Charge 3 screen too dim

[747pilot]

My Charge 3 screen is excessively dim, even with a full charge.  I've tried restarting it with no result. It will occasionally come on bright but after a few seconds it's dim again and I can't get it back. This is indoors and is still difficult to read. Outside with any amount of sunlight, it's impossible to read.

Moderator edit: subject for clarity

[ilikepavlova]

Well that’s good. I’ve just received a replacement Charge 3 free of charge so I am interested to know how long it will last. Many people do seem to transfer to the Apple and are happy. What a poor business decision on the part of FitBit not to accept responsibility and replace all the faulty units. They have lost so

many customers over their handling of

this. Anyway, that being said I have my replacement and can now use the Fitbit outside. Nearly winter here in Australia so  hope it gets me through to Spring and I can enjoy it mre. Fingers crossed. Good luck with your Apple watch

[ilikepavlova]

Well that’s good. I’ve just received a replacement Charge 3 free of charge so I am interested to know how long it will last. Many people do seem to transfer to the Apple and are happy. What a poor business decision on the part of FitBit not to accept responsibility and replace all the faulty units. They have lost so

many customers over their handling of

this. Anyway, that being said I have my replacement and can now use the Fitbit outside. Nearly winter here in Australia so  hope it gets me through to Spring and I can enjoy it more. Fingers crossed. Good luck with your new watch

[ilikepavlova]

Thanks - not sure if you saw my new post but had it replaced by Fitbit - got my new one this week. Fingers crossed it will work for a suitable period. (Warranties in Australia sort of

meaningless - if an item sold is not fit for purpose for a reasonable period it must be replaced or fixed regardless of manufacturers stated warranty period. If you are unable to actually see a watch when the ambient light is bright then I would say it’s not fit for purpose)

[tanmoydb27]

The Normal option is not bright enough, and the Dim is downright impossible to read.  I have restarted, and did a long restart, did not help.

Please provide a solution to problem, this is effecting a lot of folks.

[bawagnerr]

The response would be for Fitbit to replace the device. They won't though.

[ilikepavlova]

Have you asked them? They replaced mine. 

[TheGrumps]

I think Fitbit are reluctant to replace devices as they know there is an inherent design problem that shows up on many, many devices. My wife is on her 5th or 6th (lost count) Charge 3 due to mainly display issues (although two were not waterproof either). All were replaced under a 2yr UK/EU warranty. I would never buy another Fitbit.

I use a cheap Honor Band 4. It does all that the Charge 3 does for me, and it's bright and in colour.

[bawagnerr]

Mine is out of warranty and I was offered a 25% discount to buy a new one. 

[BusterG]

I was offered the same deal, I did not want to pay that much for something
that will not last. So I have ordered a Charge 3 pebble for half the price.
No straps or charger but since I like my Charge 3, it is worth it. I got 4
straps from Amazon for 10 bucks when one broke so I will be set. I figured
for 50 buck for 2 years maybe worth it.

[Jee-Tee]

Yes, and they have as it was 8 months old 🙂

[Jee-Tee]

Hi, I called fit bit they went through some simple resets and asked when & where I bought it and when  (Thia should not make a difference though as it is faulty not damaged) they did not apologize for the fault or even acknowledge there was a fault they just said they will replace it FOC, Mind you it was only 9 months old and bought from Currys,  I did think fit Bit was the best thing since sliced bread but I am thinking of selling it & going back to my charge 2, reading all these posts and the poor response a lot of people have had from Fitbit, 

G 

[Jee-Tee]

Hi,   tanmoydb  

I called fit bit they went through some simple resets and asked when & where I bought it and when  (Thia should not make a difference though as it is faulty not damaged) they did not apologize for the fault or even acknowledge there was a fault they just said they will replace it FOC, Mind you it was only 9 months old and bought from Currys,  I did think fit Bit was the best thing since sliced bread but I am thinking of selling it & going back to my charge 2, reading all these posts and the poor response a lot of people have had from Fitbit, 

G  

[gmpolk]

I have had this issue for months and tried fixing it by restarting the device, doing the hard restart and checking my brightness settings.  I finally contacted support and they only thing they would do for me is give me a discount on a new product.  Because I tried to correct it myself instead of contacting support right away I am being punished.  The customer service from FitBit is horrendous and I will not buy another product from them again.

[tanmoydb27]

Happy to report, I spoke with the customer care; and they are happy to replace mine. It was a pretty straight forward process.  Happy to see they did not give me the run around about my warranty.

Hope the replacement works well, and doesn't succumb to the same issue.

[bawagnerr]

Apparently yours was still in warranty.

[tanmoydb27]

Oops, should have specified, it been just over a year, and the rep. said it was within the grace period. I assume the warranty is 12month, if not then phew glad i am getting it replaced.  So it worked out, i can only hope the new one lasts much longer.

[ilikepavlova]

No - I’ve had the original

watch for 17 months and the warranty was for 12 months. I dealt with Fitbit online and they simply offered full replacement at no cost or 50% off the Charge 4. I was happy with replacement and so far so good. As I indicated in a post it may be because Australian laws state an item must be fit for purpose for an acceptable period, regardless of the warranty. Not being able to see a watch outdoors would make it not fit for purpose, and not lasting for 17 months  unacceptable. On the other hand now Fitbit  have the Charge 4 out perhaps they have relaxed their view on replacement. Anyway I am very pleased I have a new unit and they acknowledged my original

was faulty. Perhaps you could try again. 

[ilikepavlova]

That’s great news. I feel

pleased as well. I wonder if they’ve had a change of heart and are replacing more units now. The warranty period never came up for discussion when I was talking to them. Mine was well out of warranty and they’ve replaced it. New one working fine. 

[ilikepavlova]

Try again and contact them online. Not only were they very courteous, they raised an issue quickly and made an offer (new Charge 3 at no cost or 50% off Charge 4) and then sent my new unit via FedEx express so got it very quickly. So far so good. I hope it lasts. 

[bawagnerr]

I guess my problem is I live in the US. Fitbit problems are nothing to everything else going on here. 😥🤔