Brightness Auto Setting not working

[DoC0427]

Hello,

I think there is a "bug" in the Charge 3 with regard to the AUTO Brightness setting.

I have mine set to AUTO, and it appears to me that the response in this setting is backwards.

In bright daylight, the display seems to switch to a dim setting, and conversely at night in a dark room it comes on at a very bright setting.  To me this is backwards, isn't it?

Before you say it's me or my eyes not adjusting to the environment, it's not.  In bright daylight for example, it comes on at dim then it will brighten up when I go into the settings and manually change it to NORMAL from AUTO.  And the opposite in a dark room happens.

If this is "normal" for how the AUTO feature is supposed to work, then can someone explain to me the logic behind that?  So annoying when moving around at night and it turns on with 1 billion candle power!  (ok, slight exaggeration but I'm not the only one complaining about this according to several other posts in this forum).  I would think the AUTO function should fix this problem???

Thanks...

Doc

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @DoC0427, it's great to see you around.

I appreciate you for sharing detailed information about your Charge 3 behavior, as well for trying to adjust the brightness level between "Normal" and "Auto". You're right, as the screen will get dimmer when you're in a dark room, and brighter when being outside with a bright daylight. It's strange that your device is experiencing the opposite behavior, and if you've not done so, I'd suggest to perform a restart with the following steps:

1. Plug the charging cable into the USB port on your computer or any UL-certified USB wall charger.
2. Clip the other end on your Charge 3 making sure the button is aligned with the opening on the charging cable.
3. Press the button for 8 seconds and release the button. You should see a smiley face icon displayed.
4. Unplug your device from the charging cable.

I'll be around, so let me know how it goes.

[DoC0427]

Hi there,

Thanks for the tip, but sadly I’ve done that several times and it makes no difference.

Is there a test you can suggest that I do to verify the AUTO functionality?  In a dark room, there’s definitely a difference between AUTO and DIM, perhaps the auto just doesn’t dim the display very much?  

Thanks...

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @DoC0427, it's great to see you around.

Thanks for having tried the suggestions from my previous post. Thanks for testing the other settings, and because your Charge 3 doesn't respond correctly when using the "Auto" setting, I've contacted our Support Team so they can give you a hand. You'll receive an email from them shortly.

Hope to see you around. 

[FitlessBit]

Please have the support team contact me too!  I have the same problem! Thanks!

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @FitlessBit. Welcome! It's great to see a new face around. I'm sorry for the delay.

Thanks for letting me know that you're experiencing the same issue with your Charge 3. I got in touch with our Support team to share your post and I was told that you already have a case created with them. Since they have access to all your details, I'd recommend to reply back to their last email in order to receive further assistance.

I'll be around if you need help with any other question.

[MLK4647]

I have had my Charge 3 for 2 1/2 weeks. Please ask them to contact me also. I have two issues:

1) The screen is too dim to see when outside or even in the car. Has been this way from Day 1.

2) Also, there's no longer a difference between normal vibration mode and strong. It's very soft and doesn't wake me up. It was strong the first few days but not now. I've gone through the reset process several times.

Thank you.

[MrBretz]

I have had mine for just over a year.  I noticed the same thing.  Today I was sitting in fairly bright light and could not see the display very well.  So I swiped to the left and got into settings.  AutoBightness came up so I touched it. The display went black.  

I looked through this forum and did the reboot procedure many times.  I changed the clock face with my app.  The Charge 3 was still synced with my iPad.  Still nothing.  I chatted with support.  They walked me through the reboot.  Still nothing.  Since my device is a month out of warranty, they offered me 25% off anything I buy at fitbit.com.  Which is approximately the same price as I can get on Amazon.  I am not going to replace especially after I see all the issues here.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @MLK4647 and @MrBretz. I'm glad to see you in the forums.

@MLK4647, thanks for sharing the issues experienced with your Charge 3, as well for having tried the restart process. While checking your details, I noticed that you already have a case created with our Support team and they're providing you assistance via email. Keep an eye on your inbox.

@MrBretz, thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts about your Charge 3 and the troubleshooting steps tried. I see where you're coming from as your tracker should be working correctly. Every feedback shared in the forums never goes unnoticed as it helps us to evaluate our procedures, work on our products and improve their performance, and I'm sure yours won't be the exception. While I don't have access to your case, I'd recommend to reply back to the last email sent by our Support team so you can receive more details about their resolution.

I'll be around if you have another question.

[MrBretz]

I never got an email from support.  I chatted with them.  They walked me through the reboot procedure.  It did not work for me.  Sadly, I liked the Charge 3.  But I notice many people have the same problem as I have.  I am either going to buy from Costco where I can return it anytime or buy another tracker.  Right now I am waiting for the battery to die and hoping that a fresh charge from no battery will fix it. I am disappointed in Fitbit.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @MrBretz. Welcome back to the forums. I'm sorry for the delay.

Thanks for confirming that you contacted our Support team via chat, as well for sharing your feedback about the Charge 3. I understand where you're coming from and I'm sorry that you're going through this experience.  Please know that we provide feedback to our team based on Community posts as we strive on improving our products and overall environment based on what you share here. You're always welcome back to the Fitbit family.

Feel free to let me know if you have another question.

[Airborne2501]

I've had my charge 3 for over a year, and cannot read it outside.  I've read many of the posts from others with the same problem. What can I do to be able to read the screen outside?

[Godschildme]

• Please have the team contact me also just can see too dim. Where is this auto bright button
•  

[MrBretz]

The  brightness control is in settings.  You get there by swiping to the left 3 times and touching at the bottom of the screen where it says settings.  If your screen is dim, I suggest you do it in a dark room.  Once you touch settings, at the very top is the brightness control.  Your current setting is displayed.  There are 3 choices: normal, auto brightness, and dim.  If you touch your current setting it will move to the next one.  For example, if it says normal and you touch it, you get auto brightness.  If you touch auto brightness, you get dim. If you touch dim, you go back to normal.  

My fitbit was on auto brightness.  I touched it and it became dim.  I could not see the display since my display was not very bright already.  And I got startled.  Just remember, if you navigate to settings and keep touching at the top, you will cycle through the 3 possible brightness settings.  Right now I can barely see normal and auto brightness.  If I touch it so it goes to dim, I see nothing unless I am in a dark room.  I think Fitbit has a problem.  But they're not going to help us if we out of warranty.  

[Manda2]

Me too! Useless outside. Like other features and can't afford another tracker. Please do an update on brightness.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @Airborne2501 and @Godschildme. Welcome on board! @MrBretz and @Manda2, it's great to see you here in the forums. I'm sorry for the delayed response.

@Airborne2501, @Godschildme and @Manda2, thanks for joining this thread and sharing that you're experiencing the same issue with your trackers. I understand where you're coming from as your data isn't visible on the screen. Since your post didn't mention, could you please confirm if you've tried restarting your trackers? If so, please perform a long restart with the steps described below and keep me posted with the outcome:

1. Plug your device back into the charging cable and hold the button down for 15 seconds.
2. The device turns on and shows a battery icon. Two vibrations occur: first a short vibration, then a medium vibration. 
3. The device turns off.
4. The device turns on and shows a progress bar and short vibrations occur. The progress bar completes. Note: A total of 7 short vibrations occur. 
5. Remove the device from the charging cable. The device shuts down.
6. Important: Plug the device into the charging cable again.

@MrBretz, thanks for stopping by to help other members with their questions. I also appreciate your feedback about the Charge 3 and I'm sorry for the experience that you had with it. Our team often reviews the comments posted in the forums to work on our products and I'm sure yours won't be taken for granted.

See you around.

[Airborne2501]

I plugged it in as instructed, and pressed the button. Immediately the battery icon came on, then it went off, and at 8 seconds, a smiley face came on. At 15 seconds, I released the button and the watch came on with a normal face. This is indoors in the evening. No vibrations have occurred. I have repeated this several times. Now the watch is still plugged in, laying on the table. If I pick it up and tap the face, it comes on. I don't believe any resetting has occurred.

[Topcat31]

Please call me too or email my Fitbit 3 is so dim the screen cannot be read at all now I have tried plugging in but cannot see anything on screen 

[sherlock234]

When is the company going to realize that there is a bug in the last software update, which is when this all started happening, and actually fix the issue?

[MrBretz]

To me, it sounds like more of a hardware problem.  It would be great if it were a software problem that was fixable.  Now I use fitbit at night to see what time it is if I get up in the middle of the night.  At least I found that the free app on my phone compares closely with the steps my fitbit tells me I took.  

And again, I am disappointed in fitbit.  My watch "broke" when it was about a month out of warranty.