Game Golf Draining Battery Quickly

[pb01]

Since Fitbit 3.0 Upgrade Game Golf Drains Battery Life - Tested twice now while playing and from a 100% Charged Ionic (with Fitbit Default Clock face) battery life is only good for 2.5 hours - meaning Iconic is flat dead by 10th to 12 hole. Currently running Game Golf 1.0.9 - the latest version.

Can anything been turned off etc.. or tuned to increase battery life ?

Moderator Edit: Updated Subject for Clarity/Format

[Bikerdog]

So, tried Game Golf with heartbeat disabled but notifications on, checked battery after 9 holes - 25% - so stopped using it.

Next day had Notifications off, heartbeat on, check battery after 9 holes and oh no, watch was dead already. Luckily I brought my old Garmin watch as a backup.

I'll use Golf GPS next, seems to be working pretty good for Blasko.

[DesertGranddad]

Thanks, Blasko. I'll give it a try....or see if I CAN give it a try.

[MarreFitbit]

Hi @Blasko! Thanks so much for sharing that information, hope my friends @Bikerdog and @DesertGranddad find it helpful too. 

As mentioned previously, you're experiencing rapid battery drain when using Game Golf, please take a moment to contact the developer using the link in the app description. This will help to have this issue prioritized on their end as well. 

Our team has raised this issue to our product team who will be in contact with Game Golf directly. 

We really appreciate your patience and understanding. Have a nice day!

[Appin]

Hi Guys, just to say that I used Golf GPS for the first time today and it was ok. I liked that it automatically moved from hole to hole and it only cost me 30% battery power for 16 holes. 

[MarreFitbit]

Music to my ears @Appin! I'm so happy to hear that your Golf app didn't drain your battery after playing. 

Hope to see you participating in the Community more often since I think it would be awesome for you to explore our Community. You can go ahead and log to any of the topics that might be of your interest in our Discussion boards. Feel free to comment and contribute with your knowledge and experience. 

Have a nice weekend! 

[Windman]

 I have not yet tested Game Golf since the update but I never had battery drain problems with Game Golf. Thus as a friend having a new Ionic told me yesterday that he was having a problem with battery drain I told him to return the watch.Now from this thread I learned that this is a general problem due to either new Ionic 0S and Game Golf SW. I expect to experience the same problem with my Ionic once the gulf season starts. Turning of HR or other messaging is not an option for me. Fitbit should fix this as it seems to be a problem with both apps. My other GPs trackers are all capable to track more than 12- 20 hours and I expect Fitbit to be at least as god. If Fitbit developers do not care about following up problems like this reported in this forum Fitbit will lose.

[Blasko]

I use Golf GPS. Charge it before I play. Much easier to load courses. Has auto hole advance and shot tracking. Have plenty of battery left when I’m done.

I’m not a tech expert but I think it’s up to the developer to tailor their app after a OS change. Game Golf has many other products for the golf market. Perhaps Game Golf for Fitbit isn’t a priority.

Blasko

Sent from my iPhone

[Appin]

I think that you have hit the nail on the head Blasko. I actually prefer the layout of Game Golf but Golf GPS has advantages like the auto hole advance. Very disappointed that Game Golf/Fitbit haven't sorted this out by now and it does leave me thinking that we are very low on their priority list.

[Bikerdog]

My two cents here.

Just tried Golf GPS and for the most part it works fine. The only issue is if you wander to far from your phone it tends to reset to hole one. It is simple enough to hit the buttons to get back to the correct hole.

Back to Game Golf. Seems to me the battery drain issue has to do with the display always being on since the last update.  I wrote Game Golf and they responded why not just set my watch to manual wake up instead of auto wake up. It would be be nice if auto wake up worked as intended with the app but thinking about it, it wouldn't be that big of a deal to set the watch to manual wake up while using this app and simply tap the screen when you need a distance reading. Haven't tried it but suspect Game Golf will last 18 + holes when set this way. I'm playing 9 holes in a couple days, I'll try it out see how the battery looks after.

[MarreFitbit]

Hello @Windman, @Blasko, @Appin, and @Bikerdog! I really appreciate you all have taken the time to share your feedback and your experience with the Game Golf app.

If you're still experiencing rapid battery drain when using Game Golf, as advised above, please take a moment to contact the developer using the link in the app description. This will help to have this issue prioritized on their end as well. 

Let me know if there's anything else I may do to assist in the meantime. 

[Appin]

Hi MarreFitbit. Are we any further forward on this? It seems to be taking an inordinately long time to fix this and having become used to it, I really miss it now. Ta.

[pb01]

Finally got onto the golf course after 4 weeks travel & work - 100% Charged Ionic, HR Off, Notifications all off and dead by the 13th hole. Time to try a new app.

Brgds

[Appin]

I am inclined to agree pb01. I have moved on to using Golf GPS which is good but if I'm honest I think I preferred Game Golf until they broke it. I was toying with the idea of buying the Game Golf Pro but with this level of customer support I don't think I will. 

[AlejandraFitbit]

Hey @Appin and @pb01, thanks for your participation in the Community.

If you are experiencing battery drain issues when using Game Golf, as recommended previously, take a moment to contact the developer by using the link in the app description. This will help to have this issue prioritized on their end as well.

In the meantime, let me know if you need anything else. 😊

[MJB.1]

Same issue here. Worked lovely the first time I used gamegolf, used around 70% battery over 18 holes but that’s understandable. 

Used it it today and from 100% battery on the 1st tee, it was dead come the 13th! 

I remember the first time the screen when off in between using it, as would normally happen with the ionic, but this time the screen stayed on the whole time. I guess the combination of GPS and screen on wiped it out. Hoping they sort this out soon as it’s a great app in general 

[Appin]

Thanks Alejandra. I have certainly raised the issue with Game Golf as I am sure many of my colleagues have too. We do not seem to be making much progress with Game Golf and I would be interested to hear whatFitbit is doing to help resolve this unfortunate situation. We are but individuals caught in the middle but you represent a large organisation with considerably more clout than we have. It does not reflect well on Fitbit that this app, which is clearly not fit for purpose at present, remains available on your platform. It is not good enough to simply refer people to Game Golf. Fitbit has a responsibility here too.

[DesertGranddad]

I've switched to Golf GPS which works for me. Took some tinkering to figure
it out, but it's ok now. No fairway schematics just distances but maybe
that's all this Fitbit gizmo can handle. Meanwhile, FORE!!!

[Blasko]

Grandad,

I’m using the beta version of Golf GPS.  It has bigger font and a digital clock display that is alway on.

The developer has more features in the works for the future.  He is putting more effort into the project.

Blasko

[DesertGranddad]

Great to hear. Thanks for the update.

[Bikerdog]

The last I heard from Game Golf, they told me to put the screen in manual wake up which seemed reasonable. I tried that and the screen still seemed to stay on AND the app would reset every hole ( like old times). I so done with this app and reporting back to Game Golf, it should be removed as a  choice.

Golf GPS is simple but it works ( if your phone is near by). I'll just use this app going forward. In fact heading out right now.