Charge 5 black face & now totally unresponsive after trying charger reset

[Rosieposie4321]

Charge 5 had blank face but could feel vibrations & it was updating on app. I tried to reset by putting it on the charger.. I initially got the logo & vibration but nothing else. I tried pressing the charger button 3 times to reset it. Now everything is dead. I get no power or vibration whatsoever & app can no longer find the watch. It was at least able to update before I tried the reset. Almost as if the reset fried the watch. Any thoughts or recommendations? It seems these always fail around the 1 year mark. So irritating . 

[XCIH]

Mine has the same sorts of problems, with minor variations. It currently will display the clock face, but that is all it will do. Trying tech support tomorrow, but judging by the other comments here I’m not terribly hopeful of a good resolution. 

[Donstx]

I had the battery drain problem before the 12 month warranty was up. I received a replacement Charge 5 and Band. I am selling these on eBay for $65 plus shipping. Check it out. Item # 266215554120

[DPQUINCY]

Im having the same problem. My screen is black tried everything to reset it yesterday  nothing worked  today I tried again. The fitbit logo came up when I first plugged in then nothing. I thought it was me till I opened up this site and found so many others with the same problem. This fit bit is less than 6 months old. SO Annoying. All my fit bits in past last about a year. I have accepted that. SIX MONTHS  ???? Does FIT BIT have a fix for this or is it ok with customer dissatisfaction

[TomNevins]

Tried again today. No restart process works. Maybe time to purchase
another brand.

[XCIH]

FitBit is replacing the existing Charge 5 under the warranty, so we’ll see how it goes. 

[Jerrica]

Seems odd that so many people are having the exact same issue at the same time. I feel like I’ve had way more problems with the Charge than I had with my Garmin

[XCIH]

It does, indeed. I’m assuming it’s a manufacturing defect somewhere in the guts of this device. Unfortunately the problem is serious for those of us participating in the All of Us WEAR study through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). They chose this device to supply to the participants (free of charge) if we agree to wear the device for a year, and this problem puts a weeks-long hole in the data. Frustrating and expensive for the government and researchers. 

[DebSilb]

Same exact for me.  Yesterday, 4-15, horizontal colored bands appeared on the screen, then it went black and nothing we've done to reset brings back the display.  It's still synching and tracking my steps, but no display.  Mine is 18 months old, so I guess I'm out for another device.  THIS IS NOT OK.  Fitbit, never again

[Cltbro]

Same issue with my charge five as well. The face is black and I cannot reset it using the charging cable I chatted with support and ultimately they agreed to send me a new one. Very disappointing after only 3 months of use.  The number of posts regarding the exact same problem likely points to a firmware update issue. 

[JTB43]

Thank you to everyone who posted about this issue. I am having the same issues that are being added by everyone in this posting. On April 15 my Charge 5 started off working as usual, then displayed the Fitbit logo flashing in 5 second intervals. Could not get back to clock face to restart. Next the screen went totally black, if appeared to still sync for about 10 minutes. Recharged it to see if that helped but the screen remained black. Decided to keep it charging and try later.  Next it would not sync, the app indicated that Bluetoooth was not connecting, later in the early evening I tried to get it to sync again with it on the charger, no luck, screen was still black. This morning, April 16, the screen still black, won't sync at all, the Bluetooth finds the Charge 5 but will not pair, screen still black. This Charge 5 was bought July 2022 so only 8 months old!!!! This is my second Fitbit upgraded from Charge 3 to Charge 5 (Charge 3 started having problems) hoping to get a better tracker. Until yesterday I was happy with my Charge 5, but now I'm wondering after reading all the replies. What are my options???

[Rosieposie4321]

Hello, everyone. OP here. Upon chat  exhausting all troubleshooting options to no avail, they are sending a replacement. Still waiting for it. Very frustrated with the loss of at least one week of data once it finally arrives. It appears from the shipping confirmation they are sending just the “pebble” portion. I sincerely hope my charging cable is not defective from the forced charge that seemingly fried the watch, or will lose out on even more data… The whole reason I purchased this watch and pay for the annual subscription service. 

It’s unfortunate that so many others are experiencing the same issues… hopefully Fitbit resolves the problem sooner than later. I really do like this model when it’s working properly. 

[fred890]

Restarted device, turned Bluetooth on/off several times. Deleted other Fitbit devices on my phone and still blank screen. 

[TomNevins]

Agree. Way to many posts, with the same issue, and Fitbit not stepping up
to admit an internal problem

[SunsetRunner]

Same. I find it interesting that in April it seems all Charge 5's, new and old, are having this same issue. Mine charges and synced but no face. I tried the reset, drain and recharge, change the clock face, uninstall the app, restart the phone....

I contacted support and all they say is "you've done everything, we'll check your warranty." They won't comment when I say all Charge 5s, new and old, are suddenly (suspiciously?) Having the same issue this month. 

[DPQUINCY]

I called customer service Monday and they said the same. I got an email right after the call saying they needed to check my warrenty and I needed to send them my receipt. I did. Tuesday I asked status. They sent another email end of day for replacement or discount on another device. I chose replacement. Yesterday i got email saying Charge 5 "Pebble" was shipped.

I may be back on track soon.

I honestly feel all of our voicing out in this community chat made a difference.

I hope my new device last for at least a year. Not asking for much.

Power in Numbers
Thanks All

[PurpleCakeLady]

I fear I am going to have the same response from Fitbit as I bought mine via Amazon from a third party… it’s really not OK that they’re not honouring the warranty. I’ve not even had this Charge 5 for 6 months yet and the screen has gone black  (2 days ago) apart from an occasional white rectangle of light flashing up… 😞

Same here - my charge 5 is not even 6 months old! I had two charge 4s before that and they both died - one just within warranty, one just typically outside… I fear I’m going to get no where with customer services judging by other comments and I am not wasting any more money on this brand. So disappointed ☹️

[TomNevins]

I called customer service on Monday. I went through all the usual steps
with the service rep. My "case" was sent to the warranty department.
Later I received an email from the warranty department offering 35% off if
I ordered a new device since my 14 month old Charge 5 was out of warranty.

After ordering a new device, it took 2+ days to ship it.

[DavideFitbit · Accepted solution]

Hi everyone, and welcome to all the new users in the Fitbit Community. 

I appreciate all the comments that you've provided here about the Charge 5 display not responding. 

As you may have seen in the forums, there are a few steps that are usually recommended for display related issues, like restarting the device using the charging cable or changing the clock face option. 

If the device is still not working properly, please make sure to get in touch with the Customer Support team so they can provide you with further assistance and let you know about the options available for you. You can click here to get connected and chat with them or to call them directly. 

[Heather1411]

I have reached out to customer service twice because mine was initially failing then died altogether. Unfortunately all they are doing is giving a discount code. I really want to buy another unit because I want my charge back but I'm so nervous because it seems like this is an issue maybe a software bug or idk what that just happened to so many of us and I don't want to buy another unit just to have it fail. I wish there would be more of a response to the actual issue impacting so many users and actually acknowledge it may be more than wear and tear. Most of us are long time fit bit brand loyalists.

[SunsetRunner]

The only help you get is a 35% off coupon....That's not much help when this is a Charge 5 issue unrelated to age.