FINALLY, I can say I know what the problem was with Charge 3.
Fitbit touts the Charge 3 as "*Water resistant up to 50M, so you can wear
your tracker or smartwatch in the shower, pool and beyond*." This should
mostly be true EXCEPT for the fact that the sealant that was used to
between the display and the body might have been substandard for this
feature.
First, I must declare that Fitbit Support team graciously gave me a small
discount offer towards buying a Versa to replace my Charge 3. I bought the
Versa exactly a month ago. I had to get it shipped to a friend in the US,
then subsequently to Kenya, where I live. I received it 2 days ago and as I
write this message, I have been on Versa 2 for the last two days. What a
beauty it is!!
A BIG THANK YOU to Fitbit Support Team. Now I just have to insure it in
case something happens.
So my Charge 3 has become redundant!
Together with my Electronics engineer friend, we decided to open up my
Charge 3 and check. We first watched a video on how some folks replaced the
battery on a charge 2 - the video can be found online. The first process in
that was using a hot air gun on the Charge 2 to enable one to easily pry
the screen to be from the body.
We had all the tools, but guess what? It wasn't even necessary to use the
hot air gun on the Charge 3. My friend just opened up the screen using his
nails!!!
We found out the following:
1. Moisture had accumulated on both ends of the ribbon that connects the
screen to the body.
2. It was pretty easy to clean up the end that is attached to the body as
it was easy to detach.
3. It was not possible to clean up the end of this ribbon that is attached
to the screen as there is no way to detach it
4. It is this corrosion caused by the seeping of moisture into the Charge 3
that we believe is causing the problem with displays - the ones that are
deteriorating, with white lines.
I don't know how to swim and I have never gone into the shower with my
Charge 3, so if anything, the only time it could come into contact with
water is if I walked in the rain or water splashed while I am washing my
hands. Given the water resistance specification, the only conclusion my
Engineer friend could come to was:
"It appears that Fitbit used a weak sealant in the manufacturing of the
Charge 3. The sealant is some light double-sided tape/adhesive. It's not
clear what the life of this sealant is, especially in the countries where
ambient temperatures are constantly on the high. It would appear that it
deteriorates, thereby allowing moisture into the device, affecting the
connecting ribbon. This might not hold true for all the Charge 3s, but it's
possible that there was a batch that suffered this unfortunate problem"
We sealed back the screen on my Charge 3 using the T-7000 sealant. My
engineer friend has used either T-7000 or B-7000 sealant on several devices
- GPSes from Garmin, Watches from Garmin, mobile phones, etc which he
repairs in his workshop.
My Charge 3 display at the moment is for all intents and purposes
invisible, I could see an outline of the battery when I connect it to a
charger though. Besides all that it was still able to sync with the app.
Now that I am not actively using it, and knowing that there is no easy
remedy, I am lost on what to do with it.
Does anyone know if Fitbit can sell me a replacement screen (complete with
the ribbon)? Or if there are 3rd party vendors for the same? I'd love to
get to fix this Charge 3 and gift it to someone. I have way too many
additional bands that I purchased for it that I wouldn't love seeing going
to waste, plus it still holds a charge for at least 5 days.
--
Best regards,
Moderator edit: personal info removed
