Fitbit Charge 5 can't swipe to settings

[jksf]

I recently acquired this from a local buy-nothing group in a state of not being able to charge. I have been able to charge it and connect to my phone but the screen is not responsive anymore. I have done the 3 button press to restart it many times. I have also changed the clock face a bunch of times too.

It is collecting my heart rate but I can't do anything else with it. The firmware is 20001.188.58 and was hoping to update it. I've seen plenty of posts saying not to but I was hoping to see if it would fix the issue. The screen kind of worked when I was fiddling with it to get it to charge but it seems not to react to anything now.

I've looked at loads of videos on how to reset/restart but there is no definitive way to factory reset it with no buttons on the device.

If anyone has any ideas I can use to try to resurrect it that would be great. I've had it paired to my phone for a day or so but no question of it saying there is an update yet. I hope the update hasn't been dropped or there is a developer beta update somewhere

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[FatimaFitbit]

Hi there @jksf!

A warm welcome to the Fitbit Community!

Thank you so much for reporting this situation. I'm sorry to hear that your Charge 5's screen is unresponsive. 

By the 3 button press to restart your tracker, you mean you restarted it with the charging cable, right?

Another way to restart your device is to unplug it, wait a second, and plug it back in. Repeat this process 3 times in an 8 seconds interval and then wait 10 seconds until the device restarts. Please make sure you select a clock face developed by Fitbit and not a third party creator.

Let me know how it goes! 

[jksf]

Hi, thanks for the reply. I don’t seem to be having any trouble with the watch in restarting or charging it. The screen is just unresponsive. It does however respond to the double tap to wake it up. I just can’t swipe up down left or right.

not sure if the screen is broken or not and whether the double tap is in the screen or a g-sensor. As I said it was give to me in as-is condition.

I’ve seen some videos on how to replace batteries or screens so maybe I’ll go down that road.

i would like to see if it is something like the firmware that is crashing for the touch screen driver that maybe a newer firmware will reinstall.

If anyone else has had a similar experience and you fixed it I’d love to know.

Also I have tried changing the clock face to a Fitbit one and it didn’t fix it.

[kathleen3k]

Unfortunately I have the exact same problem with my Fitbit charge 5. It worked fine for about 15 months, but now the screen is unresponsive and the battery level goes down very fast. I tried all the steps to reset my Fitbit, but nothing seems to work. 

[FatimaFitbit]

Hi there! Thank you for your answers and for your efforts.

@jksf Since you have tried the steps and your Charge 5 still doesn't work, I need more information from you, which is best shared privately. I am sharing a link to a form for you to fill out here.

This form is for you only, so let me know when you have completed it.

@kathleen3k A warm welcome to the Fitbit Community! I checked with support and it seems like you already have a case created. My best advice is to keep an open communication with them so they can provide you with more details about your situation.

[jksf]

Just to let you know I am not the original purchaser and it was given to me so I wouldn’t expect any paid support or replacement. Just trying to get it going.

I don’t have a support case and have never created one so not sure what happened there. I have just asked on this forum for some help.

I’ll get in touch with you to give you some more details privately if that is what you need.

[jksf]

Hi FatimaFitbit, I’ve filled in the form as you requested.

[FatimaFitbit]

Hi @jksf! 

Thank you so much for your answer and for filling the form.

Don't worry about it. Our team support will help you solve this situation. You'll receive an email from us very soon. Check your spam und junk- folder too.

The Fitbit community is always available to you. 

Best wishes!