Does Ionic HR work on tattoos?

[pmt223]

Hi there. Longtime Fitbit owner and current AW wearer on my right wrist. I have a tattoo on my left wrist which prevents HR from being tracked. I was wondering if anyone had experience with the new red light tech in the Ionic if it works ok with a tattoo? Thanks!

[N8teGee]

The Ionic uses the same green light as the apple watch, so I would say you might have similar issues regarding your tattoo. The red light tech is currently disabled on the Ionic, I think this is reserved only for the blood oxygen sensing. 

[pmt223]

Thanks - dang I was hopeful for a different response

[MarciM]

Hi @pmt223 Can you explain more about why you can't get an HR reading over a tattoo? I have a tattoo on my wrist and haven't experience any issues. Nor have I heard of this problem before. Could just be me and I missed it, but if you wouldn't mind explaining it to me. I would appreciate it. Thanks!

[pmt223]

The ink makes it hard for green light to see through. I have a black tattoo design on my left wrist, and readings are always all over the place or undetectable. I was hoping that the red light in the Ionic that I had heard about was working, since red light can read further into your skin into the bloodstream. Green light doesn’t go that far, which is why so many say that it’s never really 100% accurate, especially on the wrist. 

I wear an Apple Watch on my right wrist (and the Surge before that) asa result. On my left wrist, the AW would often lock itself as a result of not being able to detect it was on my left wrist since it couldn’t get a reading. The Charge HR and the Surge would often have readings from anywhere from 30-250. 

[MarciM]

@pmt223Thank you for the additional information. 

[mlindgren]

I have a full sleeve tattoo which goes all the way down to my wrist. The bottom part is black and green, and I assume the green ink would be especially troublesome for optical heart rate sensors since it reflects green light. I have worn my Ionic on that wrist and I was able to get heart rate readings, but they seemed less accurate (in most cases, a bit high). They weren't horrendously off base or bouncing all over the place, though. Also, I was just eyeballing the numbers, not comparing to a chest strap.

tldr: I tend to wear my Ionic on my non-tattooed wrist since it seems more accurate, but it's not totally useless if I wear it on my tattooed wrist.

[Kumaxx]

Just got a Ionic (Awesome) I seem to have trouble with readings during sleep. Wear on left wrist facing in have black tattoo will move to outer wrist see if that works better 

[Tattish]

Im a tattoo artist of 35 years , fully sleeved . I recently had fun searching for a smart watch with a workin hr monitor . Never thought in the history of my career that this would be an issue . Had no luck with the gear s3  or others .

   Kudos to fitbit!  I am happy-to announce after extensive research and trial , that YES ... the fitbit ionic hr monitor seems to be working flawlessly . Thank god for new technology. Its the only one i have ever used that was usable for tattooed people. I have plenty of black ink as well as color , and i have yet to see any problems . I will try to keep everyone posted if i do run into any errors . So far so good!

[ashleysb06]

Hey there. I know you posted this ages ago but do you have any updates? did the HR monitor continue to work over your tattoos?

[pmt223]

Mine didn’t. If it was in just the right spot it might work for a little bit but generally no. I’ve since started wearing my watch on my dominant arm instead and have gotten used to it. 

[ashleysb06]

such a shame. guess I will give up on fitness tracking until the tech advances, I am covered from shoulder to fingers in tattoos 😕 Thanks for your response though!

[Tattish]

Im a tattoo artist veteran of 35 years. . I had the fitbit. But monitors were intermittent . They will not got a reading if the area its over alot of black. Lighter colors not so big of issue , but darker pigments are a problem .
Hate to recommend something else but apple watch 3,and 4 . Ive never had a single problem with .
I had the ionic . And it did have issues .

Never would have thought that ink would be an issue with this. But several clients have reported issues .
The samsung gear is not dooable either.

Sent from my iPhone

[Tattish]

The apple watch series 3 and 4 work flawless:). Had the series 3 for 2 years without a problem

Sent from my iPhone