Unable to complete Charge 6 set up process

[Nonsense24]

I've had multiple Fitbits over the years, but I've never had one like the Charge 6 where it can't even get past pairing with the phone. When I called customer service twice, they asked if I did all of these things (restarted the device, turned off bluetooth, restarted the phone, etc.), which I had already done all of those things multiple times. They then explained that they're having an app issue and that the problem is not with the device or me, but with them. 

Why act like it's the customer's problem up front only to then turn around at the end and admit their fault? The moment Fitbit had these issues on Wednesday, they should have been out front with communication on what's going on and when to expect the fix. I realize it's a bad look right at the release of the Charge 6 (and they want to sell as many as they can), but it only infuriates us more when they don't communicate these issues. 

Anything working for anybody else? Or are we just supposed to wait for an undetermined day and time for our Charge 6s to actually work? I was able to re-pair my Charge 5 without any problem, so there is either something wrong with the Charge 6 device or how the app is pairing with the Charge 6.

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[MattRoxx]

I was having all the same problems and what finally worked was: connect phone to charger, then click on the charger button 3 times, with a 1 or 2 second pause between each. It caused the Charge 6 to restart or reboot, and after that the phone showed the connection and did the update and sync. The old, "turn it off and turn it back on again" worked. 

[LizzyFitbit]

Welcome to the community, @Nonsense24 and @MattRoxx.

@Nonsense24 Thanks for the detailed information, and your efforts while working on this matter. I see where you're coming from and I'm sorry this happened with your new Charge 6. We had some issues with the Fitbit app not working correctly on Wednesday; however, our team worked on it until getting it resolved. I understand the issue persists and while you've tried troubleshooting your tracker, could you give one more try to the following steps in the given order?

1. Fully charge your tracker
2. Reboot your phone and restart your Charge 6
3. Force close the Fitbit App on your phone
4. Forget every Fitbit device from the Bluetooth settings
5. Turn off the Bluetooth, and then turn it back on
6. Retry the Charge 6 Setup process.
   
   

@MattRoxx Thanks for sharing the steps that worked for you. Your post will definitely help other members around the forums.

[mailau]

When you were able to reboot your charge 6, how far in the setup process had you gotten?  I'm stuck on the "download the fitbit app" step and haven't been able to restart the device.  When I do the 3 button presses, the device vibrates but nothing happens after the 3rd button press.  The screen just stays on and rotating between the message and the "download app" image.

[Nlindberg]

@LizzyFitbit it's not an issue with the app. My wife and I both recieved charge 6. We can both setup my charge 6 without problem on both phones and we both cannot setup hers on either phone. We can also both setup our charge 4 and 5.

How do we get a working replacement for my wife's charge 6?

[SmmrChkn49]

I am having the same issue 

[Rich_Laue]

@SmmrChkn49 did you try setting up the Charge 6 again? 

[SmmrChkn49]

I sent it back. Nothing out of the box should be that difficult and
frustrating.

[VallartaMan]

What has happened since your post?  Has customer service helped?  I'm having the same problem and haven't heard back.

Thanks.

[dandabald]

Same issue as others, my Charge6 (received yesterday Saturday 11/18) is stuck at "Download the Fitbit Mobile app"

Thanks

[GA329]

I'm having the same issue. Stuck on the download the app screen, fitbit won't pair and I can't tell if it's charging. How disappointing.

[BobGeo]

Along with the posts from Matt and Lizzie, what finally worked for me was charging the Charge 6 for near 24 hours, rebooting phone and Charge 6 using the USB cable, Opened FitBit app, had failed pairing, restarted FitBit again, with Bluetooth off for a minute... when Bluetooth was turned back on I was prompted to set up the Charge 6 without manually starting the FitBit process. The one indicator that I was on the right track was seeing 98% charged on the FitBit. A dozen or so tries failed mostly the day before. I'm using a Google Pixel 7 Pro.

Best of luck to everyone who's wrestling with this.

[Karen50]

I'm having the same issue. Nothing seems to work. My Charge 6 is also stuck at "Download the Fitbit Mobile app" which is crazy as I have had a FItbit Charge 2 for 5 years so my app is current. I even got a google email before starting to setup the new Charge 6.

[GA329]

Wow, thanks so much for the reply! I think my issue may have simply been a
VERY dead battery. Once I ensured it was docked correctly and gave it more
time, everything went to plan.

[Cragem]

I had the exact same problem and fumbled around with these instructions for about 2 hours.  In the end, I think what solved it for me was finally successfully resetting the Fitbit itself.  (I say "I think" because that's the last thing I did before it worked, but it could have been random or a combination of things.)

To reset the Fitbit, I pushed the button on the charging cable 3 times, waiting for the Fitbit to vibrate each team.  It then reset itself properly, and then paired properly & first attempt afterward. 

Mistakes I made in the process:

1) Pushing the Fitbit button and not the charging cable button

2) Not pushing the charging cable button hard enough (it's an odd button; not clicky at all)

3) Not registering a "vibrate" on the Fitbit after each time I pushed the charging cable button.

Once it worked, it worked.  But it was not a great experience.

[NoiseCrime]

Agreed that setting up the Charge 6 is a pain compared to previous models, specifically just getting the bluetooth paired.

It took me a good 15 minutes to get it paired and that was only after waiting over and hour to get it charged to 100% power.

There is a popup help screen that appears if you tap re-try, but it is only visible for about a second for me. I had to take a screenshot on the phone to actually read it. The tips were useful, but even then it took multiple attempts including

• Disable/enable bluetooth.
• Charge the tracker to 100% power.
• Keep the 'Charge 6' plugged into the USB charger and letting it maintain 100% charge.
• Turning the phone off and on again to reset it.
• Resetting the Charge 6 - though having to press 3 times with 1 second intervals in-between each press seemed very unreliable.

Eventually after all these steps and finally making the 'Charge 6' restart I got it to display the pairing code.

After that it was fine.

[Songmaster]

Repeating Cragem’s first listed mistake, the main issue I had when setting up my device was that the reset button for the Charge 6 is on the USB plug itself, don’t press the button on the device itself or look for one on the charger (which is where some older devices had them). Once I found that the instructions for setup worked okay for me, using an older Android phone.

[NoiseCrime]

Wow - I thought you were talking rubbish, even after checking my USB charger several times. I mean who has ever put a reset button on the USB lead?

That was until I examined the moulded part that contains the USB connection and noticed a tiny recessed little black circle - I assume this is the 'reset button' you talk about.  That is so weird and don't recall seeing anything in the instructions mentioning this! If that is the button that is meant to be used, I'm not even sure how I managed to reset the 'Charge 6' ( twice ) using its side button, maybe I disconnected/reconnected the USB lead during my attempts and that acted in the same way since the USB only supplies power and only has two pins to the 'Charge 6' so can't really convey any information?

Regardless thank you for pointing this out, either I was making my post when Cragem made theirs and missed it, or I just didn't read it.

[Rich_Laue]

For those that are seeing the Download fitbit app. Make sure you have the fitbit app on the phone. If you have an android phone, you should soon get a popup asking to setup the Charge 6. With Apple, you can do this with android, you will want to run the fitbit app and choose add more devices. Then follow the prompts 

[VballKitty]

You mean connect fitbit to charger, not phone