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My Ionic experience after 10 days ownership

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‎10-10-2017 03:09 - edited ‎10-10-2017 03:10

‎10-10-2017 03:09 - edited ‎10-10-2017 03:10

I have had Fitbit Ionic for around 10 days, and whilst the concept is good, the product is simply not fit for purpose.
Specifically:
- sync crashes all the time, esp. if you turn on all-day sync function
- notifications don't work properly
- heat rate sensor is wildly inaccurate (compared to Garmin worn at the same time!)

 

Smaller but just as irritating are things like the Strava app which does not sync reliably, even though the data is captured, as well as the strap being unnecessarily fiddly to buckle.

 

Finally, at the time of launch, Fitbit were unable to deliver any music streaming app in UK (unlike the US) or Wallet functionality in UK (available on the Ionic in US and Canada) - it all adds up to a product that was rushed out in advance of Apple Watch3 and in time for Christmas, when it is still full of bugs and simply not ready yet.

 

In time, these issues may resolve themselves, although as an ex-Pebble owner (who Fitbit bought in order to create their own smartwatch), these syncing issues are all too familiar.

My Ionic is heading back to Fitbit for a refund - I advise not buying this product for 6-9 months minimum until it is sorted out.

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65 REPLIES 65

‎10-10-2017 03:52

‎10-10-2017 03:52

I'm not sure I can agree with you on some of your points.

The points I agree with:

 

Yes, no music app in the UK is annoying. I don't own copies of music anymore so not having any digital versions to upload to my watch is highly irritating where I'd want to use my Spotify account.

Wallet - fair enough, but it's not a be all and end all. It just means I carry around my wallet (or phone as may be the case now for Android pay) as usual.

I don't use Strava so I can't really comment on that.

 

Sync crashing - not experienced that, I'm using all-day sync too. Phone i'm using is the S8+. I was having issues with my Lumia 950XL and my old Blaze, but I got rid of those over the weekend. Works like a dream compared to my old combination.

Notifications, again, no issue here. I have mine set up for messages (SMS and FB Messenger) and calls only. I haven't missed any as far as I am aware.

 

HR sensor. No issues again, same as I was getting from my blaze. To be fair, I don't have any comparison to make against other hardware, but a manual HR check usually reads quite accurately against the watch.

As a UK consumer of a US wearable, for me, I'm expecting it to be lagging behind. Its probably one of the main consistents when it comes to newer tech. When it comes to payments (and I once worked in that area), the logistics of getting banks on board is a long, long process. Banks are notoriously slow to approve anything in the UK at least.

 

Same goes for buying brand new devices. There are going to be issues that need to be ironed out and in my opinion users should be braced for a bumpy release of anything new - especially as a first smart watch release.

 

Just my 2p.

Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 03:58

In response to xSzam

‎10-10-2017 03:58

If you're not getting notification and sync issues, lucky you!

I'm using iOS, and tried with both an iPhone 5s and the new 8 - both problematic.

 

I'd add that, if you look thru' the boards here, there are countless threads now highlighting these two specific issues - it's clearly a big problem, so much so that Fitbit themselves suggested a workaround as  repairing your phone/Ionic each time!!

 

I was a founder buyer of the original Pebble, so I'm well aware of new product issues, but frankly Fitbit are hardly a startup anymore, and they really ought to have been able to have a more stable product than this. I stand by my comment that this was rushed to market for commercial reasons.

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‎10-10-2017 04:09

In response to Nobblytanner

‎10-10-2017 04:09

Totally agree. To say it has Android capability and not be able to receive notifications from the Gmail app is ridiculous. Mine has been returned. This is most definitely not a smartwatch.

Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 04:17

In response to Nobblytanner

‎10-10-2017 04:17

@Nobblytanner wrote:

 

I was a founder buyer of the original Pebble, so I'm well aware of new product issues, but frankly Fitbit are hardly a startup anymore, and they really ought to have been able to have a more stable product than this. I stand by my comment that this was rushed to market for commercial reasons.

Again, I would highly disagree. I work in software (currently as a BA and I do some testing on the side), it doesn't matter how well you prepare, there will always be things missed.

I'm going to use these anecdotes from gaming as it's something I know well:

Sony, PS2 release, complete disaster by their standards with the disc read errors, they had been incredibly successful with the PS1 and were a much, much larger company than Fitbit currently are. Their gaming division is doing better than ever.

Microsoft, Xbox 360, not as big as a disaster but a lot of systems had the red ring issue, including one of my own.

Rockstar, GTA5 release, that game was nigh on impossible to play, let alone with friends for the first week, believe me, I tried. They are a multi billion £/$ company and underestimated server load required - probably couldn't load test to the capacity they actually received.

A lot of game releases these days have issues on release, some issues bigger than others - from well established companies, Bungie, Blizzard, Bethesda to name a few etc.

 

To re-iterate my point, you can prepare and prepare and prepare and things still go wrong. I don't believe it was rushed at all - from a UK market, you can certainly feel that way - but I believe it would be naive of them to wait until they had a more global hold on services such as Fitbit Pay and a music service when their largest and core market is the US, something they were ready for. As for sync issues and notifications, it all comes back to the level of preparation, and I find it hard to believe that they didn't test this to the best of their current abilities and capacity. Software issues can discovered and rectified once many, many more users are using it, and more data is received, and they will learn from hardware issues.

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‎10-10-2017 05:04

‎10-10-2017 05:04

Ive been perfectly happy with mine so far

 

No issues with notifications by text or Gmail (have an android).

 

This is a superb fitness watch.  Absolutely fantastic.  I find the experience easy to use and good.  I do wish that I could talk to it and have Google assistant.  This reminds me of ownership of an iPhone in the early years; where the iPhone provided an overall experience that was fun and good to use but lacked stupidly simple things like copy and paste.  

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‎10-10-2017 06:02

In response to xSzam

‎10-10-2017 06:02

Thx for this post - it's an interesting issue of perspective that you highlight.

Clearly, as a fellow IT developer, you sympathise with these launch problems, and your case study examples evidence how common it can be.

 

My profession is as a customer experience (CX) professional, and so my perspective is founded on: "Does the Ionic do what it promises?" This is the fundamental test for CX designers of the proposition - product, service and brand. Sadly, the answer right now is "No". (this does not refer to lack of UK support for Wallet or Music, as both of these were trailed pre-launch as not available yet - instead it's about core smartwatch functionality like sync and notifications).

 

I totally get what you're saying about teething problems of new products, but again from a customer perspective, that's what the beta test community is there for. And Ionic has been in beta for some time, and highlighted exactly these same problems. That tells you clearly that the bugs were identified but not fixed before rollout, and from a CX perspective, that's poor.

 

If you're going to rollout a knowingly substandard product, you either have to discount it to accommodate that (that is effectively what Pebble did originally of course - now there was a smartwatch with SERIOUS sync problems!), or trail the flaws upfront in good faith, usually with free goodies to soften the blow. There are Fitbit accessories that could have been used to do this, with Flyer being the obvious example.

 

Instead, customers are, as you rightly highlight, effectively being sold the Ionic full price to be Beta+ testers. As a proposition, that may stack up for an IT community, who relate to, even enjoy the challenge of such problems. But for mass market consumers, they simply want the product to work out of the box.

 

So - different perspectives take us to different endpoints. I wish Ionic all the best with the next few months, and hope it improves for everyone. For me - I'll now be experiencing another part of the service proposition - the returns process!

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‎10-10-2017 06:44 - edited ‎10-10-2017 07:09

In response to Nobblytanner

‎10-10-2017 06:44 - edited ‎10-10-2017 07:09

From another perspective, it comes down to different users, different experiences. I’ve enjoyed my Ionic since launch. It has synced without problem, the battery has lasted well and I’ve received all the notifications I’ve wanted. The gps tracks and all the health bits work. Bit of a let down the payment system wasn’t in place at launch for UK but I can live with that as I’ve invariably got my phone but all aspects of working software have worked. Oh, maybe not. I couldn’t get music onto the phone but tbh I didn’t try too hard as it doesn’t really interest me and is not the reason I bought the Ionic. 

 

OK, I’ve just sent it back but that was a hardware issue (or non-issue but better safe than sorry) and not pertinent to this argument, namely I’ve not had the reputed teething problems and don’t believe customers are being beta testers. 

Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 06:48

In response to Fattire

‎10-10-2017 06:48

@Fattire wrote:

Ive been perfectly happy with mine so far

 

No issues with notifications by text or Gmail (have an android).

 

This is a superb fitness watch.  Absolutely fantastic.  I find the experience easy to use and good.  I do wish that I could talk to it and have Google assistant.  This reminds me of ownership of an iPhone in the early years; where the iPhone provided an overall experience that was fun and good to use but lacked stupidly simple things like copy and paste.  

I totally am having the same experience.  I've had no problems whatsoever and I am just loving the Ionic.  It works beautifully and just as expected.

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‎10-10-2017 07:10

In response to taz4352

‎10-10-2017 07:10

For how I use the watch it's all working fine for me.  I have no major problems with the device. I won't be using it to stream music to my earphones I prefer my phone for that as I use Poweramp, and I don't really want my phone interrupting my workouts with notifications really either. I tracked my swim today and was impressed with the accuracy.  As long as it stays waterproof I'll be happy.  I do want a more comfortable strap though but I can get one of those in the next few weeks 

Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 07:39

In response to taz4352

‎10-10-2017 07:39

@taz4352 wrote:
@Fattire wrote:

Ive been perfectly happy with mine so far

 

No issues with notifications by text or Gmail (have an android).

 

This is a superb fitness watch.  Absolutely fantastic.  I find the experience easy to use and good.  I do wish that I could talk to it and have Google assistant.  This reminds me of ownership of an iPhone in the early years; where the iPhone provided an overall experience that was fun and good to use but lacked stupidly simple things like copy and paste.  

I totally am having the same experience.  I've had no problems whatsoever and I am just loving the Ionic.  It works beautifully and just as expected.

Me three! Not a single issue, yet. Speedy setup, too--about 25 minutes, all told (15 of those downloading the update). Maybe it's b/c my phone (Android OnePlus5) and/or home network (Eero) are simply the bomb, I don't know.

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‎10-10-2017 07:50

‎10-10-2017 07:50

Could it be down to platform differences leading to issues? I'm using Android and have no issue (other than lack of Spotify and compatible bank for Fitbit pay) but you're on iOS. iOS is very restrictive/incompatible OS that doesn't work well with anything unless it's from Apple

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‎10-10-2017 07:55

In response to James8561

‎10-10-2017 07:55

Well - there are 2.2m iOS apps playing nicely with iPhones and iPads though!

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0 Votes

‎10-10-2017 07:58

In response to James8561

‎10-10-2017 07:58

@James8561 wrote:

Could it be down to platform differences leading to issues? I'm using Android and have no issue (other than lack of Spotify and compatible bank for Fitbit pay) but you're on iOS. iOS is very restrictive/incompatible OS that doesn't work well with anything unless it's from Apple

I don't think that's the case. I have an iPhone (with the latest iOS updated) and haven't had any issues whatsoever. 

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‎10-10-2017 08:00

In response to Nobblytanner

‎10-10-2017 08:00

@Nobblytanner wrote:

Well - there are 2.2m iOS apps playing nicely with iPhones and iPads though!

We can probably all agree there's a lot more going on here than just an app. 😉

 

Bummed that you're experiencing troubles, tho!!

Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 08:39

In response to JettleMania

‎10-10-2017 08:39

I have IPhone 7 plus IOS 11!

 

from day one no problems at all!

i’m very happy with the Ionic.

 

very strong WiFi signal though

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0 Votes

‎10-10-2017 09:11

‎10-10-2017 09:11

Evening all. 

This is a fascinating thread. I guess it all comes down to relativity - what you expected versus what the product actually offers. 

I've had my ionic for exactly 7 days now, and whilst I can relate to some of the issues that have been aforementioned (i.e some syncing issues, weather/music/wallet apps being rather dicey) I must say I'm bloody glad I made this purchase. I loved my Charge HR 2, and for me this is undoubtedly a significant and much appreciated step up. The optical HR is much more accurate and the GPS is pretty **ahem** bob on too in my opinion. Obviously, I've seen lots of threads with various issues relating to these aspects of the watch, which whilst is a serious shame - is inevitable - as we only tend to vent if things do go wrong, and rightly so. 

One thing that mildly frustrates me is the 'pie in the sky' expectations that some of the users have expressed about the Ionic. Yes, it is expensive and I wholeheartedly agree with wanting a product that works as advertised, but remember - this is fundamentally a fitness tracker, with some smart watch tendencies.. additionals like notifications, music, paying with NFC, seeing what the bloody weather is like outside is not really a priority for me - but that's just my own opinion. I just want to track my activities, motiviate myself to get out there and keep healthy, and see my data on a daily basis - Fitbit Ionic along with its App is just perfect for this. 

Blah blah, sorry guys - going on and I apologise.. Fascinating thread though.. In fact, the community as a whole is pretty amazing to read up on. 

I'm off for a swim tonight, and with all the screen/light leakage threads at the moment, I'm looking forward to see how waterproof mine is... Fitbit, don't let me down or I'll be relying on your service once again. 

Peace. 







Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 09:18

In response to SunsetRunner

‎10-10-2017 09:18

Great post, Carly Smiley Wink

And you're right - what I have not mentioned is some of the things I will really miss (that I liked):

  • comfortable to wear (despite the size, it didn't bother me at all)
  • battery life (still stopping me from buying Apple Watch - daily charge?!)
  • screen quality - huge step up from all my previous Pebbles
  • totally waterproof during my 10 days

All of the above are hardware things of course - for me, it's the software that has let down the experience. Some might argue that's the better way round, as once shipped, the hardware is what it is, whereas software, even firmware can be remotely fixed.

 

Guess what happened this afternoon? The sync problem (has not synced for 2 days) resolved itself - I did nothing. So now - does it still go in the box to be shipped for return tomorrow as planned (Fitbit have already sent me the returns documentation), or do I give it another week???!!

Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 09:24

In response to Nobblytanner

‎10-10-2017 09:24

Ooooh! @Nobblytanner - that's interesting! What will you do?

For me, I think you've answered your own question. In time, I have serious faith that Fitbit will sort out these niggles via means of firmware updates and I think the creases will be ironed out. My Windows 10 App is total pants with my new Ionic... I've worked around this by using my tablet to sync, and then laptop app to review the data. My point being, you've got the hardware that works - use a workaround until the time comes where things are fixed. 

That being said, I had plenty of issues with my Charge HR 2 and Customer Services were amazing and got it right the 3rd time - will you get this with another manufacturer? I highly doubt it dude. 

Do keep us posted what you decide to do! 😄 😄  

Best Answer

‎10-10-2017 09:26

In response to Nobblytanner

‎10-10-2017 09:26

@Nobblytanner wrote:

 

 Guess what happened this afternoon? The sync problem (has not synced for 2 days) resolved itself - I did nothing. So now - does it still go in the box to be shipped for return tomorrow as planned (Fitbit have already sent me the returns documentation), or do I give it another week???!!

I don't know about iOS, but there was an update on Android today around 1-2pm BST. Perhaps there was an iOS update too?

Best Answer