Ionic Black Screen and Will Not Start Up

[OferGrosz]

It seems to be a lot of people with the same problem as of recent. My Ionic quit receiving notifications and then at midnight it would erase the previous day stats from my phone app (It said it was syncing) and I started to look back at the app and the last saved date was 02/05. I also seen there was an automatic update on 02/04. Customer Service says that is not the problem, But my watch was working fine up to that point. I decided to uninstall everything from the phone and factory reset the Ionic and everything was going fine and halfway through the install the watch shut off and that is when my Ionic died. Have not been able to reset/start it since then. Called Customer Service and the person could see I tried everything they would suggest to fix it. So the only option was to offer me 40% off with FREE expedited shipping. I decided to think about it and I went to Best Buy and low and behold They have sold a ton of Galaxy Watches to People like me (YES, I am wearing one right now) due to this recent problem. I have up to 30 days to return it if I dont like it. But so far that does not be the case. Fitbit has not convinced me that this is not a software update issue that caused this. The coincidence of so many other people having the same problem in the same time range......Well enough said. My Galaxy Watch tells me to go for a walk. 

[mac12530]

Sorry I wasn’t clear. It turned out I was still in warranty and I got offered a replacement. I was told I’d get an email with the offer. When the email came they first page offered a replacement or 50% off another model. It seems people are now questioning why they’d take replacement when they are known to break. I suppose the 50% is for these people. Sound like the 40% or 25% is dependant on how far out of warranty you are.

[adosso93]

I guess I will add my experience to the list although it's the same as everyone else's on this thread. Noticed that my Ionic died last night around 8:00 pm. Last sync was around 6:00 pm. Called customer support this morning and was told to "use alcohol to clean around the prongs where the charger connects." Then, charge for 2 hours and try a reset. Still no joy. Will call back again shortly as I was given a reference number so that my problem can be followed up on. I was told they are working on a fix for this problem. I too am out of warranty. It would seem we all got a bad batch. Very disappointed and if FitBit doesn't make it right, they've lost me as a customer. They're not the only game in town. 

[CSCutlan]

It actually changes for 40% when you click on the product. Mine was the same

Chris

Moderator edit: Removed personal information 

[Sheltiez]

I'm irritated beyond belief. I was a very early adopter of the ionic. Early adopters paid I believe $299.99 for the watch. I have had multiple fitbit products linked to my account over time, including the Charge HR. This black screen issue is infuriating. I would be OK if I had to upgrade because the battery was cycled so many times, it couldn't get through a day. I would be OK if I had to replace because I damaged the screen. I started with support on chat, was only offered 25%! Insulting for only a little over a year with a $300 watch. I just tried phone support and was offered 40%. Still insulting. I have to pay another $100 on top of the $299 just to have a fitness watch make it two years?? I'd be more than happy to send it in to get a better deal. I've been a loyal customer and I've given Fitbit a lot of money when considering my entire family has one. Why is repair not an option? There is clearly a problem with this device if one looks here and on reddit, etc.

[SunsetRunner]

The repair issue is interesting. I bought an aftermarket warranty from Asurion on amazon when I bought my watch. Of course, my Ionic died at 13 months. Sent it in to asurion for what I thought was going to be a credit for a new watch but they instead repaired it by replacing the motherboard. It worked. They actually put in the wrong motherboard as I had an Adidas Edition and they put in a motherboard that was a regular ionic. Getting it back next week, I think. But, the point is they can be fixed or Asurion is not telling the truth. But where would they get a used ionic watch to replace mine with?

[RicardoFitbit]

Hello guys! I'm here to provide assistance with the difficulties that were experienced with your Ionic devices, my apologies for the delay in responding. Welcome aboard  @CSCutlan @smisuta @SunsetRunner @SunsetRunner @johnk85 @adosso93 @Sheltiez. It's nice to see you again participating and posting @jlyder @Meeechella @mac12530 @rhyslh @Mldibble @JRandy @ionic-jo @SunsetRunner welcome back.

I'd like to apologize for the difficulties that were experienced with our Fitbit Ionic, I totally understand how frustrating this situation can be for each of you. Let me appreciate all the feedback that was submitted in your posts, it's very important for us to review your experienced and check your comments about our products and Customer Support interactions. Please note that Fitbit is always trying to provide great products and customer experience. Keep in mind that each scenario is different, but I think that our team can review each case to provide the best option for you using your warranty policies. If by any chance you haven't contacted our Support team yet, you can do so here. 

If you're getting issues with your Ionic not turning on I suggest you to check: Why isn't my battery charging on my Fitbit device? and perform a restart process too. Please note that we don't have the option to change our warranty policies or give more details about your personal information here in the Community Forums. If you have questions related to your warranty you can check this page or keep communication open with our Support team for more details. Thanks for your understanding and for your time, your comments and feedback are very appreciated. 

See you around! 

[SunsetRunner]

How am I supposed to turn on/turn off my Ionic when it has no power? It seems this problem was caused by a Fitbit update and the customer is left with a useless product - my warranty is up and I was offered 40% off but my email stated 25%. Additionally why does the discount not apply to your sale prices? This whole thing reminds me of the one update Fitbit did and the Ionic wanted to be calibrated and this problem continued for several months - leave the customer out in the cold it seems.
This is one time I would really like for my Ionic to be handy as I am recovering from a small stroke and am trying to build up my stamina a few steps at a time. Guess I will not have a tracker for the time being.

[RicardoFitbit]

Hey @SunsetRunner welcome back, my apologies for the delay in responding.

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us and for all the details that were provided in your post, the feedback is really appreciated. If you have questions about the discount options that our Customer Support team provided to you, I suggest you to get in touch with them for more information and details. I'm sorry to know that you're not satisfied with the options that were provided, note that Fitbit is always striving to improve.

I'll be here if you need anything else. 

[johnk85]

You guys sent me one for free so i'm happy, It's the other hundreds of
people i'd worry about.



--
The day is what you make of it!!!

[Roman-A]

My Fitbit has now had a black screen for over 2 months.

[kegbuna]

OK, to be fair my Ionic (the 2nd replacement) actually is still working. It
died with the battery stuff that we see other people suffering, but using a
technique similar to the one described by @jlyder worked for me. I could
finally get it showing 0% on the screen and when it did that I quickly
reattached the cable. This was after leaving it on the charger for like a
couple weeks.

While I am happy to be able to use Fitbit Pay again and have my nice
looking smartwatch. I am still very disappointed in the quality of this
hardware. Anyway best of luck to anyone else suffering from this.

[drizzledown]

...ditto

[SunsetRunner]

Exactly!!!

[Roman-A]

What was the strategy that you used to make your Ionic work again?

[SunsetRunner]

Unfortunately my Ionic is not working.
Sorry I can’t help you and Fitbit is doing nothing for me.

[Tollib]

Mine died last week. I had problems with it syncing through May so I updated it. Died that night. So frustrated. Four of my closest friends bought Ionics at my recommendation and now I find out they don’t last. Should have bought an Apple Watch.

[SunsetRunner]

I have been a Fitbit user for a long time - got my Ionic the first day Best Buy had one in stock. I was replacing a Blaze - wanted to be able to swim with it.i think Apple is calling my name.

[adosso93]

Update to my prior post: I contacted customer service again last week and very diplomatically asked to speak with a manager who ultimately offered a replacement at no charge. The Ionic replacement came a week later. I plugged in the charger - it lit up (excitement) and got a full charge. Next, I started setting up my new Ionic through the FitBit app and made it through step 1 of 3 when I noticed that the set up "failed." Then, I noticed the screen was blank and could not be resurrected. It's been plugged into the charger for hours and hours with no result. Tried the hard reset several times. Nothing. I'm moving on from here. There is an obvious defect in the Ionic product but until this actually blows up in the news, I highly doubt FitBit will address it let alone rectify it. So, bye-bye, FitBit.  

[mueller623]

I don't blame you for moving on; I went on to a Samsung Galaxy watch and using the Samsung Health services. I've had Galaxy phones for many years now, but it took some getting used to since I had been using Fitbit over 2 years. I don't know why these Ionic issues haven't blown up on a consumer report site yet. Fitbit doesn't care about there customers and will never make things right until the issue is reported on nationally.

[Lisa5472]

My screen went black, couldn't even turn it off or reset it. Only thing customer service offered me was 25% off.