Unfortunately, their scheme is likely to get people to keep upgrading when a model fails. I had the Fitbit Alta, which failed, and they gave me the option of replace or use a 50% off discount to buy another model. I went with the Charge 3 because I didn't want to spend over $100 to replace something that broke due to product malfunctions. Five months later, the Charge 3 has a display malfunction, rendering it unusable as a watch band monitor, and they gave me the same option. Replace or upgrade with a discount.
Considering how many people are falling for the replacement deal (because the option is to count this as a loss and spend more money elsewhere) over and over again, it's a lucrative practice to offer discounts if it means people will keep spending money on upgraded versions in the hopes that it will pan out in their favor. If Fitbit never has to give cash refunds to customers because their products are faulty, the only loss they have is on profit margin of units that they know will also likely break in a relatively short span of time. The fact that these community forums are full of customers complaining about their Fitbits malfunctioning, and many of them are not solved with fixing settings or restarting the units, the quality scam has got to be a real thing.
I'm cutting my losses at the $79 I spent on the discounted Charge 3 replacement offer. What do they say? "It's expensive to be poor when you have to keep spending money to replace poorly made goods." Fitbit can't rip me off if I stop shopping with them.
