Heart rate monitor not accurate during exercise

[Admroe]

Hi, so I bought my first ever Fitbit  (Charge 3) as a way to help me measure and monitor my level of activity (mainly at the gym). I need to keep my heart rate at a constant rate for fat burning.

Wore it today for the first time at the gym and it just sat at no more than 80bpm. I checked using the gym monitor and I was up at 140bpm. How can something called a Fitbit that is supposed to be about monitoring levels of activity be so inaccurate? 

PS: after about 30-40 minutes of session it suddenly shot up to 150bpm.

I’m hoping this was a one off and net time it is more accurate otherwise I think I’ll have to be emailing Fitbit directly.

Is this a common issue and if so has anyone found a way to increase accuracy?

thanks

[rs2018]

Certainly begs the question of what the motivating factor is behind the posts.  This post is for users having difficulty with the product.  As someone pointed out, its assumed that if there not on this post they have a product which works for them.

Between that and either being really really bored and not taking a hint ... I'd say the former is the more logical choice.

[wekebu]

Kids, stop fighting. I actually appreciated seeing someone who's HR monitor worked. I should be getting my Charge 3 today, my first tracker, so it was reassuring to see it does work for some folks.

[dcc2013]

Agree with wind77.  It's counterproductive for you to pop into this thread of users who are describing what is certainly a flaw with the Charge 3.  And most of these users who are complaining are clearly experienced users and their complaints are legitimate and serious.  For you to pop in and claim that you are an expert and there's nothing wrong with the Charge 3 is insane.  Why would we care what you think.  

[dcc2013]

Well, Blackish admitted to being "banned" from this community in the past.  What else do we need to know?

I would like to hear/read productive discussion about what fitbit is or will do to fix the problem with the heart rate monitor. I, for one, need a new fitbit. My charge 2 still works well, but it's beat up, and I would like a waterproof one, etc., etc.  It's not true that there are never any fitbit answers in this forum.  JuanJoFitbit is a moderator and stated earlier that he would seek out an answer or solution.  Looking forward to hearing from him.  Otherwise, what do we do?  Write letters to the CEO?

[Cwep2]

I have subsequently tried all the tips to improve the HR sensor's accuracy but it is still woefully out in certain conditions. Running and cycling are not too bad - at least the highs and average are close (within 5-10bpm of a chest strap) but using a rowing machine or swimming (in both there is certainly more arm movement than cycling) it massively under states the heart rate - staying around the 90-120 mark when I am actually in the 130-170 zone for an entire workout.

I have tried several tightness' and positions on the arm, if I using this in any way to monitor my heart rate during training it is essentially useless for the sports I generally do. If I was a cyclist I might be happy enough with it for sure, but that only makes up about 10% of my cardio training.

This along with the fact that there is no option to keep the display on during a workout (for timing purposes, if not heart rate) mean it is useless for exercise, so it only has value as a step counter/sleep tracker really, and frankly the latest Fitbit costing £130/$150 is a premium product, you can get a cheap step counter for 20% of the cost, so this really isn't good enough.

[vtboo]

Just finished workout where C3 registered 140bpm after 6 minutes and then dove off a cliff and remained at 98 for the remaining 34 minutes.  My Blaze registered an average of 158 for those 34 minutes on the other arm.

 I’m beyond frustrated and ready to return the C3.  Between this and the alarm issues I will think twice before ordering another product.

[SunsetRunner]

Charge 2 more consistent

Here is the issue I’m having. The charge 3 shot up initially and then kept me in the fat burning range around 107 for the duration, whereas the ol’ Reliable Charge 2 stayed consistent between both ranges during my workout. I was jogging in both examples. So I’m having a similar situation!!!

[rs2018]

Look at how different mine is ..... 

[virtari]

I'm having similar issues with my Charge 3. hearth rate is considerably lower than before, and it loses the beat easier during the exercise. I've been going to gym and playing tennis mostly. I think i know how to wear one, because this is my 4th Fitbit device. Kind of messes the stats now.

[SunsetRunner]

This tracker is not accurate and therefore not meeting my expectation, as I was looking for a reliable heartbeat reading for my work outs.

I have been using an elliptical walker in the gym for a week to compare, because that trainer is also equipped with a heartbeat tracker. From previous comparisons, I know this one's pretty accurate.

Compared with the Charge 3, this is what happened: the trainer started at 100 and went all the way up to 140, where the Charge3 stuck around 85 and 90 all the time for 15min, like I was doing nothing!!

Suddenly, Charge3 jumps to 150+, to drop back in the 80's after 2-3 minutes and then stayed around 100 for 5min, while the walker was adapting my pace between 130 and 145. After 25mins of running, I finished the workout at 135 on the trainer and still 95 with the Charge3. To top it, 10 minutes later in the car, where my pulse decreased significantly, Fitbit showed suddenly 120 - it was never that high while I was actually running...

Unfortunately, this happened every time. No difference if I wore it on either wrist, loose or tight.

All in all, for the latest generation of trackers from Fitbit, very disappointing result. I cannot understand such a mediocre product has even been released and praised as a evolution. Unless fixed soon, hands off and keep your Charge2 -  I will return this junk.

[dcc2013]

I sent this to Fitbit Support:

I purchased a Charge 3 and have an rma to return it. The Heart Rate monitor is not working. Check out your community forum. Many, many complaints. The community moderator is not addressing the issue. Who will address it?  Many people are losing faith in your products. Maybe Apple is the answer.

Will let you know what response I receive.

[dcc2013]

JuanJoFitbit

This is the response I received today from Fitbit Support.  Sad.  Have you read all of the posts in this thread complaining about the HR monitor?  My email to Support is posted in this thread.

Hello Dan,

We're glad to assist you regarding your Charge 3's heart rate monitor that is not working. We appreciate you for letting us know that you already have an RMA to return it.

Regarding your heart rate that is not working, may we know if do you only see dashes on your tracker's heart rate display? 

If you are getting inaccurate reading of your heart rate, may we know the following information below:

• What were you doing when you noticed the problem? 
• Were you wearing the device particularly tight or loose? (Wearing the device tightly restricts blood flow and affects the reading.)
• What was the device's position on your wrist? (During vigorous exercise, you will get a more reliable reading if the device is farther up on the wrist.)

Also you may see this article to learn more about your tracker on how to detect your heart rate and what impacts its accuracy.

Furthermore, may we ask if you were going to refund your Charge 3?

We look forward to your response so we could further investigate. Let us know if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Juan Ramon T. and the Fitbit Team

[SunsetRunner]

I too have problems with the HR monitoring on the Charge 3.

I'm noticing very irregular and unexpected HR "spikes", mostly when working out but also when sitting. Yesterday it even recorded an HR of 201 during a light biking session! My Charge 2 never had any similar issues and was much more consistent.

I think that if if this isn't fixed in a few weeks time, I'm shipping my Charge 3 back.

[dcc2013]

Here's another Fitbit Support non-responsive reply to this issue.  Received at 3am EST, broken written english -- obviously Fitbit has outsourced their "Support".  How do we reach someone at Fitbit who can address this issue or tell us it will be fixed at some point?

"Hello Dan,

We appreciate you reaching back to us and for updating when we fix the issue of Charge 3 with heart rate data inaccuracies.

As per our system, we were able to confirm that we've sent a return label in order for you return the tracker with no cost. With this being said, may we confirm if did you already sent back the tracker to us?

On the other hand, we'd like to share with you that all our trackers have gone through stringent testing to ensure its durability before we released to our customers. Furthermore, the issue you're experiencing is an unexpected behavior of your tracker and rest assured that your input would not go unnoticed.

In order for us to proceed accordingly, may we confirm if you are seeing dash lines on your heart rate screen or you are experiencing heart rate data discrepancies?

Dan, we want to genuinely apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you. Nonetheless, we appreciate your utmost patience with this matter. Should you require further assistance or have additional questions, feel free to reach out and let us know. We'll be glad to continue assisting you.

Sincerely,

Fitbit Team"

[dcc2013]

Replying to JuanJoFitbit, Moderator.  Juan, how do we find someone at Fitbit who will acknowledge the Charge 3 Heart Rate issue and let us know when it will be fixed?

[wind77]

---

@dcc2013 wrote:

"Hello Dan,

We appreciate you reaching back to us and for updating when we fix the issue of Charge 3 with heart rate data inaccuracies.

As per our system, we were able to confirm that we've sent a return label in order for you return the tracker with no cost. With this being said, may we confirm if did you already sent back the tracker to us?

On the other hand, we'd like to share with you that all our trackers have gone through stringent testing to ensure its durability before we released to our customers. Furthermore, the issue you're experiencing is an unexpected behavior of your tracker and rest assured that your input would not go unnoticed.

In order for us to proceed accordingly, may we confirm if you are seeing dash lines on your heart rate screen or you are experiencing heart rate data discrepancies?

Dan, we want to genuinely apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you. Nonetheless, we appreciate your utmost patience with this matter. Should you require further assistance or have additional questions, feel free to reach out and let us know. We'll be glad to continue assisting you.

Sincerely,

Fitbit Team"

---

@dcc2013 I think it is already quite clear from their reply - you reported an issue on data accuracy, and they said they tested on durability. No mention on "stringent testing to ensure its data accuracy".

I think that itself is a telltale.

Good luck!

[Heigou]

Sorry to hear about all

these issues with the 3. Was going to upgrade to get the waterproof feature, but seems the HR is even more inaccurate than my 2, so guess I’ll stick with it.

[speed_demon]

I bought the Charge 3, hoping to eliminate the need for different chest straps for different activities indoor and outdoor. I had looked at the new Scosche Rhythm24 armband to replace my current Rhythm+, but was concerned about reports of breakage at the strap attachments, which was apparently in the process of being addressed. The Rhythm+ has always given about the same HR as my Polar H7, and no problems with outdoor cycling, indoor spin cycling or elliptical use, although I would usually use the H7 on the elliptical since it can simultaneously use the Polar coded 5Ghz protocol so that my HR is displayed on the elliptical display and doesn't require wearing my phone in an armband.

The Charge 3 arrived from Amazon at about the date of release earlier this month.

It updated to the current firmware during setup, no obvious problems navigating menus, and no visible device abnormalities.

The Charge 3 gave wildly inaccurate HR measurements while sitting in a desk chair, averaging about 50 bpm higher than my Polar H7 chest strap  or Schosche Rhythm+ electro-optical armband.

I am white, with light complexion, and no tattoos or skin lesions.

The charge 3 was on my left wrist, and various changes in position and strap tightness such as recommended on both the web site and Fitbit tech support had no impact 

My resting HR is 44-46, was running about 48 at the time of setup, with essentially identical readings from the Polar H7 and Schosche Rhythm+, with the Scosche armband on my left forearm, alternating pairing between the H7 and Rhythm+ to Polar Beat.

The incorrect HR readings on the Charge 3 were present before I put on the Rhythm+ armband. The Rhythm+  did not impact the readings on the Charge 3, as would be expected absent tourniquet-like tightness to decrease arterial blood flow.

Various types of resets, etc. as recommended by Fitbit tech support had no impact on HR accuracy. They were very nice, but were working from scripts.

I sent the Charge 3 back to Amazon, but would be interested in trying a Fitbit again in the future if they can fix the problem. The inaccurate HR in my case is not related to exercise type, as I didn't use it during a workout since resting HR was so far off.

[Heigou]

So... Apple Watch?

[speed_demon]

I haven’t considered the Apple Watch due to the need for daily charging.

Would reconsider that when battery technology improves somewhat.

The Charge 3 would have been my best fit for now, so this was disappointing. 

The only downside if it had worked would have been the need to wear the H7 or Rhythm+ for bike rides, since the Charge 3 won’t pair with Polar cycling computers.

I had not expected any problems with the Charge 3, since the Rhythm+ has functioned well for the past few years.

However, the next time that I consider buying an electro-optical device, will get it at Best Buy and test it in-store before the purchase.