Charge 5 Cannot Count Stairs

[MichaelGazeley]

I just purchased a Charge 5, and was very (very) surprised to find it cannot count stairs. If you ensure you do a certain number of stairs each day, then stick with your Charge 4. I went back to my Charge 4 immediately. Why would FitBit make such an absurd move? Really (really) strange. It’s total madness.  

[Odyssey13]

Hi @MichaelGazeley  the Charge 5 has no altimeter, so it can't count stairs. There was a long thread about it in the Charge 5 area where a moderator confirmed that it would not be able to recognize stairs. Not everyone does count stairs, but the specifications were listed on the pre-sales information. 

[dponzio]

I just set up my new Charge 5 yesterday.  Very disappointed it doesn’t track stairs and I cannot change display face.

[dponzio]

not hapoy

[MichaelGazeley]

It’s a bit like buying the latest BMW 750i car, Canon 5D camera, or Rolex Submariner, after buying a long line of them over many years, only to find a key feature missing in the latest version. FitBit should have kept floor counting in, many of us have years of data, badges, etc., which has encouraged us to keep moving. Isn’t that the whole point of FitBit? Encouraging good habits? 

[TonyBarber]

Expectations are that newer generations are improvements over previous. The Lack of an altimeter is a step back and while maybe hoped by Fitbit that it will provide incentive to upgrade again it doesn’t for me. It makes me want to switch brands.