Charge 3 smiley face

[flynnwt]

My Chargeless 3 'worked' for a week or so (bad sync'ing, etc.), but went away for good Dec. 18. 

Symptoms: no visibility to bluetooth devices, smiley face when on charger for a few secs, will vibrate on charger, blank face after a few seconds on charger or when removed, no battery charge indicator on screen.

I measured the current draw with a UM24 USB meter (using the charger) and a benchtop power supply, (direct to pins), and in both cases the current draw is very low (< 10mA, which is slightly more than charger itself).  It periodically goes to ~17mA, which might be the on-board charging circuit attempting to charge battery but quitting because of low voltage (bad battery), or some other circuit failure.  

So it's highly likely devices like this will never work.  No idea why Fitbit isn't immediately replacing these.

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[MarreFitbit]

Welcome on board @flynnwt, it's nice to see you around the Community Forums! I'd like to give thanks for the feedback you've provided towards our product. Rest assured that our engineers and product development team use this information to further improve our products and services. We provide feedback to our team based on community posts and we are always working on improving our devices and overall environment based on that feedback. 

If your tracker is not responding since Dec 18, I have reached out to our support team and created a case regarding your inquiry. Someone will be reaching out to you within the next 24-72 hours with next steps. 

Point me out if there's anything else I can do for you in the meantime. 

[Leslie426]

Trying to set up my Charge 3 and mine is acting like yours. Quick smiley face, blank face and no battery charge indicator.  When I take it off the charger I can do nothing.  What should I do?

[flynnwt · Accepted solution]

Sorry to hear that!  The fitbit customer service automaton will send you something like the following (ignore the embarrassingly unprofessional typos).  Mine has been continuously monitored since my last post and there is no change.  Since it 'worked' when I received it, I assume this is a charging circuit problem.  There is no resolution except replacement with a functioning device.

Let's address the issue that you are experiencing with your Fitbit Charge 3.

We see that there is an updated available for your Charge 3 that could have been causing the syncing issue. Before we try to update the device, we need to get it back up.

Moving forward, we'll like to provide some instructions to troubleshoot the issue.

Please follow these steps to restart the Charge 3:

1. Plug the charging cable into the USB port on your computer or any UL-certified USB wall charger.
2. Clip the other end of the charging cable to the port on the back of the tracker. The pins on the charging cable must lock securely with the port.
3. Make sure the button on your tracker is aligned with the button opening on the charging cable. You’ll know the connection is secure when the tracker vibrates and you see a battery icon on your tracker’s display. 
4. Press and hold the button to restart your tracker. Press and hold the button on your tracker for 8 seconds. Release the button. When you see a smile icon and the tracker vibrates, the tracker restarted.
5. Unplug your tracker from the charging cable.

Id the Charge 3 comes on, let is charge for a while then complete the update with the instructions provided in this article About the Fitbit app.

[flynnwt]

p.s. Nice!  I see my original subject text was silently altered by MarreFitbit!

Quick Analysis of One Failure (Bad Device) - Fitbit Community

[Leslie426]

Got in contact with Fitbit customer service this week and still waiting for someone to get back to me. My case # is 28547732. Must say I am not impressed AT ALL about how long it is taking to get back to me. Obviously I have a defective unit. How many people do I need to discuss this with before they send me a new one?

Very disappointed in their Customer Service.

Sent from my iPhone

[Ddunning86]

My fit bit showed the smiley face last night It started out as a slow decline. A week ago the screen motion activator would not work tried loosening the band more it worked a while now the only way last night to view the screen was by touching the button on the side. This morning I tried updating but now there’s nothing. 

[GolferGirl47]

Since getting my Charge 3 in November, i have almost constantly have a clock error message.  Initially, I was finally able to get the clock face that I chose.  Then I traveled outside the country and could never get the watch to sync to local time.  Since coming back to the States I have been unable to update my tracker or correct the clock face error ( I do have the correct time), despite spending hours and reading about solutions on the Fitbit community website.  It is obvious that the clock error is a common one. I can sync all other information EXCEPT the clock.  I get messages that I should choose another clock face- when I do it gives me a message that I cannot install it because another one is being installed - it is not!  

I can get to a smiley face on my tracker but then nothing happens.  I am at my wits end in trying to resolve this issue. When I try to choose reboot, nothing seems to happen.

[PNW1949]

Tried to download new update for charge 3. Failed twice. Now blank. Plugged in . Pressed side button. Smiley face shows up. Then blank. Nothing if I take off charger.  Help!

[alidrue]

My fitbit is doing the same thing... The app can't find it to update. I have been trying to fix this for 3 days. I'm going nuts without it. 

[flynnwt]

If it's the charging/battery problem I had, there is no software fix.  Fitbit did nothing, and I went back to my Charge 2, and will be done with Fitbit, after having 6 or so devices since 2009, when that dies.  The bluetooth connectivity has always been unreliable and the sleep app is not configurable by time or sensitivity, so consistently loses multiple hours for me almost every night, making it inaccurate and worthless.

Maybe (hopefully? 🙂  you have one of the other myriad of firmware problems and can get some use of your Charge 3.

[Chels7690]

Mine is now doing the SAME THING. Just a vibration when I plug it in and a brief picture of a smiley face will appear. 

[Leslie426]

Got Fitbit to send me a new processor and all is fine.

Sent from my iPhone

[IRMO12HD]

My grandson's Charge 3 is doing the same thing--how did you initiate this process? Call to Customer Service?

[Leslie426]

Yes, call customer service and they will ask you to go through the motions to see if you really have the problem. After that be somewhat insistent that they send you a replacement. They finally did, but I had to convince them. Kind of questioned the quality of their customer service and they gave in.

Sent from my iPhone

[Chels7690]

I just got off the phone with their costumer service department (which not only could I barley understand her but she would barely let me finish a sentence before cutting me off) 

FINALLY, I got them to agree to send me a new one. 

(When I asked about this issue happening with others she told me that I was the only person having thos happen!! I told her to check out the Fitbit forum.... 🤦🏼‍:female_sign: at least it will be replaced though!!

[Doballat]

 I am having the same problem as everyone else - smiley face  and then disappears and you’re dead in the water. How does this get fixed. I have unplugged this and plugged it in and push that button so many times I could scream.   Is there any other solution other than the plugging in and out and pushing buttons - THAT does not work 

[flynnwt]

It doesn't get fixed.  Likely, battery is dead, and charging is broken, either because of circuitry, or battery itself.  Just plugged mine in after months and it's doing the same thing as my original post - oscillating between 8 and 18 mA current draw.  Fitbit knows exactly how many devices have connected for a short period of time and then lost contact, but hasn't done anything.

[Doballat]

Thank you - I have contacted Fitbit - this should still be under warranty as is less than a year old .

Sent from my iPhone

[azalea1]

My fit bit Charge 3 did not restart after the happy face.  Are there any additional instructions or solutions.