Ionic screen not flush with watch body.

[runwithnewmedia]

See attached image. There is a noticeable separation between the screen and the frame/watch body. Is this normal? Anyone else have a similar issue? Should I chalk this up to standard manufacturing variation?

I am concerned about the waterproofing given the gap there. 

[N8teGee]

All three Ionic's that I've tried have had a small gap somewhere on the screen, it was only an issue with the second one as the screen was actually crooked/slanted (see - Display Screen glass not Central on a slight slant)

I don't think this should effect the water resistance of the device though, I believe there is an additional rubber seal under the screen. 

[runwithnewmedia]

@N8teGee Thanks for the reply. That stinks. It seems like there are quite a few defects and potentially a QC issue.

I'm still concerned though and the gap is absolutely setting off my OCD. 

I'll probably jump in some water and see what happens. In any case, I'm glad I purchased an extended warranty from SquareTrade.

[shipo]

Hmmm, no gaps anywhere on mine.

[runwithnewmedia]

@shipo Want to trade? 

Wonder if one of the Fitbit folks will comment on this one. 🙂

[bbarrera]

@runwithnewmedia if they do, it will be "happy face" post and "glad our support team could assist."

Do you expect Fitbit employees to admit a quality issue? Fitbit management has admitted to issues on investor calls, other than the Force recall I wouldn't expect the company to admit a design defect (thinking of my Surge in particular).

p.s. as a long-time Unix/Linux guy and MacBook owner, this type of issue would land Apple on the front page of the TheVerge, Engadget, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, etc., etc. 

[AlessFitbit · Accepted solution]

@runwithnewmedia Hey, there! Thanks for reporting and providing images of this gap on your Ionic. I've gone ahead and created a case with our Support team on your behalf. Someone will be reaching out to you shortly to provide some assistance. If you have any questions, please let me know. 

[RiseAgainst]

Mines exactly the same and in the same spot

[RiseAgainst]

I will be taking it back on the weekend and get a replacement. Dirt will collect in that size gap constantly

[N8teGee]

To be honest if that's the only issue you have I'd be a little weary exchanging it for another one, well coming from the previous issues I've had anyway.

The ideal situation is if you can actually check the replacement before you accept it. I know some shops allow this but it's a little difficult if you bought online.

All three of the Ionics I've had have had a gap somewhere around the screen. The worst being one where the screen wasn't even straight, to the extent that text and images looked slanted. 

[Kwono1]

I have the exact same issues but much worse. I've got considerable light leakage from the same top area. Could you help me please. Bought it about 7 hours ago. 

[runwithnewmedia]

@Kwono1 @RiseAgainst Sorry to hear that I'm not alone in this! I'd recommend that you guys reach out to Fitbit support and share a link to this thread to let them know what's going on. They were very quick to help me. Let us know how it goes?

[anoyce]

Yep I have the same problem have contacted Fitbit 3 days ago but still no response. I have had the charge hr and blaze and not had any problems in the past so have never had to contact support. Now I have a problem the support seems very slow to issue me with a watch with no defects in the mean time I have a £300 ionic gap watch. I understand that fitbit moved their production in house maybe this is why we are having so many defective units.. Please solve this FITBIT! 

[datalore]

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@N8teGee wrote:

All three Ionic's that I've tried have had a small gap somewhere on the screen, it was only an issue with the second one as the screen was actually crooked/slanted (see - Display Screen glass not Central on a slight slant)

I don't think this should effect the water resistance of the device though, I believe there is an additional rubber seal under the screen. 

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Clearly fitbit has a problem with the nanomoulding technology. They need to address this and let customers know what's going on. I was planning on buying the watch as a Christmas gift, but reading this forum is giving me pause. I love the idea of an open SDK, but waterproofing is the main draw for me and it looks like the ionic has a seal problem. I'll wait and see how it shakes out, but there are other options out there and fitbit needs to get this sorted. 

[N8teGee]

@datalore I don't think it's an issue with the nanomoulding, it's more the fact that the screen has to be slightly smaller then the body to actually fit into the space. The problem is the screen is cut smaller then it really needs to be, so this means there is room for it to not be seated correctly. This is what's causing the gap and even crooked/tilted screens. The glass just needs to be bigger or some sort of gasket needs to be between the glass and casing to counter act the margin of error when fitting. 

[runwithnewmedia]

@N8teGee A symptom of them using a single piece of aluminum for the body, maybe? That would make the screen cut out that much more important to get exactly right, with little room for variance. 

[N8teGee]

@runwithnewmedia Yes this exactly, there will definitely be an acceptable variance or margin of error in the process. So not only has the cutoit got to be spot on, but also the glass. If the cut out is milled slightly larger and the screen cut slightly smaller, but both still within the acceptable tolerances, the gap could be quite large. Obviously this would still pass QC. 

[EMCee]

I have a gold one and absolutely no issues. No gap. No software issues.

For the first time in 5yrs I took a shower with my Fitbit — even lathered it up with soap. The Fitbit smelled like Old Spice all day instead of dried sweat.

Quite satisfied with this product ,I hope the few with issues will get them resolved as Fitbit customer service is fantastic.

[anoyce]

So Fitbit support have replied and asked me to send back for a replacement I did ask for the replacement to be checked for any issue's before they send to me they said > "I'm confident you shouldn't* have any further issue with the replacement Ionic" So fingers crossed I will update the community when I receive!

[SunsetRunner]

Did you receive your replacement Ionic? Any issues?