Ionic Device life span?

[Dinzarelli]

I’m curious as to the official party line for the ionics expected device life span?

I’ve had 2 now, and both have stopped working. 

now that I’m out of warranty, the best Fitbit will do is offer me a discount on another product. 

However, this forum is littered with users who are complaining of faulty devices, many with similar issues too, and lots with issues with the firmware bricking devices. 

Has there been any acknowledgement at Fitbit internally in regards to these constant issues? Is there a known fault with the firmware? Is there a large fault batch of ionics that have been shipped and now it’s too late to resolve? 

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[Tiggersbounce98]

Purchased mine new in May 2019, now all of a sudden it will not charge or turn on.  Have cleaned the contacts and purchased new charging cables with negative results.  Pressed all of the buttons in every kind of combination they recommended and then some, again with negative results.  Hoping I can get some kind of positive response from support, otherwise I see no option but to blast the quality of the product in as many forums as I can.  The watch has never been dropped, banged, smashed or abused in any manner.  In fact, there's not a scratch on it.

What say you Fitbit?  Will you support your product?

[SunsetRunner]

@Dinzarelli No ownership at all. If it was me, personally id be embarrassed that an electrical product that is said to rival Garmin and Apple can cease to function properly in such a small period of time. All companies have a bit of common sense and leniency when it comes to product replacement, fitbit shown neither.

[PaulMe]

@SunsetRunner 

All companies have a bit of common sense and leniency when it comes to product replacement, fitbit shown neither.

Sadly, is appears that a sizeable percentage of Ionic users have issues with their Ionic's. Many where the device has been rendered U/S.

Fitbit' bottom line would have a small dent if ALL affected owners in and out of warranty had their device replaced or allowed to update to a Sense or Versa 3 for the retail price difference between the Ionic and Sense/Versa3.

Imagine the goodwill this would do for Fitbit as a company. Spend a few tens of million dollars replacing bricked/faulty devices, and watch the companies share price rise.

A no brainer when you think about it. Imagine the free media publicity. Sure some would be negative, (I've worked alongside journalists for 40 years) but the positive publicity would be enormous!

The current (2019) revenue and net income figures suggest they need a revenue boost. This is one way to affect that.

[Ecgirl07]

My ionic lasted from Christmas 2017 to Saturday 5th September 2020 ( that's the christmas they sold them for £299 in the uk then in the first week of January dropped the price by £50 so really the Ionic didnt have a great start from a customer service/satisfaction point of view)

still awaiting response from fitbit support on my ticket number. 

after about having about 5 years of my data im looking at garmin or similar. 

[Dinzarelli]

It’s annoying that such a flagship product can be buried so quickly and all the affected users get ignored. 

[AndreaRN9]

My 15 month old Ionic is now lasting a day and a half on a full charge. Unbelievable.  Each time I charge it, the charge seems to last less and less time.  

Did they put a crap battery in the new Sense?  Will the same thing happen?

[CrankyOldMan]

I’ve had Fitbit devices for at least 5 years, I currently own the Ionic, I love it! However after less than 2 years I’ve been told my ionic is no longer functional, the left button no longer works.  I was offered discounts on other devices none of which have gps. As a somewhat serious runner the gps was the feature I valued the most, I don’t like carrying my phone on runs.  None of the devices offered with the discount have the GPS feature.  I appreciate the discount offer but the Versa 3 and the new Sense are watches I would consider but I feel as a long time loyal Fitbit user I should be able to replace my ionic with a similar device.  I hope Fitbit will consider some accommodation.  

[SunsetRunner]

Device wise I am pleased to have moved way from fitbit, the thing I do miss is the challenges. The ionic had lots of positive features. I am only disappointed in the actual lifespan of the product

[unagisan]

Fitbit refused to replace my week old Ionic after it got water inside so I've since switched to an Apple Watch. VERY happy so far! 

[PaulMe]

@AndreaRN9 

Did they put a crap battery in the new Sense?  Will the same thing happen?

I've wondered this myself. Best case scenario is that the latest devices are manufactured by a different Chinese company and in a different factory, sourcing their components including the battery from different manufacturers. 

We will never know unfortunately. Haven't seen a wiki on the manufacturing plant(s) used by Fitbit.

[bking0622]

Don't do it.  I cannot connect my Ionic to Bluetooth or Wifi now.

[unagisan · Accepted solution]

I sent my broken Ionic back to Fitbit (that was well within warranty) and they won't respond to me. Luckily I bought an Apple Watch when they first refused to replace it and so far I'm very happy with it. Fitbit sadly has products that break very easily and they then refuse to honor the warranty. 

[katwoman5]

I had to get a replacement 9 months into my brand new watch. THEN the replacement went out 3 months later.. meaning I WAS OUT OF WARRANTY. They said so sad.... nothing they could do. They did NOT even offer a discount. So, I paid how much for a years worth of this watch??

[KngBabar]

I’ve had 3 fitbit ionic watches now, everytime I get a replacement one from FitBit, it lasts about 3 months, i’ve just ran out of warranty and costumer service isn’t replying to any of my e-mails, honestly the worst device i’ve ever owned. DON’T BUY THE IONIC, you’ll save money and time.

[MissChilli]

I'm about to ditch Fitbit for the very same reasons and move to Apple.  I'm on a replacement Ionic, so I won't hold out much luck in Fitbit replacing it again. 😞

[unagisan]

I wish I knew how you guys were all able to get replacements. I sent mine
back and they just kept it and won’t reply to me.

[CrankyOldMan]

Moved on to Apple, very disappointed with Fitbit

Get Outlook for iOS

[Dinzarelli]

I will be doing the same @CrankyOldMan 

[Pocitoconfused]

Just had the same experience with an Alta HR. My unit was actually burning inside. Contacted Fitbit. They offer it to replace it. I asked them wasn't this model discontinued? They said yes we'll take care of it. Two weeks later, I get an email that they are shipping me out another Alta HR. How is this even possible? I thought they were discontinued? Why wouldn't they just replace it with a current model that they know won't catch on fire. Samsung watch is looking pretty good. 

[PaulMe]

 they are shipping me out another Alta HR. How is this even possible? I thought they were discontinued? Why wouldn't they just replace it with a current model that they know won't catch on fire.

Company policy appears NOT to replace with a newer model. They will still have stock of discontinued models. Unless there is irrefutable evidence that there is a real fire risk - they will keep supplying the same model. It's not like they will admit to an issue unless there is a court order. So you're problem is probably a one off - or if there are other similar issues, no pattern has been agreed to regarding any issue.