Does Charge5 have the same strap mount design flaw as Charge4 - broken strap issue is a deal breaker

[Cavematty]

Hey guys!

I bought a Charge 4 about 18 months ago - and recently the strap mount broke away from the body and the tracker is now unusable. Upon searching this issue I see it is a widespread issue with the Charge 4 and therefore could be considered a design flaw.

My Charge 4 is out of warranty, so I'm looking to get a new fitness tracker or smart watch.

What I would love to know from the community is - does the Charge 5 have the same design flaw? In which case it could be assumed that the strap mount breaking is in fact a design feature with designed obsolescence for profit being the goal. 

I'm not terribly interested in a brand that sells wearables with a 1- 1.5 year lifespan. It makes them more expensive than they appear and terribly wasteful! However I'm happy with the Charge other than this issue. I would love to hear thoughts?

[RiekoC]

Hello & welcome @Cavematty 

The Charge 5 has a different wristband mount than the Charge 4. I've seen a few posts about the attachment end failing, but that doesn't seem to be a major complaint. 

You might want to consider getting the Charge 6, which will be released tomorrow, 12 Oct. The fit & form factor is the same as the Charge 5 with more features, including a physical button. The wristband attachment is the same as the Charge 5. Just be aware that if you tracked floors with the Charge 4, that feature is not available on the Charge 5 or 6. 

[Cavematty]

Hey Rieko! 

Thanks for your reply!
I checked on Reddit and found a lot of comments about the wristband attachment failing on the Charge 5.

Luckily it seems to be actually worse than the 4 so many people were getting replacement units as it was still under warranty for them (often only weeks old). 

I will definitely avoid the Charge 5 😞 

Charge 6 sounds interesting though! I had no idea it was coming so I'll take a look at that. I'm definitely thinking of abandoning the brand though due to quality concerns.

[Cavematty]

Hmm it seems the straps for the 6 are interchangeable with the straps from the 5 so doesn't look good tbh. But I'll hold my judgement until user reports start to come back 🙂 Thanks again for your reply.

[RiekoC]

You're welcome @Cavematty 

It makes sense that most users contact Fitbit support directly for issues with the wristband connection rather than coming to the Fitbit forums. As you mentioned, the issue is often discovered pretty quickly when the band won't stay attached & the defective device can be replaced under warranty. 

[annedwyer]

I had my charge 4 replaced with a charge 5 for the same reason - and the charge 5 is giving me nothing but grief of late - wont sync, wont pair with my phone (which recognises it - but when I try to pair it, the phone tells me it cant communicate with the tracker.  it was working fine a week ago and my other blue tooth connections are working perfectly! ) I certainly couldnt recommend it! 😞

[Zrango]

My band mounts on both side broke after 17 months.  Looks like the 5 has the same mounts and issues.  My question is does the 6 also have the same mounts and breakage issues?