Ionic GPS Inaccuracies

[MP4]

Hi, 

I'm a new Fitbit user, bought an Ionic on Monday and I'm having some issues with the GPS. Went on a couple of runs (at a track) and the gps seemed to be completely out both on the distance travelled and pace per kilometre.

I'm a long time strava user so yesterday I went for a run with both the Fitbit Ionic going and the strava on my iPhone running at the same time. Here are the results:

Strava - 7.9km   @ 4:15/km

Fitbit - 7.2km     @ 4:34/km

The difference of 0.7km is quite big and the difference in pace is also worrying. I waited till both had connected to gps before starting the run and I run in London where gps signal should be good. 

Is my Fitbit Ionic GPS not working correctly? Any help/advice would be appreciated. 

Thanks

Matt

Moderator Edit: Updated Subject for Clarity

[mcgas2605]

Hi,

Guys. Right, Ive used my Ionic 4 times since I last replied on this post. Every time the distance is short. I've just come back today and on my 3.4 Mile approx run it only showed 2.8 Miles and had me running through the middle of a lake.

Does this need to go back under warranty? Or is this common fault?

[DrewXT]

I've done a few walks (I have multiple prolapsed discs in my back, so can't run anymore) with my Ionic, and for the most part, the GPS seems pretty accurate.  I have found that every now and again that it will show me walking along a street, then suddenly jump to the middle of the house I'm walking past, then come back to where the street.

I just put it down to being "one of those things" - when I was using Connected GPS with my Charge HR and Charge 2, it was more accurate, but I put that down to the phone having a stronger receiver in it than the watch... 

Either way, I'm pretty happy with the Ionic - just need to work on coding my own faces 🙂

[MarreFitbit]

Welcome to the Fitbit Community @mcgas2605! Thanks for taking the time to share your experience with the GPS accuracy so far.

As you may already know, the GPS requires a direct path to the satellites in order to receive their radio transmissions, and there are several reasons why GPS data could be negatively affected.  The accuracy depends on both your environment and the weather; the GPS signal could be affected because you're underground, near many tall buildings, or as a result of atmospheric effects. 

I'm aware that you probably already tried all the basic troubleshooting steps, however, it won't harm to take a look at all the information here about the requirements, error messages and troubleshooting steps that could help to improve GPS accuracy.

As my friend @Julia_G mentioned, Charge 2 and Ionic GPS functionalities are different since the Ionic has built-in GPS and Charge 2 can be used with MobileRun. Take a look at this post about the GPS differences with Charge 2. 

Thanks for sharing some tips my friend @Sheldoreo! How's your experience with the Ionic so far? Good as mine? 

I'm glad to hear that the GPS on your Ionic has been pretty accurate @DrewXT!  Since you can't run due to your multiple prolapsed discs (this sounds really painful), you use GPS to track walks?

Keep me posted! 

[mcgas2605]

Thanks Drew, it's always nice to hear good stories. I love the device, I was over the moon when my partner got it for me, but if the GPS issue is something that is going to be a constant issue then I need to replace it. I like to keep an eye on my fitness and if I'm losing half a mile from the GPS then its not much use to me sadly 😞

[DrewXT]

Keep an eye on it I guess - we've found Fitbit's after-sales support to be excellent with the devices we've had and have in the house, with one device being replaced a couple of months out of warranty because we've been part of the "Fitbit Family" for quite a number of eyars.

I contemplated going to a Garmin or the Xiaomi Stratos with my new watch, but the Ionic kept drawing me back, and we now get 2 years warranty in Australia which made it even more attractive as well as the customer service we've received in the past.

[Sheldoreo]

Hi @mcgas2605,

Sorry to hear you're still having issues like this.  I went for a walk last night and because I had recently purchased a new phone I thought I'd test out the phones GPS abilities via the Strava app.  I compared the distance from the phone/Strava walk to my Ionic and it was identical.  So, the Ionic is accurate when it's working.

A 0.6 difference on a 3.4 run is excessively out.  Personally if it was me, I would be seeking a replacement, but that's because I know from personal use that my Ionic has been very accurate so far.

You need to have confidence that the watch on your wrist is going to work properly.

[bbarrera]

---

@mcgas2605 wrote:

Guys. Right, Ive used my Ionic 4 times since I last replied on this post. Every time the distance is short. I've just come back today and on my 3.4 Mile approx run it only showed 2.8 Miles and had me running through the middle of a lake.

Does this need to go back under warranty? Or is this common fault?

---

@mcgas2605 Surprisingly, the Ionic does not use GPS for mileage on GPS tracked runs/walks/hikes. Its pretty easy to verify that yourself - start GPS tracking of a run and then drive around in the car and you'll have a good map and almost no miles. Or start tracking and run in place, you'll get more miles than you should. Food for thought is this thread and this thread. Keep in mind that Ionic works well for many runners, but not all. Its unfortunate, in my opinion, that Fitbit went with steps and stride for mileage on runs/walks/hikes.

That said, the Ionic GPS is pretty good so if the map is routinely off (running thru a lake) then I would suggest returning it under warranty and getting a new one.

[mcgas2605]

This is my old Charge 2 Run.1 run with ionic2nd run with Ionic3rd run with Ionic

This is some photos of the runs. Sorry I've smudged the first part, its to hide my address for obivous reasons. Look at the difference in the runs vs the Charge 2.

I think I'll find the reciept and try get a replacement to see if that's any better.

[DrewXT]

I tracked my walk to drop the kids off at school this morning, and it was pretty accurate - took a little while to get a satellite lock, but that's to be expected I think...

Street Names obscured 🙂

[willynast]

Thanks - going to try this on my next run and hope for better results.

I just got my Ionic a few days ago and used it to track a run for the first time. I took my usual route that I typically track with Map My Run and my giant stupid Android phone flopping around in my pocket.

The run is usually tracked on MMR at 3.66 miles. Ionic only showed 3.3 miles, which sent my min/mile up by a good 20 seconds.

When I looked at the map, I found that the GPS hadn't connected until I was about .3 miles into the run. I also found that the tracking on the map showed me cutting corners where I didn't actually cut corners (where it's impossible to do so where there's a building in the way).

[willynast]

Oh jeez now I'm reading the rest of this thread. I did update the firmware before going on the run. Hopefully there's a fix soon. I don't mind some inaccuracy, but in the ballpark of 10% is way too much.

[Tex52]

@willynast 

They aren't going to fix anything, take it back now!

[Tex52]

@bbarrera

Don't know why you guys keep making excuses for Fitbit, such as no GPS watch is going to be as accurate etc. I took mine back and got an apple watch and it is 100% accurate every time. And I know this because I run on tracks with known distances. Plus it does about 100 other things the Ionic couldn't do at all. This GPS problem has been going on since early Fall of 2017. Nobody is trying to fix anything. The Ionic is basically a 300 dollar step counter. Take them all back if you can!

[bbarrera]

@Tex52 I’m not making excuses, just keeping it real. I’ve had an Apple Watch on my wrist since June 2015. Bought and returned every Fitbit since then. Fitbit needs to seriously step up it’s game. 

[TomDNA]

For a recent, in depth comparison of fitness trackers, including GPS
accuracy, see this:
https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/the-best-fitness-trackers/

[mcgas2605]

Hi Guys,

Just wanted to add another update to this along with my progress. So there was an update to my Ionic as I posted my last reply on here, so I thought I'd give the Ionic another try with the new update (27.32.10.20).

My run was A LOT more consistent. Also, the mileage went to more what I expected. Could be coincidence, who knows. My last run was 3.36 Miles and I only very marginally went through the lake at the very top end haha. I'm going to hold on instead of sending it back and wait and see.

Would be very interested to know if there was an GPS updates in this version from the powers that be. I'm on holiday for 2 weeks as of tomorrow so no chance to test until I'm back again now but I will keep this post updated.Ionic Run New Update

[jack.]

I've had mine since November and I've been mostly happy with the GPS performance and the watch in general.

I went for a run this morning and first my earphones (Jabra Elite 65ts) that I have used before with my Ionic and that work with literally everything else I've paired them with wouldn't connect. I did several reboots and tried maybe 20 times before I finally gave up and just went for a run without music. This was the result:

 

I'm pretty sure I did not run across the surface of the lake.

[SantiR]

Hello everyone! Thanks for your participation on this thread regarding Ionic's GPS.

If you haven't done so already, please update Ionic to its latest firmware version (version 32.10.20). This version includes some fixes so please update as soon as you get it. Check this post for more details on this.

Let me know how it works after the update. Keep me posted! 

[jack.]

My first run after the update looks like this:

The weather is perfect. Totally clear without a cloud in the sky and my Ionic shows me running across the surface of a lake. Pretty bad.

[gladtobe]

Ok did a half marathon today....it recorded 12.95 miles versus 13.1. Pace was good enough to tell me what i was doing. Used Runkeeper as well. Both very very similar. Pleasantly surprised. Shame there were so many hills and heat today:-) nice that the ionic wasn't the issue today!!