Fitbit Charge 5 turned into stone after swimming

[MelodyGG]

Hi, just wondering if anyone else has this problem. I wore my Fitbit Charge 5 to the pool and the screen doesn’t turn up afterwards. Ive had it for just passed 13 months so this is very frustrating. I flipped the watch and saw moisture got inside of the watch. I googled online and realized there are so many customers having the same issue. I really don’t think they should advertise this watch to be water resistant. This is the second Fitbit device I owned. I first got a Fitbit charge 4 two years ago and the plastic part for locking the wrist band just broke as I was swapping wrist band. Two years with two Fitbit broke is saying something.  

Moderator edit: format

[starcracker]

The exact same thing happened to me last week! And I too saw after Googling that "bricked by swimming" is not an isolated incident with the Charge 5. Disappointing.

I chatted with support, and they are sending out a new Charge 5. I will take this one to the pool too - hopefully the same thing won't happen...

[DavideFitbit]

Hi, it's good to see you visiting the Community forums for the first time, @MelodyGG. 

I'm sorry to see that you had this inconvenience with your Charge 5. 

This device should be water resistant to 50 meters and you should be able to use it to track your swim. I've gone ahead and sent your information to the Customer Support team for further assistance, so you should be getting a reply soon. Please keep an eye on your inbox. 

@starcracker Thanks for sharing your experience with this as well! 

[Melsiboku]

Mine has done this three times with just getting a shower with it on for two minutes or washing my hands for longer than usual. So far each time it came back after approximately 5 days. It's super frustrating.

[toast77]

Did you do anything, resets, firmware update etc to get it to come back?

Mine did this last week and the app keeps telling me there is a firmware update. It's says it has completed a couple of times but nothing has changed.  Support suggested I use a different phone to complete the update.

[starcracker]

Mine says I should update it too! Well it did - now it doesn't do anything. I feel it vibrate when I connect it to power - but that's it....

[toast77]

My app says I have firmware version 57.20001.188.58. I wonder what the current version is for the Charge 5.  It doesn't say what version it is trying to install.

Supposedly I was able to do a successful update earlier today but nothing has changed.

I've been able to reset/reboot using the usb chord... 3 button presses.

[DavideFitbit]

Hi everyone, welcome to the new users in the Community.

Thanks for confirming that you've experienced a similar issue with your Charge 5. 

In this case, if you started experiencing these issues after swimming or showering, I do recommend that you get in touch with the Customer Support team for further assistance with this. They will let you know how to proceed. 

The best way to get help for this problem is to chat with us online or give us a call. You can click here to get connected.

See you around. 

[SnarkyLoon]

Oh my goodness! Same here!! Except I didn't go swimming, I just took a shower. 

I had my Charge 5 since (IIRC) Feb 2022, without any major issues. Then in Feb 2023, I took a shower with it on, which I usually do. The only difference was the band was starting to get stinky (that's a whole 'nother issue, the stinky wristband) so I removed it so I could scrub my wrist. I rinsed off the back of the Fitbit, too, because yuck dead skin cells.  Screen went black and I've never gotten it to restart or connect again. I've done the "press the button" thing at least forty or fifty times since Feb 9th, but no luck.

[starcracker]

After chatting with Fitbit support, they sent out a new Charge 5. I took it swimming, and not only is it still working fine, it accurately counted my laps (which my previous did not).

Thanks!

[SnarkyLoon]

Update: props to customer support! I chatted with them, they ran some troubleshooting, and they're sending a replacement. Glad I found this thread when I did... I actually got my Fitbit last April so the warranty is about 2 weeks from expiring. 

[DavideFitbit]

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

See you around in the community. 

[MelodyGG · Accepted solution]

just want to update my situation in this community. I used my fitbit charge 5 from March 2022 to March 2023 and fitbit customer support emailed saying it was beyond the warranty period which is 12 months and they won't do anything about it. The email was in their standard email format not explaining anything about my situation and also without a signature in the bottom of the email with their name. I tried to reply back today and just got an automatic email saying they already closed the case and if I need to reach out myself again to customer support if I want. This is just purely frustration....... 

[Pinkswan]

Hi, I’m in the U.K. My original Charge 4 was replaced under warranty because the strap broke exactly as you have described. I was sent a Charge 5 as a replacement in October 22. I wore it for swimming for the first time a couple of weeks ago and the battery died - it would not hold a charge at all. I used the chat with CS and was certainly impressed when a new pebble arrived a few days later, however I’m not impressed with being in my 3rd FitBit within 3 years, and the fact that from reading the forums here I can’t expect my Charge 5 to remain working if I take it into a pool - the precise reason it was originally purchased for! But 10/10 for FitBit CS

[MelodyGG]

Hi, I'm glad you had a good experience with them, so far, I had no luck. Two years with two broken fitbit is not a good sign of their products.... And they already closed my case and nobody is reaching out to me. If the CS team saw my message, could you please reach out and explain why my fitbit passed warranty?

[Reetsah57]

Me too!