Charge 3 won't respond after a failed firmware update

[LD_Firemancer]

Got the Fitbit Charge 3 as a Christmas present for my wife. We plugged in the charger for the fitbit into a UL certified outlet, and then attached the fitbit. My wife started the setup from the app installed on her Pixel. The app indicated that the phone needed a firmware update. During the firmware update process, the update abruptly stopped. Now the watch is completely unresponsive. The watch no longer vibrates when connecting it to the supplied charger. Neither the short or long reset procedure work since the watch is completely unresponsive. Neither my wife's phone or my phone can find the Fitbit device through the app. I am highly disappointed. I would like to know how this issue is going to get remedied. These watches are not cheap!

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[MarreFitbit]

Hi there @LD_Firemancer, welcome to the Community Forums. I am sorry to hear that you are going through this situation. I appreciate your feedback for the Fitbit trackers and your time while troubleshoot this inconvenience.

Please note that our main purpose is to avoid negative experiences to our customers, we're always willing to help and provide troubleshooting steps. Then, if the tracker is deemed defective we review eligibility using the one year warranty option.

Additionally, our products are indeed designed and made to last (this goes for each product component) however, there is not an infallible way to ensure that no issues will be present in the long run. Because of this, our Warranty Policy is set into providing as much coverage as we can.

I've seen you contacted our Support Team before posting here, but your chat got disconnected so I've created a case to get you in contact with our Support Team about this. They will be able to work with you and review your options. Please keep a lookout in your inbox to the email address associated with this Fitbit account. Someone will be in contact with you soon! 

Let me know if there's anything else I may do to help you.

[JoD.]

Hi, Sorry to hear about your charge 3. My charge 3 recently stopped working. I returned it to the point of sale and was advised immediately that it could not be fixed if the reset process doesn’t work. They gave me a new one without issue. If yours is in its warranty period request a replacement. They said it’s a common problem that occurs where an upgrade gets interrupted. This causes a bug in the unit. Sometimes a reset works but often it won’t and the only solution is a new unit. When setting up the unit or installing an upgrade you need to be using a robust WiFi signal and keep the unit and the phone or ipad etc your unit is synced with right beside each other. Note a software update can take 30 mins. 

I really love my charge 3 and am delighted to have a new one, I didn’t loose any of my historic data either which was great. 

[LD_Firemancer]

Thanks for your reply. I talked to online Fitbit support the day after Christmas. A replacement should be arriving by January 6th. There should be a Fitbit recovery interface app that would restore the firmware in the event of a failure. Another idea for FitBit would be to evoke an option that would download the firmware update to memory in full first then allow the Fitbit owner to be able to install in an offline state avoiding the risk of internet interruption.

[MarreFitbit]

Hi there @JoD. and @LD_Firemancer. I'm sorry for the late response. 

Thanks for letting me know that our Support Team offered a replacement after troubleshooting your Charge 3 trackers. 

For anything else you would like to see implemented in the future, consider visiting our Feature Suggestions board. This is a space where Community users can post features, ideas, and suggestions that they'd like to see in future Fitbit products, accessories, and software and top-voted suggestions get relayed to our product team for review. 

We're constantly striving to improve Fitbit products and services, and we very much appreciate all of the input we receive from our customers.