Charge 5 won’t update and experiencing syncing difficulties

[CindyJones]

After trying over and over again, following all the trouble shooting steps and working with Fitbit support for 30 minutes, the device will not update. I wonder if it’s because the Bluetooth connectivity is unstable. Whatever the reason, I will probably be returning this. Waiting to hear from the “higher level” of tech support. 

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[newsman]

Your conclusion likely correct. I am having Bluetooth/syncing issues. Yet again yesterday I disconnected my Charge 5 from my iPhone and then tried to repair. Took forever as Bluetooth was going in and out. Finally repaired but the Bluetooth/syncing issues continue.

Hopefully you get a resolution! 

[KlimentToshkov]

Same here. Also thinking that Bluetooth is having issues. 

[JadeH16]

Hi Cindy,

what did higher support suggest? I’m having the exact same issue. I’ve been on all day with it. Tried over 20 times! Driving me insane! 

[CindyJones]

Hi! This is what they said to do:

*Remove your Charge 5 from account
*Log out form Fitbit app
*Restart Charge 5 (using charger)

1. Connect your device to the charging cable.
2. Press the button located on the flat end of the charger 3 times, pausing for 1 second between presses. Then wait 10 seconds or until the Fitbit logo appears.

*Open your phone's Bluetooth and remove all Bluetooth devices connected/listed
*Turn off your phone's Bluetooth
*Uninstall your Fitbit app
*Restart your phone
*Open your phone's Bluetooth and location services
*Install the Fitbit app and then to tap all prompts that appears
*Open Fitbit app and login to account
*Set up Charge 5 and complete firmware update.

It didn’t work at all. So, thank goodness for Amazon, they sent me a replacement overnight. I got it today. It updated and was ready to go in less than 15 minutes. I am up and running. That first device was just a bad one. This is why I order everything through Amazon. They replaced it with no questions asked, free of charge. 

[JadeH16]

Thanks Cindy! 

I have already tried all of that and none of it has worked. I think the Bluetooth on the Fitbit itself is faulty. 

I bought mine via UNiDAYS as I got student discount so not sure it will be so straightforward. It’s caused me so much stress today! 

[CindyJones]

It IS so frustrating. I worked for hours on my first one. The replacement they sent was done in minutes. I hope you get a replacement quickly.

[KlimentToshkov]

I have reached them through live chat and a few days later received the following completely useless advice by email:

Hi Kliment, 

Thanks for waiting. 

After consulting with the team, we suggest going to the phone's Bluetooth then make sure to unpair/forget other Bluetooth devices if there are any connected. 

If you have additional questions about your Fitbit device and service, visit help.fitbit.com.

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[newsman]

Yes, absolutely useless. Glad I’m getting refund. And if that’s their response, I will never be back! 

[JadeH16]

What a waste of time! Did you tell them you’d already done this? I’ll be furious if that’s the response I get as I already did this several times with the lady on tech support via phone.

[KlimentToshkov]

This is my original complaint to them. I feel like I am paying to be a guinea pig and beta tester and also receive good amount of humiliation just for the fun.

Hello. I have Charge 5, brand new. Bluetooth is alternating between connected and disconnected. Syncing is VERY slow if even possible. No HR realtime data because bluetooth is disconnected most of the time. Can't change watch faces also because there is popup on the screen that Charge is not connected. Here you can see screen recording of the problem: https://youtu.be/gXz1VwiJ_Z4

Had not issues at all with my Charge 4. Steps i've tried so far:

- Restart Charge from the menu on screen (Settings app > Restart device)
- Restart Phone
- Deleted it from app and bluetooth, then pair again
- Added it again with "replace charge 5" from the app.

None of these steps helped in any way. Bluetooth still connecting and disconnecting.

Syncing takes 2-3 minutes if possible at all. Most of the time doesn't sync for hours.

Tested and confirmed this problem on two devices:
- iPhone 11 Pro Max, iOS 15.0.1
- iPhone X, iOS 15.0.1

My order is # and I want either a refund or replacement unit.

Here is the case number: 

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"Always on" in workout is still - when display moves from color mode showing workout details to black and white "always on" mode, then the information on screen stands still and nothing changes (neither the clock nor heart rate, etc). Video demonstration of the problem: https://youtu.be/wPO4Orjb49E

I have tried all possible ways to restart both the phone and Fitbit, but nothing helps. I want replacement unit shipped.

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Moderator Edit: Personal info removed

[JadeH16]

What a joke!

Presumably now you’re going to have to wait another few days for them to come back to you. Maybe try Twitter? I’ve heard the support is much quicker on that platform.

[KlimentToshkov]

They've replied on Twitter 7 hours later with:

Please check this link to verify the syncing steps and requirements: https://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/1866.htm.

Such a bad experience at all, and because I've bought it directly from them I can't request refund or replacement because they do not have such forms available on their site. 

[CindyJones]

This is why I buy through Amazon. They were Fantastic. I have my replacement, and it’s working beautifully. I hope you get this worked out. So frustrating.

[SilviaFitbit]

Hi everyone, 

Thank you for the detailed information shared and the troubleshooting performed prior to posting. I see where your frustration is coming from. 

Your feedback is appreciated, we're always striving to improve our services offered. If you're updating your Charge 5 and experiencing difficulties, confirm this procedure has been performed. 

If there's a syncing issue regarding Bluetooth connectivity, let me share with you that we’re aware of it and are working to identify a resolution as quickly as possible. 

We're sorry for any trouble. We appreciate your patience and look forward to getting you back on track.

Thanks for being a Fitbit user. 

[Fineapple_Fit]

I got mine to work. I plugged mine into my computer, clicked the button on the USB part of the charger 3 times with half a second in between each click. It restarted the watch. Then I closed out of the FitBit app, got back on, and updated it and it worked almost instantly. I hope this helps! 

Moderator Edit: Personal info removed

[Spurs01]

Purchased the Charge 5 today to replace a Charge 3, and similar problems trying to update using my iphone so after trying for a couple of hours, tried with my ipad and worked first time. Still unstable with the iphone after the update e.g. changing clock face, which I had to try a couple of times to complete, but no problems when switching to the ipad. The iphones also new (purchased last weekend) so not fully checked out yet although worked fine when I tried the bluetooth hands free in my car. Not really a practical solution if I can’t get stability with the iphone but at least completed the Charge 5 setup, so will aim to test more with my old iphone over the coming days. Hope it’s he Charge 5 and that Fitbit can resolve with a software update

[SilviaFitbit]

@Fineapple_Fit Welcome to the Fitbit Community. Thank you for sharing the troubleshooting that helped you fixing this. I'm sure it will help others on the thread. 

@Spurs01 Welcome to the Fitbit Community. Thank you for sharing detailed information on what you experienced. Please continue monitoring its functionality and feel free to share updates on the forums. 

Have a nice day. 

[Spurs01]

I’ve now tried with my old iphone 7 that worked problem free with my Charge 3, and same issues as the iphone 13, so I’m still using the ipad to connect. Hope it’s not a hardware problem, and that a firmware fix will be issued to resolve this, otherwise I assume I need to take it back to the store and try to get a replacement

[bubblepopinc]

Yeah I was having the same issue. I called support and they had me do the same thing. It didn't work right away, however it was only not syncing when I tried to change the clock face. 1 day later I never had a problem syncing and it works fine, with no problems.