How long does a fitbit normally last you?

[SunsetRunner]

How long does a Fitbit normally last you? I've gone through 3 in the last 2 and a half years?

[jac7991]

Hi Santi, I'd been using my Iconic for over a year without issue as well. Then this morning the alarms I'd set went off without issue, but about half an hour later, when I raised my arm to check the time, the screen didn't light up. As I'd fully charged it on Saturday, I was pretty certain it was not a dead battery, so I tried restarting it, but when that didn't work I put it to charge for over an hour and still nothing. I have now tried restarting it, as well as, factory resetting it, numerous times and nothing works, it appears to have just died, without warning. Not good for a $300 product to last only long enough to get you past the warranty then die. I've been a huge fan of Fitbit since the first Flex came out. I've had the Flex, Charge HR, Blaze, and Ionic, but I can't afford to make another $300 investment for only a years worth of use.

[Cordie]

I’ve broken two ionics in a year buy the Apple Watch better product and bette customer service

They fedex to the post office I’m now waiting 10 days for a replacement and they say they fedex them!!!! Haha 

[SantiR]

@jac7991 Welcome to the Fitbit forums! Thanks for taking the time to share all of those details regarding your experience with Ionic. It's unfortunate to read it is not turning on anymore. Thanks for trying the restart steps.

When you plug it in to the charging cable, does it shows its charging? Please check these tips for batteries that are not charging. Cleaning the contacts has helped other users in the past.

You could also change your Ionic's clock face. That could also help you out with this.

@Cordie I hope you're doing well! Thanks for sharing your feedback regarding this. Have you recieved it already?

Keep me posted! 

[jac7991]

Hi Santi, Thanks for your response. The Ionic does nothing when I put it on the charger. I did clean the contacts, twice in fact, with alcohol wipes. I left it on the charger for over an hour, when it still didn't turn on, I again tried restarting and factory resetting it, to no avail. I contacted support and they have determined that it is, unfortunately, dead. Thanks again. 

[SantiR]

@jac7991 Thanks for your reply and for sharing those details regarding the situation you are experienced with Ionic. Thanks for trying all of those steps in order to sort this out and for contacting customer support regarding this.

So, did customer support offered any solutions towards this? They should be able to provide the best solution available in order to get you back on track. 

Keep me posted! 

[Spookly]

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@SantiR wrote:

Hello everyone! Thanks for taking the time to participate on this thread regarding the lifespan of your Fitbit devices.

I've been using Ionic for more than a year now and so far so good. No signs of malfunction. I think it will also depend on the use and care you give to your device. 

If you need to check the warranty, click here. 

Hope this helps. Thanks again for sharing your experiences!

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To the bolded - this is laughable.  I had bought my Ionic shortly after it was released, spending $300 on this watch I expected it to last at least a couple of years. I have had my watch in a case or bumper with a screen protector on EVERY day of it's short lived life.  When out of the blue last night, the screen just stopped lighting up.  It is/was so strange because it is still vibrating/syncing/alarms still work.  However the screen will NOT work.

I have tried all the troubleshooting steps (resetting/changing clocks/etc) to no avail.  I contacted support in hopes that they could help.  But nope, after spending so much on a watch and taking good care of it, here's my 25% off.  What a crock.  I could have got a better deal on these before Christmas than their lame coupon.

OHHHH and the topper to this is - after doing more research it seems like this exact problem was happening with lots of other Ionics/Versas.

[Niecy17]

That's a good question.  I'm sure production knows how long various units were built to last. They can't really tell us because the wear and care is the ultimate decision factor of how long they actually last.  I'd ask production what a ball park time frame is on these units.

[Firk]

I have had multiples run out when an update happens or right when the warranty is up. It’s a scam...oh well give you 25% off...blah blah blah...it worked fine until update or warranty time up.   I reluctantly bought two more at the same time (one for me and my husband)...guess what...same time both won’t charge anymore...too much of a “coincidence”. Tired of Fitbit...bad business

[Firk]

I have had multiples run out when an update happens or right when the warranty is up. It’s a scam...oh we’ll give you 25% off”...blah blah blah...it worked fine until update or warranty time up.  I’ve had free cheap a$$ pedometers from Home Depot work for ten years compared to this overpriced pedometer...Final blow.... I reluctantly bought two more at the same time (one for me and my husband)...guess what...same time both won’t charge anymore...too much of a “coincidence”. Tired of Fitbit...bad business

[Niecy17]

*I've had my Versa for 9 months now with no issues.🤞 I had a Blaze before
that with nothing but issues and repeated replacements.🙄 Now, If they can
solve the wrist scarring problem, and the occasional water damage issues
that people are reporting, it would be closer to perfect. I switch sides
often to prevent skin irritation and dark marks where the light comes from.
I've taken a shower with the watch one time, but still feel apprehensive
about water with this unit because of all of the reports of it not working
after swimming when it's supposed to. It's a great concept that needs some
tweaking to be just right.:hammer_and_wrench: I totally understand how you feel. The blaze
almost killed my desire to deal with Fitbit. I just hope this unit
continues to be good to me.😊*

[Sportsfan]

Fitbit Charge HR - about six months until the back cover came loose and I therefore lost the push button. Made subsequently the mistake of upgrading to Charge 2, thinking it would be of better quality.

Fitbit Charge 2 - have by now my second replacement tracker. In each of them at least one strap has become loose within 6 months and does subsequently not attach reliably anymore. So the tracker falls off even when jogging, not to mention when playing tennis, soccer etc. Currently the strap that came loose in the second replacement tracker is superglued to the tracker since a few weeks, we'll see how long that lasts. Generally speaking, my advice would be to stay away at least from Charge HR and Charge 2. Poor quality and design. Probably in order to sell replacement bands the design of the Charge 2 strap is such that the tracker does not last for long, perhaps 3 to 6 months depending on physical activity and if worn nighttime to monitor sleep.  

[ReannaKnotts]

I am replacing my original flex after almost 4 years.

[izlikedat]

Same with My ionic.  Customer service is terrible and not local.  My Ionic lasted 15 months and they want to give me 25% off of a 300 device.  No deal.  

Yiu would think they would have a firmWare fix to the device just going out.  I would have bought a new one if it lasted 2 years.  Most people who have wearable technology are willing to upgrade with products that last. This one doesn’t last

Moderator edit: content 

[SunsetRunner]

My Fitbit Ionic died last week. Purchased it in January 2017. Given the warranty is for 12 months I'm guessing the Fitbits are designed only to last up to 2 years. Therefore obviously the Fitbit business model is for customers to regularly replace their fitbit watches on average every 2 years hence the wide range of watches to choose from & entice customers to upgrade their watches every 18 - 24 months to maximise their revenues. Given the high pricing of the fitbit range I'd suggest people look at other more durable & longer lasting fitness tracking watches 

[Luvdbyjc]

One year seems to be the average for me too.  Ridiculous when i can buy a watch for 40 dollars that will last 10 years!

[Niecy17]

Right,. It may be because we are paying for the technology, which is not
that intuitive.The merging of man and machine is still in it's infancy.
Digital and analog watches never need to be upgraded, that is why they
seemingly last forever. I want both things,too. We'll get there. 😊

[Michael-Powell]

2-3 years & went through 4 FitBit's;

•  FitBit One.
•  FitBit HR.
•  FitBit Blaze.
•  FitBit Ionic.

I always try to upgrade my FitBit more often when new models come out.

Moderator Edit: Formatting

[WendyB]

Have many and 3 to more years

[Martin_F]

Our company gave out Flex'es for Christmas 2015.  I wore it for a month in January before reading the documentation and realizing you had to take it off and sync and charge on a more regular basis than monthly so I only really started using it in February 2016.

I charge it once a week and sync roughly every other day.  I have one alarm set per day at 10:50 pm to remind me to start getting ready for bed which is the most valuable feature of the Flex in my opinion. 

I also like to see how well I slept - poorly for the most part but that's a lifelong thing - and how many steps I've gone.  I also track my weight and exercise with the Fitbit application.

I hated the original rubber strap. I tried some third-party clips to keep it from falling off, then bought a funky leather strap on Etsy.  It has a little metal box to hold the Flex with a small cutout to reveal the five LEDs.  It's much better-looking and makes a nice conversation piece as well.

I wear the Fitbit 24x7 except when swimming or playing kayak polo.  I also try to remember to take it off when I play the piano because half an hour of playing the piano generates hundreds of false steps.  If I do wear it while playing the piano I go back and eliminate the steps in the Fitbit application by recording a "Driving" activity for the same timeframe which eliminates the steps from my total.

My Flex worked fine like that till September of this year when the battery no longer made it through a week on a full charge.  It started showing signs of this even in July.  Lately the battery has been dying even with a semi-weekly charge but I've hung on till Black Friday and retired it this week in favour of a new Inspire HR.

In summary, my Fitbit Flex lasted a little over 3 1/2 years.

[Alf1975]

I have had 3 different fit bits. They are only lasting me about a year before I need a new one. Not happy with having to replace it so often.