Feedback about customer support

[pilv13]

Reviews are starting to come in:

CNET preliminary review:

https://www.cnet.com/google-amp/news/fitbit-charge-3-has-arrived-heres-whats-different-vs-versa/

Unboxing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYCmZrEby2o

Tom's guide review:

https://www.tomsguide.com/us/fitbit-charge-3,review-5818.html

[MsMaryK]

I second that!  My display went dark on my Charge 3, which is a known issue posted by many other users.  I was offered 25% off a new device.  This offer was only available for certain devices in particular colors. Ahahaha.. What a joke!!  Don't waste your money!!!  You'll regret  purchasing ANY device from a company that fails to stand behind their products.

[Wasteofmoneyy]

For some reason Fitbit won't let me post my own review so I have to reply to someone else's post.

I was excited about the Charge 3 Special Edition. It came with the purple band and the ability to pay virtually with it. I had owned another Fitbit before this one. However, after 16 months it was damaged from going into the water briefly. This product is advertised as waterproof for swimming and I had taken it swimming multiple times. With the water damage it was very clear what the damage was. I contacted Fitbit in hopes of a replacement, and after a frustrating back and forth from their customer service repeatedly asking me for the same information over and over (why does a different person handle it each time an email comes back??), I was offered 25% off a new Fitbit. What a joke. I have since read other reviews where it seems their products likely won't last 2 years and it makes sense why their warranty is only one year. Don't waste your money on a product that barely lasts and with customer service that lacks proper customer care. I will be taking my business to a competitor. 

[Humuj1977]

The worst customer service I have ever received. I order fitbit versa 2, receive it less than 4 days later and try to connect it and wasn't sync with my phone, wifi or my phone, l post it back the same day and after 3 weeks I haven't received any email or help. I called their customer service and spoke to two of their representatives 10 days ago and no one try to reach out to me. I called their customer service again today spoke to their representative Cindy she was so professional and helpful. Hopefully they will resolve this issue once and for all but you guys really have to train your employees to do better. This is my first time with fitbit and it hasn't been good at all. 

[56Gunner]

I totally agree with this post, but customer service is just the beginning. The whole company is at fault. First I purchased a Surge when it was their "top end watch", after 4 replacements during warranty I just learned to live with 2 day battery life from a watch advertised to last up to 6 days! Next when the watch band pulled apart I was convinced by "customer service" to purchase another $250 Iconic. Now after less then 2 years I tried to purchase a new band because I had lost the metal clasp only to be told this watch has been discontinued and they no longer had ANY large bands! This is a joke, the Iconic went from their "Flagship" watch to being discontinued in less than 2 years. How do these people expect anyone with 2 expensive watches turn into junk expect repeat business? I know I am going elsewhere I would urge everyone else to do the same.

[aksnobunny]

I can't post a review either so I have to piggyback off of this one.

I also am a frustrated, disappointed and angry Fitbit consumer.  I have owned several (6)and definitely will NOT be purchasing another.  My very first Fitbit lost the control button and actually, the company replaced at no charge and I received a brand new one with a few days.  After much wear and tear, I replaced that one with the same version, however the band clasp was poorly designed and it fell of my wrist at some point and I lost it.  I next purchased the Alta model which I loved and I didn't have any issues with the mechanics of the device.  Jokingly I was tossed into a pool with the device on and of course it wasn't waterproof so it died.  Up to that point I was a happy consumer.  My next purchase was an Inspire model, which I was satisfied with until the battery fried after 18 months.  I was told batteries are only warrantied for 1 year.  Well, I had become accustomed to the Fitbit product, I decided to purchase a Charge4.  I purchased that from Costco in September of 2020 and it failed a few days ago (a little shy of having it for 2 months), my battery was dead after 6 hours. I contacted customer service where I was told to turn OFF all the features, let the battery deplete, charge to 100% and they would run a diagnostic test on the battery to find out what the problem was.  Well, I received an email after I did all of that only to be told that since I didn't purchase it through them, they were NOT going to be able  to do anything to help.  So basically. a device that is advertised to have a battery life of up to 7 days is bogus!  OH, and when I turned off the features, my battery only lasted 10 hours.  To say I am disappointed in an understatement.  I hope that any person that is thinking of purchasing a Fitbit reads these reviews and decides to purchase from a competitor!  

A major company as this should be ASHAMED of the way their customers are treated!

[Fitbman]

I first purchased the product in November. Although it promised to be delivered in 3 days, it took 10. This was November (way before the Christmas rush). I wish that was the worse problem. After wearing it for two (2) days, it stopped working. It stopped working! I called customer support and followed the representative's instructions - and there was no change. Then I called again, then someone with a worse accent attempted to walk me through the "fix," and I believe I did what he said, but no surprise, it still did not work. FYI, this is with "premium" support. It was super hard to understand the representatives. Finally, after having the product for 10 days and talking to 2 reps and and it only working for 2 days, I asked to speak to a supervisor as to return their defective product, you have to PAY more money. Imagine that - you get scammed, and they make you pay for it. "Linda," who wrote perfect English advised me that it looks like the last two reps did not know what they were talking about, and there was a quick fix to my problem. I just wanted my money back as it should not take 3 calls and a premium membership to get a supposed fix (I was unwilling to try as I had lost total confidence in the company). Linda refused, so I paid the shipping and hopefully I will get my money back. For this scamming company, I am not overly hopeful. I wonder how many people actually like the product. It is probably much more likely that people just become exhausted from all the wasted time with customer service and cut their losses. 

Happy Holidays. 

Moderator Edit: Formatting and word choice.

[Daupat]

I had the same problem.  Fitbit won't let me register my own review.  I totally agree with what another Fitbit buyer says about being scammed.  I had my Fitbit for only three weeks and accidentally dropped it.  Of course the face smashed into a thousand pieces and there is nothing I can do about it.  I was expected to know that I should have purchased a protective cover.  This is a new one on me.  Watches should be solid enough to withstand a few bumps.  I was even expected to buy another one.  Complete waste of money.  I suggest to anyone thinking of buying a Fitbit to buy a watch from a more I totally agree with what you say about being scammed.  I had my Fitbit with three weeks and accidentally dropped it.  Of course the face smashed into a thousand pieces and there is nothing we can do about it.  I was expected to know that I should have purchased a protective cover.  This is a new one on me.  Watches should be solid enough to withstand a few bumps.  I was even expected to buy another one.  Complete waste of money.  I suggest to anyone thinking of buying a Fitbit to buy a watch from a reputable and morally correct company.  I have never come across a company so dishonest and untrustworthy.

[Stommy]

I agree. I am piggybacking off of this review because it looks like you can't leave a post. I have had 2 Fitbit Ionics and both stopped working correctly with tracking my steps after less than 2 years. I don't expect a watch to last forever, but I do expect it to last longer than 2 years. When you call customer service, they are not really helpful and can't answer any of your questions. They let you know that you are not able to talk to a manager, but you can email them. Really? I asked if there was anyone to talk to that could explain why a Fitbit doesn't last longer than 18-24 months. She then let me know if I don't give her an email, she will disconnect me because she can't help me. This is the worst customer service I have ever encountered. So then I went to chat hoping for a better experience. They ended up giving me a 35% discount for a new one. I then found out that the watch was already discounted for that amount and my discount made it the same price. So what they offered was nothing different than the sale they currently had. It looks like they don't care about customer reviews and long term relationships to have continuous business with these customers. It is a shame that the care so little about their product (it breaks under 2 years) or their customers. 

[Enchy14]

I've had a horrible experience as well. I had Versa and even after I've done everything customer support told me to do (which was a pain in itself; a lot of "turn in on and off" and "update your tracker" + repeating those same things over and over again with no new suggestions), the watch still didn't work properly. The sleep tracker wasn't visible, it would just show lines instead of numbers next to hours of light and deep sleep. Even after syncing, it would still show 0 out of 5 workouts even though I've done 4 that week. You couldn't put the music on it at all. If it wasn't constantly synced, it would even show wrong time.

All in all, a horrible purchase and bad customer support. It lasted less than 2 years when it finally totally gave out and heart rate disappeared from the watch. No amount of syncing, updating, restarting and cleaning the watch as stated in the instructions helped.

Overall a bad experience and a waste of money.

[Dissapointed3]

I recently purchased a fitbit charge 5 (< 6 months ago). I went swimming and unfortunately the strap broke while I was swimming. As a result of the strap breaking, I technically "lost" my fitbit in the water. I contacted Fitbit and they did not offer any kind of refund for this defective product. Instead they offered to give me a discount to purchase another possibly defective fitbit product.

Moderator Edit: Formatting and word choice.

[georgeweiss]

Just had a similar experience. Fibit is no longer compatible wih Windows. She suggests OTHER devices. Congenial apologies to avoid support. No longer able to transfer music from computer to watch. Here is the transcript. 

Moderator Edit: Formatting and word choice.