Charge HR Half Bar Error FIXED (for me at least) Firmware V122

[bunker6]

TLDR: Drained battery completely, turned bluetooth off on phone, re-paired with fitbit desktop app, firmware updated and problem solved.

Hi everyone,

I wanted to post my experience with the half bar error (failed firmware update) since I spent too much time looking for a fix.  These were the sympotms I experienced:

1. Screen displayed a progress bar at 50%
2. Holding the side button would do nothing other than do some sort of soft reset where the hr light flashed a couple times then the display went right back to the half bar
3. Charge HR would appear paired to my iPhone, but it was stuck in an update loop.  Would not allow me to forget the Charge HR as long as I was in bluetooth rainge because it kept trying to force the update (unsuccessfully).
4. Paired with desktop app but if I remember correctly, it directed me to have the phone try to update the firmware.
5. Attempted a reset method I saw online saying that the Charge HR should be plugged into the charger then you hold the side button for 2 seconds, then pull it off the charger and continue holding the button for 7-9 more seconds.  This did nothing in the state it was in.
6. A couple attempts of un-pairing from my iPhone and re-pairing with it made it appear that the firmware may successfully finish downloading, but it never happened.  The only other screen I saw trying this was the progress bar with the exclamation point in the middle.

At that point I was thinking I'd have to disassemble the unit and try to find a reset button or kill the unit trying.  Fortunately I didn't have a Torx bit small enough to remove the screws on the bottom of the Charge HR.  It ended up sitting on my desk and the battery drained completely (pressing/holding the side button no longer brought up the half filled progress bar).  I did a little more research the following day and some people said they had success un-pairing the Charge HR from any device they had it connected to, removing and reinstalling the Desktop App and then the firmware installation would complete.

SOLUTION:

With the battery fully drained I did the following:

1. Turned off bluetooth on my phone
2. Through the iPhone Fitbit App I went to "Account (bottom right on screen)->Clicked on the Charge HR icon-> Selected "Remove This Charge HR" (scroll down to the bottom of the screen).
3. At my computer now I opened the Fitbit Desktop App, IMPORTANT not the Fitbit iPhone APP, I went through the setup new device process.  NOTE: Bluetooth still off on my phone.  Also note that I did not have to uninstall and reinstall the Desktop App and I was running the latest version as of 3/21/2016.  Others may consider removing and reinstalling the current version of the desktop app if issues persist.
4. I made sure I had the Fitbit Sync Dongle plugged into a USB port 
5. 
6. I proceeded to the screen that says "Searching for device" and shows the person holding the side button on the Charge HR
7. I put the Charge HR charging cable into a USB port and plugged the other end into the Charge HR to give it some power.
8. I pressed and held the side button until the Fitbit Desktop App said it found the Charge HR.
9. For the first time, the display on the fitbit showed me something other than the half bar and the firmware installation finally completed successfully
10. The Charge HR showed low battery, so I allowed it to charge for a few hours.  
11. I re-enabled Bluetooth on my phone
12. When the battery was fully charged, I paired with my iPhone through the iPhone Fitbit App and everything appeared to work successfully.

I hope others can benefit from the write up.  It was a frustrating process to find a solution that worked and I'm glad my persistence paid off.  Good luck to anyone else that has a similar problem.  I knew that since the Charge HR was communicating with my phone and computer despite showing the half bar, I would be determined to get the firmware loaded.  If your Charge HR is showing the half bar but not communicating with your phone or computer, verify that you have bluetooth enabled or the Fitbit USB dongle plugged in, and if the issue persists, it may be a Bluetooth error with the Charge HR and this solution likely won't work for you.

Feel free to ask any questions and I'll try to help.  I've seen Fitbit Customer Service reps say that you should message them or call their Customer Service if you encounter similar problems which I would also encourage.

Good luck.

[WilliamsburgDes]

Thank you!  It worked!

[64yearoldteen]

I had this with my fully charged CHARGE HR. I was able to turn off my Bluetooth. With it off the exclamation mark (!) disappeared so I held the button on the Fitbit in constantly. The battery line very slowly grew and eventually the screen showed the time and my fit bit was working again. I switched my Bluetooth back on and it’s back to normal.

[Dimzurol]

Same happened to me. Thanks for sharing! I’ve spent so much time trying to fix it, and nothing works. I’m very disappointed and I’ve contacted Fitbit through email, hoping for an answer or solution. I’ve read that many people had to bring their watches back to the stores where they purchased them - to successfully getting them replaced. My only problem with this is that the watch was a gift from a friend in another country, so I can’t really do that. Which sucks. Hoping for another solution. Otherwise, I agree with you. I’ll have to buy another fitness watch, and it won’t be a Fitbit. Thanks for sharing! 

[ACG]

@All

Check put message 31 as it has helped some of us. 

Message 31

[Tregolwyn]

Hi. I got as far as going into the desktop app, but I actually can't find a screen that shows someone holding down the button on the side. There are lots of categories to choose from, but none of them seems to lead to a screen that actually lets you set up a new device. VERY confusing and unhelpful dashboard design. Any clues as to how I get to that point?

Yes, this worked for me. All went fine for about ten minutes, the Charge HR even started recording my steps. Then the half-bar of death returned and now the Fitbit app can't recognise the device at all, whatever I do.

Moderator edit: merged reply

[nchang]

Recently my Fitbit Charge HR had the same white/black bar issue and I've used it for about a year eventhough I had it for 3 years. I'm very disappointed and will not purchase another Fitbit product because I don't want to deal with the tracker issues. Looks like I have to do some online research to look for a reliable fitness tracker. And the Fitbit Charge 3 has a high proportion of negative reviews. Apparently they rushed the release date in time for Black Friday. Seems they only care about making money than making good products.

[bunker6]

For the past year I've been sporting a fitness tracker from a Fitbit competitor.  The company is mostly recognized for their GPS units and rhymes with Charmin. I've had a stellar experience and their hardware, phone/computer apps, and website.  Only once did I run into an issue where the device was rebooting at random, but a quick sync with the computer application resolved it.  Feel free to send me a message if you need more details.

[Pear2195]

Can you do this without a dongle thing? 

[Bellarosejane]

What happens if dont have dongle 

[Odyssey13]

Hi @Bellarosejane  as you may have read, the dongle is the bridge between your Fitbit and your computer, so it can sync to the Fitbit servers. You can buy a dongle at Fitbit.com's store. The problem is the older your computer, it might not meet the requirements to connect with Fitbit. My Windows 8.1 stopped working, so I now use my Android phone to connect.