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I agree with many of the others. I know there may not appear to be enough users requesting the bluetooth LE off functionality for fitbit to consider it, but I also know of several hundred, Yes Really, who would consider it, fitbit devices, at my location alone. There are 8,000 military and 12,000 civilians affected by the bluetooth rules at my location alone. I traded a fitbit flex for a first generation jawbone with my son-in-law for that reason. I love the Surge and want one, but I can't justify it if I can't turn the LE radio off while I am at work.
Please don't just consider, but make this an option. You will get a number, Most Likely thousands more at $249 a pop, of new customers with this functionality. Most people I speak with on the military base I work at love the look and function of your products, but won't buy them because they cannot disable the bluetooth. They get written up in sensitive electronic areas for active bluetooth devices and could potentially lose jobs.
One older gentleman specifically stated he came home and threw the device in a drawer because he was written up for a violation at work. He loves the device, but can't afford to lose his job. Thanks for implementing this as soon as possible.
Moderator Edit: Edited title for clarity and word choice
@RRios wrote: ...how am I possibly putting my health at risk when I choose a Garmin tracker (on/off Bluetooth option) over a Fitbit tracker?
@RRios that's just it--you're not. At all. If you're concerned about your health or workplace compliance there are no down-sides. If you're concerned about the long-term viability of the parent company there are no downsides. If you're concerned about other topics like if you can go swimming with it, or if the web-app can connect to X, Y or Z...then you're in the wrong feature request thread.
Do you know if Fitbit has listened people asking for this?
Thanks 🙂
edit: I've seen that moderators have moved my post here in this thread...I was asking if the new Fitbit Alta HR will have the possibility to switch off the Bluetooth. I understand Fitbit has no interest on this function. I'm ok and I'm out waiting for new Garmin 🙂
I am worried about privacy. I have a bluetooth scanner app on my phone that is able to track nearby bluetooth devices like the ones from fitbit, all the time, also when not explicitly connected/paired/bonded. This allows to track individual devices geographically with a distributed set of scanners. This is something that makes me thing whether I want to wear this "tracking device" at all. PLEASE make bluetooh switchable to help protect the privacy of fitbit users.
Since we are dreaming about FitBit actually listening to a feature request we might as well dream big. Rather than just an On/Off setting I'd like also have an Auto setting that turns of Bluetooth when we are sleeping. This would extend battery life without any impact on syncing.
Agreed! Please provide a way to turn off bluetooth on ALL of your devices. There are lots of folks out there who would rather not be subject to all the EMF.
This thread has been locked due to the large number of inflammatory and off-topic comments. You can still vote on it to express your interest and support.
I recently started working at a national lab, and because my Fitbit has bluetooth, I am unable to wear it when I am in the limited area. (Some people work in there exclusively, and that may be the case for me someday. But for now, I have to remove my device when I go in that area.)
Where there an option to turn it off, this would not be a problem. Or, if you offered a device that didn't have bluetooth, I could use it. But, for now, I can't.
I am in the same situation in that I cannot bring a device to work unless Bluetooth is disabled. I had to give away my Fitbit and purchase a Garmin HR+. After looking through the different threads, it's disappointing to see that requests for disabling Bluetooth date back over two years. Garmin and Apple fitness products allow disabling of Bluetooth so I'm confused at to why Fitbit doesn't offer this feature. I really like their App which is far superior to Garmin's convoluted one.
More businesses and government facilities are requiring Bluetooth be disabled and that number will continue to increase. Is Fitbit currently working on this? Can't imagine it takes 2 years or more to integrate this feature. Otherwise I will have to give up on having another Fitbit device anytime soon.
Hello--I and many others would like to have the option to turn Bluetooth on and off from the device itself. I know I can turn it off on my phone but I do not connect with my Fitbit that way; I use an iMac, and turning Bluetooth on and off from there is a hassle and takes much more time than it would to just press a button on my device. (I use a Charge 2 but there's no reason not to make it available on all.)
Fitbit devices are specifically banned from all US Federal buildings and all Embassies and Missions abroad. This is due to security issues regarding the ability to turn them off and disable Bluetooth. Please enable the ability to power them off and disable Bluetooth. Regards.
I just received an ionic as a birthday present. I would like to wear my device for sleeping however I am hesitant due to the bluetooth/wifi and emf exposure concern. I would greatly appreciate an update that would allow us to turn off both wifi and bluetooth when we don't need them enabled. For a device promoting sleep tracking, peace of mind is going to go a long way to a restful sleep when we are sure that all EMF is off during the night.
Hi everyone, and thanks so much for sharing this suggestion! While we don’t currently have plans to release this feature, we always appreciate the passion and creativity that comes out of this Community. Since we know this idea is important to many of you, we have left voting open to continue tracking interest and will post another update if anything changes. To learn more about how Fitbit decides which suggestions get developed, visitour FAQs. We're always striving to enhance Fitbit products and services, and your input is a big part of that process. We truly thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us.
It's unbelievable that since 2015, when people started to ask for it, this function was not added. I am really disappointing. Probably I am not the only one who is thinking to switch to another brand. 🙂
I really don't understand why Fitbit trackers don't have this essential feature. It must be very easy yo implement (virtually all smartwatches, wearables and connected devices have this feature) and its advantages are obvious. Other proposals in this forum focus only on the advantage of allowing people to use Fitbit in restricted areas where these wireless connections are forbidden, which is true. But I would like to note that the advantages are much more than those, and would benefit every Fitbit user:
-Saving A LOT of battery
-Avoiding unnecesary excessive exposure to these electromagnetic waves (for example while sleeping)
-Avoiding conflicts or interferences which other bluetooth or electronic devices needing priority use at a given moment (for example wireless headphones).
I am pretty sure most Fitbit users only need bluetooth one minute a day for daily data syncing purposes, or at most also when doing workouts if they want to see the live stats or enable GPS tracking. The rest of the day, it's useless. Even those who like to have bluetooth notifications enabled the whole day won't need bluetooth to be enabled while sleeping, for example.
I found this an essential feature whose abscence can even be a decisive reason to move to a competitor brand. It is so simple to do this that, if Fitbit is not going to consider this proposal, I would really appreciate someone from Fitbit explaining WHY they do not want to do this, since I cannot really understand a reason for doing so.
I would suggest redesign and patent a fitbit that is compliant with organizations that handle classified information. I have worked in the speicial operation community as active duty and as a private contractor for more than 30 years. I am also a certified Industrial Security Manager.
In cooperation with DoD/ Dos and all the other three letter agencies, develop a fitbit device that will allow fitbit users to wear their fitbit at work without the possibility of security compromise.
Immediately patent the "new design" to block your competitors and have 7 years of market control on that sector. The scale of that market is in the millions of potential fitbiters. It would also be a public relations boon for fitbit because you have taken an aggressive stance on a national security matter that is in the headlines right now. Take advantage of this media opportunity immediately. You can find my profile on LinkedIn. If you want further explanation or help with this muti-million dollar opportunity let me know, i am sure we can find some common ground. I believe in your product and the United States of America.
James Matis to review Fitbit use, need to redesign and make them compliant to the 5.1 million people that have security clearances. Imagine, that is a whole new market hidden within a market you already have. A seven year patent protected device will spawn a "next generation" of Fitbiters...
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