Inaccurate step counting on My BLAZE

[Pakita]

I received my Blaze yesterday...

And it has been counting steps anytime i move my arm while sitting onthe couch.

Last night before bed it addedover 300 steps while sitting on couch for half an hour..

Today driving to work 10minutes, it added almost 500 steps for nothing, i didn't walk.

Please help before i return this Blaze right back to Fitbit.   I was so hoping for motivation for steps and having me work for my steps not just sit and get free steps.  

I work at my desk for 12hours at work dispatching and dont want free steps.

Anyone help me how to make this better, its on my non-dominant hand.  

thank you 

Pakita

[Yaakovchaim]

@meresydotes, Actually, I don't.  When I take it off the GPS, the distance is near accurate (within .04 miles).  With the GPS, it's off by .2 to .3 miles.  Same stride in both.  And since it's a mall walk, the distance of a lap is always known.

[meresydotes]

@Yaakovchaim I've never used the GPS feature, so I'm not sure how it works. I know that there is an option to automatically calculate your stride length using the GPS. Are you sure the GPS has a good signal - I presume the mall is inside? My car GPS is always yelling at me that it lost the signal when I drive into an open garage.

I just know that the real test of accuracy with any of these trackers is steps. After all, they're really just glorified pedometers.

I do know that the calorie burn is also calculated using heart rate, which can be funny if it has a weird imaginary spike when I'm just walking that causes it to think I burned almost as many as running.

But bottom line, it's the steps that "count."

[Yaakovchaim]

@meresydotes, Yes, the phone has a good signal and it's about 3 inches from my watch in my pocket.  The GPS is fine as it does track, just not giving accurate distance.  Like I said, the step counts are accurate.  This has been one of the issues that was supposed to be fixed.  And neither my car GPS or my phone GPS lose a signal in an open garage.  A closed garage, yes.  Same with a tunnel, but those are expected.

Not to mention, I tap into the mall's WI-FI, so the signal is always strong.  And I'm a numbers guy, steps are important, but to me so is calories burned, distance, and HR.

[meresydotes]

@Yaakovchaim Oh, I agree that everything should be perfect. I'm just reserving my true outrage for the lack of step accuracy, as that's really fitbit's #1 job. As such, it should be #1 priority to fix it if it's incorrect. I've actually had a problem with step accuracy since before the Blaze was even released, on a Charge HR. I think it started around the time they started with the automatic workouts, as it got mostly better, except for when actually working out, when I disabled those. My steps are accurate now, but only because I accidentally trained myself to walk and run without swinging my arms much.

The HR tracking can be a little hit and miss, so I try to treat it like a gimmick.

I also find it annoying that I have to edit my sleep times every morning (sometimes it even has me not waking up until after my morning RUN), but I think steps need to be fixed across the board first.

Of course, they probably have enough people that they could work on more than one thing at a time, if they wanted.

[Yaakovchaim]

@meresydotes,  I agree with you.  They should have enough developers on this.  However, with being in the IT field for over 30 years, throwing developers on problems leads to more problems.  The real issue with their development team(s) are that they are not using any true methodology (agile vs. waterfall vs. iteritive).  They each have their pluses and minuses, but the work does get done.  I don't see that happening here.  They are being reactive versus being proactive.  They don't seem to have a real methodology going.

[Tamisha]

I'm extremely upset that I had no problems before the faux update on Monday but now my Blaze is doing what everyone has been complaing about since the device had it's debut... it's not accurately counting my steps.  I dusted my whole store and somehow only walked like 200 steps... There is no retail store that while dusting and walking every isle you only walk 200 steps.  When I got home I then went for a walk around my dining room table.  I counted 32 steps each time around. So I estimated that I have 600 steps until 10k so that's approximately 20 times around the table... At 20 times around and running in place, I was short about 250 steps.  I now completely understand everyones frustration! I need this fixed like yesterday!

[herget]

@meresydotes You are correct! Within the settings you can tell Fitbit on which wrist you wear your tracker and if you are either left or rand-handed. If you are right-handed like me and wear a Blaze or Charge 2 on your right wrist, well then, the programmers at Fitbit make algorithmic adjustments. 

[meresydotes]

@herget So, you say your heart rate is usually a bit higher on your right wrist, you mean your dominant wrist. And if my Blaze is telling me my resting heart rate is 45 on my right wrist, but I'm left handed, it would be higher on my left wrist (which SHOULD be independent of where I tell the app it's located), not lower, correct?

[herget]

My heart rate is higher on the right side of my body regardless of whether
I am right or left-handed. Due to the blood flow beginning on the left side
of your body. Go ahead and give it a try and see of my tests have more
value...
--
Sincerely,
Peter


herget@gmail.com
801.784.0417
Provo, Utah

[meresydotes]

@herget That is SO cool! The body is a weird and wondrous thing.

[Corvettekid]

Tamisha and other Distance/Steps Accuracy Complainers:  You can't measure accuracy around a dinner table or walking in a confined area.  

The best way to test is to walk on a 1/4 mile high school or college track and see how FitBit does.  I've consistently gotten .18 miles, or 72% accuracy, which is my beef.

[Corvettekid]

Pietro, what does your Blaze register when you walk once around a 1/4 mile high-school track ?

[bbarrera]

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@herget wrote:
My heart rate is higher on the right side of my body regardless

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Honestly that is the most troubling thing I've heard recently about the accuracy of PurePulse. We all have a single heart rate, the best place to measure it is over the heart. Different readings on different wrists can only be cause to suspect the accuracy of PurePulse.

[meresydotes]

@Corvettekid I'm actually surprised that your distance is even that consistent. I count steps, rather than distance, but before I got my issues sorted, the exact same 1/2 hour treadmill workout would be 2200 steps sometimes and 2800 steps other times. I'm presuming you set your stride length?

[racertempo]

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@Corvettekid wrote:

RacerTempo, we purchased the Blaze expecting comparable accuracy to previous FitBit trackers.  It doesn't do that.

So yeah, I expect a firmware upgrade to address that issue especially when the Mods here have been assuring us for MONTHS that their tech guys were on it.  Instead, it looks like all we got are new clock faces.

This is like bringing in your car for faulty brakes and then having the gargage tell you they painted your tailpipe.

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Except the update is not fixing any issues with accuracy, just adding features.  So what you purchased and what the update is providing are different things, and the update is just shinny nice new things, no accuracy problems, which is debatable anyway.

[MikeF]

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@Yaakovchaim wrote:

@meresydotes, Yes, the phone has a good signal and it's about 3 inches from my watch in my pocket.  The GPS is fine as it does track, just not giving accurate distance.  Like I said, the step counts are accurate.  This has been one of the issues that was supposed to be fixed.  And neither my car GPS or my phone GPS lose a signal in an open garage.  A closed garage, yes.  Same with a tunnel, but those are expected.

Not to mention, I tap into the mall's WI-FI, so the signal is always strong.  And I'm a numbers guy, steps are important, but to me so is calories burned, distance, and HR.

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Using GPS inside a building you're going to get whatever random effects that you're going to get and nothing done to the software around the receiver is going to change that. The GPS signal is small enough to cause errors in the open air but inside a building with reflections and degradation due to other signal sources then you're really lucky to be seeing anything (building type and construction plays a large part in this).

I might be misunderstanding you but WiFi reception makes absolutely zero difference to GPS reception.

[Tamisha]

You're right, @Corvettekid, you typically can't but when I walk around twice and I count 64 steps but my Fitbit still registers the exact same number as it did at number one and a week ago I had no problem I have every right to complain. I am one of Fitbit's most loyal customers, I've personally owned a one, charge, charge hr and a blaze and I've gifted a flex and at least 3 hrs to family members and did not have this issue with any other device. So yes, I can measure accuracy around a dining room table that I've consistently walked a half hour around for at least 3 devices. Thanks for your attempt but try again.

[Yaakovchaim]

@MikeF, I believe you are completely wrong.  If there was no signal on the phone, then GPS wouldn't work at all.  And since I have a strong signal, with or without WIFI, GPS functions properly.  When I look at the chart, it shows the route that I took in the mall correctly, the step count is correct.  The only things not correct are distance and pace.  I've run a parralel on my phone app that also uses GPS and everything comes out correctly.

[MikeF]

You are, of course, entitled to believe whatever you like.

[Rich_Laue]

As @MikeF stated. GPS needs more than a strong signal, it also needs an unimpeded path to at least four satellites. Anything that impress the time it takes the signal to arrive will affect the accuracy. Your gps is dealing in millisecond accuracy, so if the signal is passing through a heavy cloud, tree line, or bouncing off a wall, your possition will be off