Charge 3 shut down during my walk in the cold

[Juliac232]

Hi,

I went for a walk today in -14°C weather. My Fitbit Charge 3 (which I've had since 2019) was around 63% battery. My Fitbit shut down and stopped recording at some point during the walk. When my walk was done, my Fitbit wouldn't turn back on until it was plugged into a power source. I also lost the excercise I did that day. However, the steps I did that day seem to still have been recorded. My friend, who came with me on that walk and has the Charge 5 had the excercise saved and her Fitbit stayed alive during the walk. This is the first time this has happened to my Charge 3 and I've done other excercises during colder days last year during which my Charge 3 was perfectly fine.

I'm wondering if this has happened to other Charge 3 out there. Is my Charge 3 just getting old or is it due to the cold? How can I prevent this from happening?

[Odyssey13]

Hi @Juliac232  see Page 49 of the user manual - click to go there. It was too cold to operate properly. 

[Juliac232]

Thanks for your answer and the link to the pdf! I'm not sure of the cold factor because last year this time I went skiing with the same type of weather and it did not shut down on me.

Also, do you think the Charge 5 is more resistant to that weather?

[Odyssey13]

@Juliac232  I honestly don't know, but have asked a Fitbit Moderator to stop by to address this with you. 

[jt_stl]

My Charge 2 died just a couple weeks into walking outside. Coldest weather for me was 4. My FitBits have not lasted well and I exercise in weather from -10 to 95. I hurt my knee rather badly and the last FitBit was coddled, in I was not exercising outdoors- until recently and now it is dead. Not sure if there is any actual cause and effect but the latest FitBit was still holding a charge for as long as the day I bought it, so unlike the earlier ones it seems less likely the battery died. Right now I am rather spooked about using a FitBit outside. FYI it was under my jacket, so not directly exposed to the cold, but was exposed to a lot of sweat from some brisk walks. In the past I ran and sweat poured off me when it was either hot or really cold (since I bundled up enough to be warm pre-run). Also, the Charge 2 was almost 2 years old, and had been fantastic. It didn't die right away.

[AndreaFitbit]

Welcome to the Fitbit Community, @Juliac232. Thank you for the heads up @Odyssey13 and for your advise and comments @jt_stl.

Thanks for sharing your Charge 3 and Charge 5 questions. I checked Charge 5 User's Manual and Environmental conditions are basically the same for both devices. 

I guess what happened to your Charge 3 was because of extreme cold weather and device's life. It's been a year since you exposed your Charge 3 to cold. Your friend's Charge 5 is more recent so, it could be more resistant at this time. I recommend following the Wear and care tips with your tracker.

Keep on visiting the forums.