Possibly lost my ONE so set up another and now I have no history

[ZuzuPetals]

After going through the add/replace procedure here, the dashboard showed both ONEs, and the history from my original (lost) ONE seemed to transferred to the new ONE. That is, I saw the steps I logged the day I lost the device, and I verified that my silent alarms were set. 

I created a different greeting, in the event I find my original ONE, I'd be able to identify which is which. Both are maroon--I should have gotten the black as a replacement. Oh, well.

The dashboard showed a red X next to the older/missing one, with a "Looking" message that went on forever. Not wanting to burn through my phone battery due to the app looking for a device that isn't with me, I went into the page for the missing ONE and disabled "sync all day".

Now what I have is a new ONE with a dead battery and no data. All my history is gone. 

The setup article said I coud replace a device or add another. I added another because the original one could still show up, and I would like to have a backup. The KB article said nothing about which devices the dashboard supports--for example, is it not possible to have multiple ONEs? Can I have only different models in my account?

I did not manually remove any of the two devices from the dashboard, but there is only one there now, and it has none of the settings from my original ONE.

My main concern is getting back my history. How to I proceed?

[ZuzuPetals]

I take back my comment about history. Now that the new device has a tiny bit of battery juice, my activity (before the day when my ONE went missing) is logged. 

However, I am curious why the setup operation dropped my silent alarms. If my steps/other metadata transferred, why not the alarms and some of the advanced settings?

And what happened to my other ONE on the dashboard? Did setup replace the old with the new? (I didn't see that option in the "wizard," only the option to add a ONE.)

Can the app/dashboard support two of the same model? If so, how do I get data onto the other ONE if I find it--will it just appear when I sync it?

[PureEvil · Accepted solution]

Hello @ZuzuPetals,

It's all in the way that Fitbit stores day and what it's associated to, especially with the support for multiple trackers (one of each model) per account.

Generally, any information displayed on your dashboard is associated to your account, this includes your stats:

• Step count
• Flights of stairs
• Calorie burn
• etc.

Anything found under settings to your device, is set to that particular tracker.  They are managed differently, this includes:

• Silent alarms
• Tracker display
• Exercise shortcuts
• etc.

Will stick to that particular tracker.  If you should happen to get another device (even of the same model), you'll need to configure it again.

As I mentioned before, Fitbit supports multiple trackers, but only one of each model.  When you paired your new Fitbit One, it should've asked you if you wanted to replace it (which means that it'd remove the older one).  Sadly, once you paired the new One to your account your old one became inaccessible.

I hope this helps.

[ZuzuPetals]

Thanks, @PureEvil--you answered my question about whether the Fitbit app supports more than one of the same model. Alas, only one ONE (;

I assume that if I were to have 2 different models associated with my account, the dashboard would aggregate my steps for any day in which I used both trackers?

Also, if my old tracker shows up, I assume it isn't permanently inaccessible. Couldn't I just keep it on standby and use it as a replacement tracker if anything happens to the new one? If it really is dead to me, I'll give it away. I know an avid mountain climber who might really enjoy it.

[PureEvil · Accepted solution]

@ZuzuPetals,

To answer both your questions...

Correct.  If you have two model trackers, your steps are aggregated and are indistinguishable on the dashboard.  So you'll have 10,000 steps total steps for the day, not 5,000 steps from the One and 5,000 steps from the Charge.

No, the tracker isn't permanently inaccessible.  For instance, if you had simply lost it (fell between the cushions in your couch), then once you find it, it can be your spare (if you should happen to lose or damage your current one) OR you can give it to a friend.  It'll still function.

What I meant by inaccessible is that once it's off your account, you can no longer set alarm, greeting, etc. the way you had done before.  Some folks do precisely this in order to alert the finder about who to contact.  This worked pretty well when most folks were syncing through Fitbit Connect (which syncs all nearby Fitbits), but is now less effective now that people sync with their smartphones.