Experiences of Charge 3 with water.

[Laloyosoy]

I open this thread so we can talk about our experiences of Charge 3 when it has had contact with water, whether it be swimming, washing our hands, in the rain, etc.

Your performance has changed? Have you noticed any change in the operation of the screen or similar?

In my case, none.
Only once did he get wet by washing my hands, dry it and ready, like new.

[SunsetRunner]

The only problem I have with my charge 2 was at the band kept breaking. I did crack the display so that I couldn't see it anymore. However it would still track my steps and I would at least be able to see that in the app. When I bought a new charge 3 they said I needed to disc connecting charge 2 in order to sync. I am sorry that I did because I still could have kept using the charge 2 and now I can't cuz there's no way to register it again because you need to be able to see the number on the screen.

[SunsetRunner]

Oh my charge 2 I had to keep changing the Bands and I went about a month pass warranty in the band broke again. I'll be happy if it last past warranty, my charge 3 that is

[SunsetRunner]

Oh my charge 2 I had to keep changing the Bands and I went about a month pass warranty in the band broke again. I'll be happy if it last past warranty, my charge 3 that is. Takes about a week to get the replacement.

[SunsetRunner]

I've had problems with my Fitbit crapping out on me from just sweating and now just a little bit of rain on it. My first Fitbit charge 3 only lasted a month. I'm constantly for stopping the app in order to get it to sync. I'm seriously considering never purchasing one of these devices again.

[SunsetRunner]

I don't know how they can say it's water-resistant because sweat seems to even affect it.

[SunsetRunner]

That is utterly ridiculous I would call them back again. Mine crapped out. From getting a little rain on it. If they will not take care of it then I would call the Better Business Bureau.

[KPob]

I swim in a fresh water pool  3 times a week for an hour and was very happy to see the Charge 3 was rated for swimming.  In less than a year I have had two Charge 3's die.  Both have been replaced by Fitbit but I think there is a serious problem with the claims they are making that the Charge 3 is swimproof.  I am very careful with my tracker and don't abuse it, dry it carefully, etc.   When moisture gets in the tracker it starts to flash and vibrate erratically and then finally quits and won't restart even with the reboot instructions from the website.  Putting it on the charger for the restart,  it gets dangerously hot. This time Fitbit has asked that I return both the tracker and the cable.    Very disappointing.  I will try a third one because I like the tracker and the app but I am not hopeful that it will be any different. 

[rigilbert]

My Charge 3 came as a Christmas present.

Since then I've kept it on every time I shower, wash dishes, and on multiple occasions have worn it when swimming in the sea. I've never had a water-related problem.

In fact, the only time the device comes off my wrist is when it needs recharging and occasional cleaning.

I'm on holiday soon and will confidently continue to wear it when swimming. 

In almost nine months of constant use, I've experienced a few annoying but minor issues. At the same time, so many here have reported their device just failing to function as it should, or indeed, just not functioning at all.

From everything I've read - in threads like this and across this forum generally - it seems clear that quality control is very much a major issue with this product.

[SunsetRunner]

I'm on my third Fitbit charge 3. The second one got a little bit of rain
water on it and crapped out. I don't think they have the the back sealed
very well. I'm seriously considering never ever again by another Fitbit. If
I could get my money back now I would but that's a little bit too late for
that.

[SleepyMonkey]

I wore my charge 3 in the shower this morning like I do everytime I shower but this time when I got out it started vibrating like crazy and flashing.  Later on I noticed condensation in the heart rate sensors.  Any suggestions on how to get that to dry up?  If it does will the sensors still work?

[KPob]

The first Charge 3 that I had - I tried very hard to dry it out.  I put it in a bag with one of those little packets of silica. Left it on a warm dry sunny windowsill.  Nothing worked. It was dead.  The second one that died (did what you described) - I didn’t try very hard.  I don’t think there is any way to get the moisture out once it is in there. 

[Pyhasalmi]

I've only had my Charge 3 for 2 months and yesterday when I was at the gym it went bananas. Started scrolling on the screen and choose random options without me touching it. Then it started vibrating constantly and getting verry warm. It vibrated until the battery run out.

When I took it off and looked at the sonsores I could se condensation there, and I had only lifted som weights!

Now my charge is dead unless it's in its charger and when I remove it the battery runs out within 5 (five!) minutes.

[SunsetRunner]

I washed my fitbit charge 3 after getting it dirty gardening. It's supposed to be waterproof, but it died. I demanded my money back. Here in Australia there is customer protection laws that make the manufacturer support "fit for purpose" and punish false claims. So I am now looking for another device that is actually waterproof. 

[FraMan0043]

Hi Pyhasalmi,

they covered mine under warranty, suggest you raise a support call.

Good luck. As I mentioned my wife's Versa has been fine with swimming as has my childs ACE.

[FraMan0043]

Good for you Dn1796,

did they refund your money direct, or did you have to go back to the retailer?

[Pyhasalmi]

Thanks for your tip!

I sendt it back to the company I bought i from. They in ther hand sendt it to Fitbit. That was the 14th Nov and Fitbit told them that they would send it back no later than 3 weeks later. And now it's just scilence 😞 Hopfully it's because Fitbit has a lot to handle and just give me a new one cause the recognize the problem. But idk... This will probably be my last activityclock from this company.

[SunsetRunner]

You are welcome. The problem with the watch is in the back where the
sensors are it's not well sealed that is how the water is getting in there.
Even though they say you can swim with it I don't think I would trust it.

[SunsetRunner]

Here in Australia, the retailer provides the first few months (often 1
year) of the warranty. In my case, I had the fit bit 3 months, and they
replaced it. 3 months later, that broke, and I returned to the retailer
again. They replaced it, telling me a few had been returned as faulty. 3
months later, that replacement also broke. I returned it to the retailer,
and we discussed the fact that this was the third one, and offered my money
back. I accepted the money.

the legal bit about fit for purpose means it gets repaired or replaced, and
the retailer obviously decided to return the device as faulty. They are a
big retail chain, I am sure they have some clout with the supplier.

[SunsetRunner]

Sorry to here about your experience. I think I would be following up with
the retailer and the company every week to see what is happening.

But my experience convinced me that the fitbit charge 3 is not waterproof,
and telling people it is will cause many devices to break.

I am looking for something better, possibly a garmin.

[SunsetRunner]

You would think that fitbit would test these things before claiming
waterproof to 50 meters. But I am guessing the first batch was made to
standard, but subsequent batches weren't.

If enough get sent back the company might just wake up that quality is
important.