Swim tracking on Ionic and Charge 3

[hpbentley36]

I am wanting to buy a fitness tracker and am deciding between the charge 3 and ionic but leaning towards the ionic. I wanted to know which has the better swimming feature as both track swim exercises but have heard that it is limited to a pool and the charge 3 is limited to 50M but is unclear on the website. I know they don't show real time information on the watch but is the ionic or charge 3 more accurate when swimming?

Moderator edit: Subject for clarity.

[Tim528]

Got my original device back in June.  It never worked and did nothing when I plugged it in fresh out of the box.  Got a replacement.  That one stopped working a few weeks later after a swim.  Got another replacement.  That one stopped working after another few weeks after a swim.  I dont believe these devices are properly water proof. And I would never buy another.  I am currently struggling to get my money back.  All I have been offered is another device.  So that will be the fourth in less than 6 months.

[Rich_Laue]

Hello @hpbentley36 many of us swim with one or the other tracker frequently.

The trackers have been tested to 150 feet deep, but this rating is for shallow swimming.

Both trackers when used for swimming should be similar, with auto detection of some strokes and a manually start feature.

With the ionic you will not want to press any buttons while it is in the water, while the Charge 3 is designed with a button than can be pressed while in water.

Can I swim or shower with my Fitbit device?

You can swim with Charge 3, Flex 2, Ionic, and Versa and shower with Ace. Do not swim or shower with other Fitbit devices.

How do I track my swims with my Fitbit device?

Learn how you can track lengths, time, distance, and pace during your swims

[GraceGFitbit]

Nice to see that you're digging into the Fitbit Forums @hpbentley36, let me give you a warm Welcome to our Community. Thanks for stopping by @Tim528 and thanks @Rich_Laue, you have given such a complete answer. 

I just would like to add that the Ionic and the Charge 3 are well designed for use in the pool, ocean, shower or under the rain. However it's a good practice to rinse it after the saltwater immersion in the ocean to avoid salt accumulation, as with any other device.

Fitbit tries to calculate a number of lengths each time you swim, so it is possible to have an estimate of the number of lengths made after swimming in open water but take into account that there may be inconsistencies in the data for this session due to insufficient lengths and other items such as:

• Have stopped during a length
• A pause of more than 60 seconds after making a length
• Changing the type of swimming during a length
• Swim with a board or without using your hands
• A swimming session shorter than the minimum duration set for automatic detection
• The units for the pool length setting do not match the units you use for your Fitbit settings.

@Tim528, I appreciate your feedback, it is always useful. My apologies for the inconveniences you experienced with the Fitbit Ionic and I thank you for the time you took to share your thoughts with us.

I hope this information will be useful to you. Keep me informed if you have any more questions and have a great weekend!