Fitbit Charge 5, HR reading constantly too high

[ErikWold]

Several times a day, I get heart rate readings above 100 when resting. I check my own HR manually and it’s at like 60. So disappointed with this piece of crap. Doesn’t work very well in water either.

[DavideFitbit]

Hi, welcome to the Community forums, @ErikWold.  

Thank you for sharing your comments and for all the details about this issue with the resting heart rate on your Charge 5. 

Before considering other options, I recommend that you try restarting the device again using the three pulse restart method mentioned here below, instead of the restart option found on the Charge 5 itself: 

1. Connect your device to the charging cable. For instructions, see How do I charge my Fitbit device?
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.

In addition, please follow the instructions in this article to improve the accuracy of heart rate information and check the information mentioned here about other factors that could affect your heart rate reading, as this has been useful to other users who have experienced something similar. 

Let me know if you continue to see a high resting heart rate after the steps suggested. 

[depepsi]

I have the same problem. I have to manually turn heart rate off with settings, restart the device using settings on the Fitbit itself several times a week. Its readings can be up to 20 to 30 points too high when resting. This happens with both the Fitbit band and a non-Fitbit band. I know it's the Fitbit that is off as I compare readings with my pulse oximeter, my BP monitor and the MyZone heartrate tracker. Those 3 will all be close with the Fitbit reading way higher. 

Using the device's settings seems to work better than the Long Restart using the button on the charging cable. This used to happen once in a while, but now it's getting to be a daily hassle.

If I did not have other ways to check on this, I would be going to a doctor to find out what was medically wrong with me! 

[DavideFitbit]

@depepsi Thank you for confirming that you've been having a similar issue with your with your Charge 5 and for confirming that you already tried a few troubleshooting steps. 

I've been informed that you already contacted the Customer Support team for further assistance with this and it seems your case is still being reviewed. In this case, they will let you know how to proceed and you should be receiving a response soon. 

See you around in the Community. 

[depepsi]

@DavideFitbit - Although I never got a reply back from the next level up after the chat, someone in tech support must have done something similar to a reset, but at your end. Right now I am reading spot on with the MyZone tracker, AND this morning my Fitbit recognized "swim" as an activity, something it has not done in months. (Actually I do Aqua Cardio and Aqua Zumba which had been getting picked up for part of the time as "swim.") My device is now running like new, and doing everything it's supposed to. Please thank the magician behind the scene who performed the magic on my device.

@ErikWold I started a chat with Fitbit, and the CS agent escalated the ticket. A couple of days later, my Fitbit is running like new and recording spot on with my gym tracker. I suspect they can do some sort of reset at their end. I hope Fitbit Support can help you, like they helped me.  

[DavideFitbit]

@depepsi That's great news! Thanks for sharing this update. 

See you around in the forums. 

[depepsi]

Yes, it ran beautifully for  5 days, and then something (I suspect a "water lock" failure) drained my battery. I recharged the battery, but support and I could never get the display back. This was a 3-month old warranty replacement for my original Charge 5 whose water lock feature kept turning off under water. Fitbit offered me 35% off another Fitbit. On January 11 I chose an Inspire 3, hoping that will work better in my vigorous Aqua classes. Even though the Charge 5 and the Inspire both have clips for the trackers, which I hope I can use in the pool, I've had 2 Charge 5s fail in the pool. 

It's really nice to know, though, that Fitbit can do things behind the scenes when all of our troubleshooting fails. It's been over 12 years that I've been with Fitbit, Fitbit's customer service coupled with discounts offered when an out of warranty device is the reason why.

Alta, One, Charge 3, Charge 5, and now on to Inspire 3.

[DavideFitbit]

@depepsi Thanks for sharing this update and all of your feedback. 

I'm sorry to see that it wasn't possible to resolve the problem, but it's good to know they've offered a discount and that you've decided to opt for an Inspire 3 device.