GPS buggy and no brightness-high setting anymore

[SunsetRunner]

Hi

Since one month my fitbit charge 4 had been having problems with GPS. I've tried everything, restarting, restarting multiple times during run, change GPS settings. Also today I tried letting battery drain to 0% so it went off, then I charged it again and tried, but no luck. Even with phone present and set to Dynamic GPS mode (with phone GPS on and granted acces for GPS) the GPS still is buggy, it tracks only half or not at all. Also, my brightness high setting has disappeared, so when I'm outside it is nearly impossible to read what's on the screen. The auto setting doesn't take brightness to high setting when needed either. The Charge 4 is not even 2 years old, It can't be end of life so soon right? I've given some as a present to friends but if it dies before two years pass this would be something else...

[Olderbutwiser]

I've had several trackers in the Charge series and none have lasted 18 months. My current Charge 4 (12 months old) has become so undependable regarding GPS and heart rate monitoring that I bought a Polar chest strap using the Polar Beat app on my cell phone to compare with the Charge 4. I'll make a decision in another month but at this point it looks like I am finished with Fitbit. The cell phone mounted on my bike is just like the best bike computer, giving me real time data in large print and a much better summary of my workouts via the Polar Flow app on my phone or desktop. Oh, and the Polar chest strap (supposedly the most accurate heart monitor) is a lot cheaper.

[BillJ99x]

Dropping GPS connection after about 15 minutes has been a bug for several years but Fitbit either refuses to acknowledge it or just can't figure out how to resolve it.

What good is a tracker that can't track??? 

[SunsetRunner · Accepted solution]

It is solved! Fitbit support actually found a way to fix this bug, the charge 4 was not dead at all. To fix:

- Turn off bluetooth on your phone using the bluetooth button.

- On your phone go to settings, then bluetooth, and from the devices remove/unpair/forget your Fitbit device

- Open the Fitbit app and go to your account (top left) and click your device. Then click the trashcan to remove your device and close the app again.

- Turn on bluetooth on your phone using the bluetooth button

- Open the Fitbit app and go to your account, and add a new device. It will see your fitbit and add it as new. Go through setup and finish.

And now GPS works again!! It makes no sense to me why this procedure was necessary but it is solved!