Charge 5 - blackout & loss of heart, sleep and SP02 functions

[TJBrooklet]

I’m wondering how many other Charge 5 owners have suffered, repetitive blackout issues, and/or loss of function with their heart, sleep, SPO2 functions within two years of activation of their watch. 

[olyerickson]

I regularly pull my stationary bike workout data from my Charge 5; I also monitor my HR with a Cateye chest-strap HR monitor (I've been using chest strap monitors for training since the 1990s). I've found that there are days when the Charge 5 is consistent and days when it drops in and out; the same was true with the Charge 4 I had before it. 

If you need to do serious monitoring, you cannot rely on consumer-grade optical devices. There are a few research papers out there that compare HR data data collected on Fitbits and e.g. Polars that show how inconsistent wrist HR monitors can be. 

I've attached two recent plots from my Charge 5; one was great, and one was all over the place. The workouts were very steady, 20+mph rides for approx. 1hr on a time trial bike in a stationary rig. The grey line in both plots is the spline (smoothed) version of the plot. 

[kiboandfriends]

Repeatedly! It blacks out, I lose data, my phone and the device both report different battery statuses, and consequently I've just bought a replacement device and it's not a Fitbit 😆 12 years I've been a customer and they lost me due to poor quality products. 

[Bacchtg]

Yes, I now have the blackout issue. Cant seem to get it fixed. Just off warranty of course. Frustrating. 

[olyerickson]

Based on my analysis of data with both Charge 4 and Charge 5 devices, I believe this is simply "the nature of the beast." The device is capable of useful time series data collection, but the results can be inconsistent from day to day. 

It doesn't seem to be a function of e.g. how tight the wristband is. Since the device is optical, I've wondered if it is a function of e.g. wrist hair. 

I tolerate the Charge *'s irregularities mostly because Fitbit makes it really easy to pull data for analysis from The Cloud. Unfortunately, this isn't as easy with my Cateye cyclocomputer, which is much more accurate. 

[TJBrooklet]

Based on the many other similar issues I’ve read about, and Fitbit Customer Service lack of concern - having an it happens attitude - while thanking me for being a customer, I think it’s time for me to take my business elsewhere as well. Reliability matters.

[Surger]

I love my Fitbit Charger 5.  My first one had a black screen and never recovered. I couldn’t get the watch screen to display anything it was black.  Therefore, in December 2023 I bought a new and my fitbit went down to 6% and I got notification to recharge.  I placed it on my charger, the Fitbit is at 28% charge  but I still have a black screen.  It’s  still syncing with the Fitbit app but the screen is black.  Please how do I fix this issue? 

[Smwalder]

I am very frustrated with my Charge 5.  Lose data after recharging battery every time. Have deleted, reset tracker several times only to have it stop working a few days later. Unreliable. Loss of trends when tracking interrupted.