Does the Ionic have the same sync and battery issues as the Blaze does with an S8+?

[Tesinato]

I was curious if the Ionic watch has improved from the Blaze.  I've about had it with my Blaze watch.  The GPS function always fails me, and the watch usually takes a good 15 minutes to sync.  This makes my runs inaccurate, along with my calorie burns and just about everything else.  Just this evening, I went for a run around a track that is measured, and because the GPS kicked out 4 minutes into my run, I lost over a half a mile of distance and about 2 minutes on my pace time.  I used a stopwatch to make sure I was running at the proper speed to test.  It is frustrating, to say the least.  Additionally, the battery life is about 1 day before completely dead.  It usually loses 20-30% just from me sleeping.  I've done all the recommended things from the forums and from tech support over the phone, but the problem seems to be getting worse.  I'm thinking of upgrading to an Ionic, but I do see threads that state there are battery issues and syncing issues, and was curious if this is a widespread problem, or isolated to a few people.  Also, if this is a big problem, are there plans to fix this?  Are there any issues with the onboard GPS?  The accuracy of my runs is paramount to me.  I'm trying to train myself to go faster, and having reliable stats on my pace and heart rate are valuable to my training.  While I don't mind dropping money on a new watch, wasting it on a watch that is going to give me the same issues seems silly to me.  I love the Fitbit community and all the features the app has, but seeing as I can barely use it anymore due to my watch, I'm considering another brand if I'll experience the same hardships with the Ionic.  

[willow71uk]

Battery is good but yes the sync probemst are still there 

[Tesinato]

Doubt you would know but is there any time frame on when they may fix all these problems?  I'd like to stick with Fitbit because I do like the interface and the way the watches work, but the syncing and not counting steps for challenges are two major reasons I'm hesitant to throw 300 bucks into a new watch.  I know one way or another, mine is needing replacement because tech support can't figure out what is wrong with mine.

[SunsetRunner]

@Tesinato you don't say what phone you're using but I've an iPhone and do not suffer any sync issues (& fwiw I see that there is also an update today in the AppStore).

Some people have said they've issues with the GPS but again, I'm not one of them and find that my regular bike rides of 30km are tracked very close to my Wahoo bike computer.

Oh and battery is good. I've dropped 10% in 24hrs, though I have had the screen on manual activation rather than auto today (wanted to see how much difference it made. Quite a lot it transpired)

Hope that helps 

[SunsetRunner · Accepted solution]

From my experience with the Ionic.

- GPS: Ionic syncs 20 to 30 seconds (max for me). Has never dropped out, either.

- Battery issues? Fully charged it on Sunday afternoon, it's Wednesday and I'm at 50%, tracking a one hour weight workout Monday, and a 6 mile run yesterday. I'll use it tonight for another workout, and tomorrow morning for another run, then I'll probably need to charge it. We'll see. I might charge it tonight after weight training just to be sure.

Better than my Surge ever was.

[Tesinato]

I use a Samsung s8+, which I did state in the title.  However, that is amazing on the battery life.  I think for that reason alone I may consider getting it.  My Blaze is usually dead after a day of use, which can be annoying.  

[SunsetRunner]

I've read that it seems the S8 has a battery issue with the blaze.

My ionic is lasting about 6 days, without using notification nor gps that much.

Regarding the syncing, it sometimes takes a few tries to sync, but usually does right away with a non compatible device (galaxy j7).

[Tesinato]

If I plan to use the GPS every day, do you think that will make the battery die as quickly as the blaze?  I usually run for at a min 30 minutes a night, sometimes even longer as I'm training myself to run a 10k for next year.  My times and distance are important to me as I travel and sometimes don't have a measured course to run like I currently do.  I've seen from previous posts that the GPS always stays on once it syncs which is great, but I'm curious how much it drains the battery.  Also, what settings do you have set in the app?  Do you have all day sync and always connected turned off, or can they stay on and still last for more than a couple of days?  I don't mind charging it while I shower, but if it is almost dead by the end of the day, that means 2+ hours to get it back to full, which means I have to wait for it to be done before I can go to sleep, or I sleep without it.  

[SunsetRunner]

Hi @Tesinato and sorry I missed you've an S8+ in the title. Doh! Re gps, the stated life is 10hrs of active gps use. What this means in practice is you can have a good run and still have battery afterwards, and yes items to top up in the shower too. Makes a big difference as invariably my Ionic is always around 80%.

I'm not on Android currently but I've read that turning off all day sync is actually better as the app will sync when you open it (and this was something I did do on my Blaze / S7 combo) however I can't vouch for it personally though others do.

Hope this helps 

[SunsetRunner]

So, as an addendum to my previous comment, I only charged the watch to 95% on Sunday - not a full charge. And still, I didn't actually have to charge it until this morning. That's two one hour GPS runs of 6 miles, three one hour workout tracks, and using the watch to control music on my phone (Classic Bluetooth has to be on), notifications on, and the watch face automatically comes on (have not tried "manual" because I run in the early morning and I need to see my split times). I still had 12% battery this morning, but, of course, the low battery indicator was on, so i charged it. (Your experience may vary.)

I have had All-day Sync on, and off, and noticed no real measurable battery issue with the watch performance. I usually have had Always Connected on to ease syncing to the phone and have noticed no real measurable battery issue with the watch. I currently have them both off, and I see no issue with syncing the watch to the phone.

Neither setting affected phone battery very much either, but the S8 has an amazing battery (compared to my S6). And I leave the phone bluetooth so I have notifications. 

Yes, if you let the watch drop to 12% like I did, it will take about two hours to fully charge. I put mine on charge about 0615, and it is at 97% at 0750. But i keep the charging cable and one of those portable power cells so i can bump charge it if I know I can't get to an outlet. FYI - I use my Samsung 2.1A charging adapter, not a computer USB.

[shipo]

@Tesinato, I typically have a GPS tracked run lasting between 60 and 90 minutes every day, under these conditions I typically get three to four days of battery life out of my Ionic.