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?

[DramaQueenDiva]

Flex 1: 2 years

Alta HR: Had it since May 2016 and it still works as well as it did on Day 1

Versa: Only had since May of 2018, not a scratch on it.

Ionic: Been working since October of 2017 and still not a scratch on it.

Charge 3: Just got this last month.

[SunsetRunner]

I got an ionic in January and it died on me last week. Had a charge 2 before that and it only lasted a year

[Ndi]

Right, so:

Me:

Surge (4 years); Issues: could not calculate distance correctly. Months on private chats with support didn't fix. Resignation. Sweat ate through the metal. General wear and tear. Resilient device. Replaced it because battery died (7 days became 24-34 hours).

Ionic (1 year and kicking): Issues: None. A few days ago it started restarting for no reason. I hope that's not the end.

GF:

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: Rubber came loose from the device.

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: Rubber came loose from the device.

Charge HR (~ 1 year); Issue: Lost SOMEHOW

Charge 3 (< 1 year); Issue: None so far.

Father

Charge HR (< 3 year); Issue: Rubber came loose from the device.

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: Non-fitbit related retiring

Mother

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: Would not sync

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: Would not **** sync

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: Would not ********* SYNC!!! I think she has her own radiation.

Charge 3 (< 1 year); Issue: None so far. Hopefully.

Uncle

Charge HR (< 2 year); Issue: Rubber came loose from the device.

Charge HR (< 2 year); Issue: Rubber came loose from the device.

Charge 3 (< 1 year); Issue: None so far.

Cousins and other family:

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: Rubber came loose from the device.

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: none (destroyed mechanically)

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: none (abandoned)

Charge HR (< 1 year); Issue: God knows.

Also Fitbit:

Fitbit Aria:

Me: ~4 years. Issues: It stopped having a responsible idea about body fat. Over 4% error between measurements. I keep it as a scale. Works perfectly otherwise

Uncle/family: ~4 years. Issues: None that I know.

So, in my experience, there's the short list:

a) Taking care of your device tends to extend lifetime (technically inclined owners = longer device life)

b) More expensive models are better built (Charge is cheap)

c) Charge HR has been glued together by a monkey with Parkinson's

d) Always, ALWAYS purchase your Fitbit through a good, reliable retailer, so that they have to deal with returns. Fitbit ain't The Return Company. Get a local store that honors warranty comfortably.

[SunsetRunner]

My ionic just died last week. I got it from Fitbit.com and when I contacted
Fitbit about it, they didn’t even offer a replacement. I see other people
posting the same thing as me and saying to stay away from Fitbit.

[AnonFBUser]

Not long Enough.  I've had 2 Surges -

Surge one replaced due to straps breaking inside 2 yr warranty.

Surge two straps broke again. This occurred outside warranty.

Ionic bought to replace last Surge - Just claimed on warranty as entire watch face came off, only held in place by circuitry in device.

For the money these things cost their reliability is pretty poor. That said, the warranty has covered two of the three I've had

[Michael_S]

Mine just crapped out after a year. So what's a good alternative smart watch...other than Apple?

[SunsetRunner]

My old Charge 2 still lives and is in good shape, so it's almost 2 years old. I haven't been using it since I bought Ionic but my wife uses hers Charge 2 and she's quite happy with it ( we bought both Charge 2 devices at the same time ). Ionic sort of lives. It's 8 months old. Water got inside during shower and display is glitching now. The strap broke like 3 weeks ago. Since I was abroad and didn't have any way to replace it I fixed it with glue and it holds ( but I can't replace strap anymore ). Now that "thingy" with Fitbit logo that is supposed to lock the strap is falling off too. I moved it to my right wrist as a secondary device and will use it until it dies permanently. Most annoying thing is that glitching display because after 3-4 seconds I can't see anything on it but just garbage.

[SunsetRunner]

They didnt even offer me a replacement for mine that died. Kind of annoyed
about that

[AnonFBUser]

Was it in warranty ?
Did it die through normal wear and tear ?

[SunsetRunner]

Yeah I got it in January. So it should still be under warranty

[Moody-chef]

Yes I get it, I’m on my second Ionic in 13 months... been through two Fitbit flyers to.... both lasted less than 6 months... didn’t use them that often say 3 times a week at the gym and both had the same issue, left ear piece stopped playing music...

[OrthoShoe]

Fitbit One, still works after 5 years.  I have it on my dog's collar,lol.  Fitbit Blaze, 15 months, contacted fitbit and they offered me 25% off another device (not the ionic, the older models, versa not out yet).  Ionic since August of 2017, survived every firmware update and seems OK.  After the Blaze, I did buy the 2 year extended warranty.

[Michael_S]

i have a replacement on the way. Mine was less than a year old. We'll see how long this one lasts and in the meantime I'll start looking at other brands. It's pretty obvious their products are having reliability issues.

[Crazy-Fritter]

---

@SunsetRunner wrote:
My ionic just died last week. I got it from Fitbit.com and when I contacted
Fitbit about it, they didn’t even offer a replacement. I see other people
posting the same thing as me and saying to stay away from Fitbit.

---

If it's still under warranty and you didn't physically break it, but it just failed from a defect, they legally have to honor the warranty and replace it.

Unless there's something else you're not telling us?

It's not like them to refuse to honor their warranty.....in fact they were extremely good about honoring my warranty, they went above and beyond for me 😉

[AnonFBUser]

I found the same with the warranty - they’re very good. The trouble is the device is just too fragile and breaks too easily (or in my case, the non replaceable straps break). I’m on my third Fitbit and if this replacement breaks I’m off looking at Apple

Sent from my iPhone

[FastRunninMom]

I am on my third ionic in 3 months. The first one barely made it a month when the Fitbit logo appeared on the screen and never went away. The second one died completely (0%) after a 100% charge and wouldn’t come back on. If this one doesn’t last I’m switching back to Apple. I’m extremely disappointed to say that as I really do love the look and functionality of the ionic but the reliability has been less than great. 

[WendyB]

Charge 3 11/1/18
Versa 7/2018 In Use
Ace 7/2018 Gave to Child
Ionic 10/3/2017 In use
Alta HR 3 2017 In Use
Charge 2 2016 In use
Blaze 2015 Retried But friend is still using and going strong
Alta 2015 Retired
Surge 2015 Retired 5/6/2018
Charge 2012 Retired
Flex 2011 Retired
One 2012 In Use
Ultra 2011 Retired
Classic 2010 Broken

[cable-dg]

I always get extra warranty, have never had a fitbit that has lasted 3 years. 

[SantiR]

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!