Charge 5 Firmware Update 194.61

[LizzyFitbit]

7/13 Update: We’re continuing to roll out this firmware for the Charge 5 Firmware Update 194.61, and expect more customers are able to update their devices. This is a progressive rollout and all customers can expect to have it within a few weeks. We release updates in phases so that we can monitor performance closely and make adjustments if needed. If you don't see the option to update, don't worry - you'll have it soon!

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We’re excited to announce that a firmware update version 194.61 for Charge 5 will be available soon! Some of you might already have this update available. If you installed it, let us know what you think!

We release updates to customers in phases. If you don’t see it, check the Fitbit app in a few days, and you’ll see a message when you can install the update. We appreciate your patience while we get this update to all of our customers.

*Firmware releases are not distributed based on region or location and can reach anyone no matter where you reside. We do not recommend performing a factory reset to force the update to your device as your data will be lost and you may not get the update. Please be patient and wait until you see the update banner inside of the Fitbit app to begin the firmware download.

WHAT’S NEW AND FIXED

• All exercise modes are now available in the Exercise app, and your most recently used modes appear at the top. For more information, see How do I track my workouts with my Fitbit device?
• Find new clock faces in the Fitbit Gallery in the Fitbit app. For more information, see How do I change the clock face on my Fitbit device?
• View your daily readiness score on your tracker (Premium feature only). For more information, see What’s my daily readiness score in the Fitbit app?
• Support for global characters and right-to-left text notifications:
  Arabic
  Hebrew
  Thai
  Hindi
  Vietnamese
• This release includes bug fixes and improvements.

Full release notes can be found here. For more details, please see this Community Blog post.

HOW DO I UPDATE?
See How do I update my Fitbit device? for step by step instructions for updating your Charge 5. If you run into difficulty updating, review these Why can't I update my Fitbit device?

We’re interested in hearing your feedback on this update! Let us know what you like! If you encounter unexpected behavior during or after your update, please post the details below.

[6TJS6]

Absolutely. That's what they really ought to be addressing, and for the life of me I can't understand why they can't get a handle on it, IF they're even actively trying to resolve the issue. It's the number one problem you hear from everyone that has the Charge 5. I've gone through 2 of them in 2 years and I'm waiting to get my third one. Maybe it's coincidence, maybe not, but they always seem to go t*ts up right after the 1 year mark. The only reason I'm going to try one more is because I've sunk some money into accessories, although if the next one fails as well, then it's time to look elsewhere. Let's see if the almighty Google can figure it out. If they did, they'd be heroes. I could care less about new clock faces and misc. tweaks if the thing can't last more than a year.

[6TJS6]

Keep in mind that the Charge 5 is a fitness tracker, not a smartwatch.

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I think clock faces should be the least of anyone's concern, given that the Charge 5 typically lasts about a year and a week, just over warranty. I'm going to be on my third one in less than 3 years. One more try and then I'm gone.

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This is exactly what happened to mine about 2 weeks ago, and yes, out of warranty. I never even check firmware versions because I don't see how any updates can stop them from going dead in a year. I'm not sure if a firmware update would cause one to just stop working, but if it did, I guess I must have got the same one.

[ImGone]

Normally I think I'd feel more chill about it - trackers, smartwatches, phones, etc., are not made to last forever. It's just the world we live in. But it feels like more than a coincidence so many people are having the same problem at the same time (same if you search on Reddit, twitter, etc) - it sure seems to paint a picture as to what's going on. And them not seeming to care, acknowledge what's going on, or have replacements available for weeks (at the earliest) is very frustrating. I went fitbit because I didn't want an apple watch, but I'd rather have an apple watch than do this now or in the future.

[6TJS6]

I would check my firmware version if I had a Charge 5 right now. I've been waiting to try one more, because my second one in 2 years just quit on me about 2 weeks ago. I was going to take Fitbit up on the 35% discount and ordered one. It was on back order and was supposed to ship on 9/1. Then I get an email informing me that they wouldn't be shipping until the end of September, so I cancelled the order. The question is, why can't Fitbit keep these in stock, when I ordered one from Best Buy instead. The real question is, when are they going to be fixed so they last longer for the money?

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And why does it seem we can't ever get an answer from Fitbit on what they're actually trying to do to resolve the number one issue with the Charge 5? I guess they think if they pacify us with new clock faces we'll be happy. Who cares.

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From what I'm reading here, it seems a lot of people had another Charge 5 give up the ghost around the same time. If it was indeed because of a firmware update, then why should I have to buy a new one even with a 35% discount? Are you listening to everyone Fitbit? So many people saying they're done with Fitbit, and I don't wonder why. Fix the real issue instead of giving us new clock faces.

[6TJS6]

Yep, I must have had mine setup to receive firmware updates automatically. Mine ended up dying after a couple of weeks of having to charge it 2 times a day. Then I just got the flashing Fitbit logo, and eventually the red X. Never thought it could have been due to a firmware update, but that seems to be the consensus reading so many other's posts. Threw mine in the trash where it should have gone.

[6TJS6]

You were lucky that they are giving you a replacement. I was only offered their 35% discount, and then they can't even keep them in stock. I guess they thought I could do fine waiting a month to get one. Strangely, I was able to order one from Best Buy that was on sale.

[6TJS6]

When mine died, it was 2 weeks past warranty. You would think a respectable company would still offer a replacement, but I guess we're not dealing with a respectable company.

[HeidiUSA]

I just got a different brand and I am very happy

So disappointed by Fitbit after almost 10 years

[JPSSM5]

Update, I moved on from Fitbit and my new watch arrives tomorrow.  The Charge 5 had everything I wanted in a watch.  But I won’t support a company who clearly is either run poorly by upper management or they simply don’t care about their customers, or both. This is clearly a huge problem. Their response has extremely poor.  Reading a lot of of these comments it seems many of their customers are dumping Fitbit for other choices.  At some point when their bottom line starts to be affected they’ll wake up.  But, will it be too late? Too late for me that’s for sure.  

[VivvyAnn]

Please, Tell me what device

[ian.pennington3]

Fit bit charge 5

[Cbcasto]

Does this contain a fix for the charge 5 being completely frozen with the logo displaying?  I would rather not wait a few more weeks to get this fixed.

[JSK56]

What fix are you speaking of?  There isn't one and no commitment to resolve it. 

[ian.pennington3]

I just wish the owners of these defunct charge 5 watches would say
something about the failure of this watch and the update instead of leaving
us all in the dark, the last update was on July 13, too long with the
problems that have occurred

[SunsetRunner]

Hello support staff ...

From the Versa 4 thread posted on Tuesday of this week @LizzyFitbit writes ...

Hi everyone, and welcome to our new members.

Thanks for keeping me posted. Our team continues working on this release and once I have news to share, I'll make sure to let you know in this thread.

@FitSparta Thanks for the information provided, and the steps tried on your own. As you may know, it's required to constantly sync your watch in order to get other features such as notifications working correctly. I understand this isn't the case and let me share that we've escalated the syncing issues experienced after updating the firmware in order to get a solution as soon as possible.

I'm sorry for this inconvenience and while it's not possible to revert back to the previous version, your feedback is appreciated and we'll keep our team informed of this situation."

My question, why hasn't this thread been updated with this information?

I'm a big FitBit fan since it literally saved my life. I have gone through ALL of the suggested workarounds with the battery drain. I have been given a 35% discount code to purchase another unit, but have dragged my feet in hopes of getting this firmware fix. I'm convinced that for some of us the battery drain started with the 188.58 firmware update. I understand that you can only tell us what the engineers and other corporate overlords tell you. My mantra: you can have all the smarts, all the money, all the finest trappings in life, and beauty ... but if you have no integrity, it doesn't matter. 

Would someone please step forward and tell us the truth.

[mchili]

@SunsetRunner interestingly enough I also have a luxe and this was posted this morning on the Luxe help forums regarding the update by @EstuardoFitbit:

"Hello everyone, and welcome to our newest participants.

We value the time you have taken to discuss this update and to offer your perspective. Let me begin by stating that there is no specific date for the complete release of this firmware. However, the Fitbit app will prompt you to install it as soon as it's available.

Some of you have mentioned having battery problems, so if you haven't already, I advise taking these steps. For more help, please contact our Support Team if your device is still not performing as it should."

[MrCredible]

Still waiting on this firmware update. It says that it was going to roll out starting in July and take a few weeks. Its now September and still no new update. The last update caused my Charge 5 to rapidly deplete its battery over the course of 6 hours. Whats worst as that "clearing the user data" does not provide a true factory reset to go back to an older version of the firmware. When I reached out to support, they told me that I can just buy another one with a 30% discount since mine is out of warranty. 

This isnt a hardware issue that requires a new device, its a software issue that requires an update.

Its frustrating when support is only customer service reps instead of true techs or engineers that truly diagnose what the issue might be.
As an engineer, if I know that my customer is having an issue, the first thing I would do is try to get their firmware version up to date. If I am not able to do that, then I would try to reinstall their current version of the firmware, lastly, assuming nothing else was possible/worked, then I would see if the problem would resolve itself by going back to the previous version.

But instead my requests have been written off as just "go buy another one for 30% off".... 

This doesnt make any sense. My last fitbit didnt have any issues for many years.

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Just an FYI...

Am on version 188.56... Unsure what everyone else is on, but this means that I am 6 MAJOR versions behind the official new roll out.

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It looks like this latest version is also giving issues to many people such as bricking their device.
https://www.androidauthority.com/fitbit-charge-5-update-brick-3343825/

Are the devices being tested properly with the new updates? why would you force your userbase to auto update to latest versions and remove their ability to roll back when they have issues. This is a major design flaw in your software processes.

[DavideFitbit]

Hi everyone, thank you for all the time that you've dedicated to share your feedback and your experience during this firmware update. 

As some of you have mentioned, the release of this firmware update has taken a bit longer than usual, but this is helpful to prevent and correct any issues that may present during the release. Unfortunately it's not possible to provide a specific time frame on when will everyone receive the update. The information shared in the thread about the display not working and battery issues has been shared with the team, but I do recommend that you get in touch with  get in touch with the Customer Support team as soon as possible for a more immediate assistance if you're still having any of these problems. Any other news about the firmware update will be shared in this thread as soon as they're available. Thanks again for all the information that you've shared so far. 

If you're new to this thread and you haven't tried any  steps, please try these troubleshooting options before you contact Support: 

1. Complete the 3 pulse restart procedure using the charging cable. 
2. Follow these steps in case you're having trouble to charge your device. 
3. Please sync your device in the Fitbit app by tapping your profile picture > Charge 5 > Sync Now.
4. If you  can't sync, tap on your profile picture > Charge 5 > Tap to see if a firmware banner appears. 
5. If it's still unresponsive, please try changing the clock face as well and check if you're able to see anything on the display. 

There's also a different combination of steps that could be helpful with display issues:  

1. Hold on the button (or charging cable button) until you see the Fitbit Logo blinking (up to 15 seconds)
2. When you see the screen blinking, release the button, wait 1-2 seconds and then hold the button again until you see the circle screen (up to 5 seconds).

For battery draining too fast, please follow these troubleshooting steps as well. 

[JSK56]

Really? This is all you can tell us? The battery draining quickly is not due to any settings. I tried them all. I had no issues until the firmware update. Any word if there will ever be an update to fix the update? 

[Scottfairfield]

Still waiting for you to reply to my inboxSent from my Galaxy