replaced our Charge HRs. Both are WAY undercounting steps and flights of stairs not only compared to our Charge HRs, but when actually watching the Blaze step count as we walk and climb stairs. I have been wearing both my Charge HR and Blaze on my left wrist at the same time, both are set up exactly (non-dominant, etc) and they are 500+ steps off. As of this morning, the Blaze is already under the Charge HR by 200+ steps. I have the Fitbit app closed so it does not sync and I have restarted the Blaze three times. I can actually look at the step counting while walking and unless my arms are swinging, it does not count steps, but the Charge HR will continue to count these steps. So, I can no longer read my phone or hold my dog's leash while walking because it will not count steps or flights of stairs. Also, the vibration is WAY less than the Charge HR's and I can no longer use it to wake me silently in the morning so I don't disturb others. Who knows if the other measurements are even correct. Finally, I upgraded to the stainless steel band and it is extremely cheap and definitely not worth the $129 I paid for it! So far, I am very disappointed in this product that appears to have been quickly distributed with minimal quality testing. Unless there is a firmware update that is coming soon, I will be returning the Blaze and going to the Apple Watch for just a little more than I paid for this watch and band.

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[otherbeing]

I returned my Blaze a few days ago, and picked up an Apple Watch Sport through Amazon for $350. I can tell you now that the step tracking on this thing is absolutely amazing. It even tracks my steps on the treadmill when I'm holding onto the bars, and when I'm pushing a cart at the store. I only wish the Apple Health app was as nice as the Fitbit app. They still have a ways to go in that department. But, the hardware is infinitely better than the Blaze.

Sent from my iPhone

[CMichelle]

I am trying to do some additional troubleshooting on the Blaze inaccurate step count.  There are numerous threads on here about issues many of us are having with the Blaze wildly under counting our steps.  Many of us have put a lot of time and effort into troubleshooting together, testing different methods, chiming in here and calling Fitbit Customer Service and with this latest firmware update, the problem persists.  I have even E-mailed a detailed narrative of my experience to Customer Service with no response so far (going on 3 days).

So, my questions to the group:

1)   Are you currently experiencing the Blaze under counting your steps? I am not talking a missed on here and there but up to 20-30% are skipped.

2)  What phone and carrier are you using to synch your Blaze?

3)  When did you get your Blaze and if you have received any replacements for a defective device, how many have you gotten?

I am trying to put together a case that this thing doesn’t work and would like to be able to demonstrate numbers – that the number of people experiencing this issue warrants a closer look at it ASAP.  I only have another week or so to return this and get my money back – I love so many of the other features, I keep trying to figure out a way to make this work but it’s so annoying to see my step counts so much lower every day, than they were with my Flex for almost 2 years.  And no Fitbit, the Flex was not over counting my steps because I have tested this Blaze to within an inch of it’s life and it is only giving me about 1,700-1,800 steps per mile, when we all know, an average amount would be 2,000 or more, if your stride length is short (like mine is).

Thanks so much for chiming in and I would love to hear any testing the moderators have done on this problem, if Fitbit acknowledges it yet and if they are working on a fix.  Is it defective hardware, a software update that needs to be put out and if so, when or is it that your Blaze adjust to your stride, foot fall, movement and over time, becomes more accurate??  I am on my 2nd Blaze, both with the same issue so my confidence is very low if they sent me another replacement, it would actually work.  I have seen people here on the discussion boards get 3 or 4 replacements and eventually just give up and get the Apple Watch.  I have an Android phone so that’s not an option for me but considering downgrading to the Charge HR, just to see if it works any better.  Just will miss the flashy features of the Blaze. 

[svtgt]

omg thank god for your post, cause i feel the same way. I was using a garmin device before this and I used to get alot more steps during the day maybe 20-30% or even more just like you said. With this device I feel exactly the same as you I am getting 20-30% less if not more. At first I thought maybe the device wasn't tight enough or was something wrong with my walking but with your post I think this confirms to me that it isn't working properly. I have a android phone too. I am considering returning this and buying another fitbit. Do others have the same problem???

[Rich_Laue]

I would also add, have you tested of since the latest update?

[tsbales725]

I don't see where my reply posted before so I apologize if this reposts - I had a Charge HR before and now with the Blaze I noticed many shorted steps. I had walked 6.25 miles and only 3.15 recorded and not many steps. That is a BIG difference. I have some difference with the HR but not near as much. Very disappointed and regret spending that kind of many hoping that it was better. I have had it less than two months and back to wearing my Charge HR not knowing what to do. Have done some research but I don't have time for that. I would think for $200 it should be alot better than it is. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[cactusjack]

I would be interested to see if the update to the iOS fitbit app makes any difference to your step results. Personally I have had mine since launch and have not had the issue you are reporting, nor any of the issues posted in the Blaze forum

4/28/2016

2.22

3D Touch quick actions for iPhone 6s and 6s+. For Blaze users: introducing a settings for automatic stride length. Use Connected GPS at least once and your stride length will be calibrated for better distance and pace. New fullscreen graphs for Duration, Distance, Minutes in HR zones, and Calories Burned. Added shortcuts to edit your daily Steps, Floors, Distance, Calories, and Active Minute goals. Bug fixes and performance improvements.

[Ammin]

Since the last update my blaze loses about 500 steps every time I synch it with my phone, and there's nothing I can do to get those steps back.

Since I love doing challenges, I'm disappointed that:
1. I'm not being credited for all my steps
2. I'm losing steps every time I synch with my phone.

I bought the blaze as an upgrade from my one - however I am so disappointed in the results that I am receiving.

[Sballenger]

I have an iPhone and the iOS update did Nothing to help my steps on Blaze😩

[win_st]

I have my fitbit Blaze 3 days ago.

And I have update the firmware to 17.8.200.3

It's still have 25-30% loss of my step. Really disappointed. I want get back my money 😞