Life span of Fitbit tracker

[Jimmyteo]

I have been Fitbit customer for last 6 years with 3 trackers. My current Fitbit Charge 4 I bought with less than 2 years ago just died on me. My last two Fitbit trackers average life span is also about 2 years. Is this a norm?

[JuanFitbit]

@Jimmyteo , Nice to see you around. Thank you for sharing your feedback and your experiences with your Fitbits. 

We appreciate your comments as they help us improve our services.

The life span for the devices might vary depending on use. 

I had used different models and they have been working since their release and some are still in use. 

Thank you for participating in the Community

[Crazygamer53]

Hi, My Charge 4 died last week, it lasted 16 months,  I noticed over the summer that the screen started getting dimmer

and then last week the screen went totally blank.  I have been back and forth with Fitbit support all week but they have been no help stating that it is out of warranty. They acknowledged  that they were aware that there was a problem with the Charge 4. I wish that they had alerted us when they new, then I would not have waited when the problem first started.  I have 

a Fitbit Zip, One, Alta, Alta HR,Inspire and a Charge 3 and they are all still working years after they were purchased.  I expected 

the same with the Charge 4.  Good Luck, let me know how you make out. I hope it is better than I did.

[Jimmyteo]

@JuanFitbit Thank you for your feedback. I am a little puzzled when you wrote "The life span for the devices might vary depending on use". I use it 24/7, 365 days. (except when I took it off for charging). 

I asked for feedback from my friends. Many shared the same story that the life span of their Fitbits was shorter than expected. I also did some shopping. The salespersons shared that many of their customers also experience the same problem. As such, the shop offers an additional 2-year warranty on top of the one-year warranty from Fitbit at a fraction of the cost. In the event, that a tracker is not working after the 1st year warranty, the shop will offer a one-for-one exchange. For another "G" brand, the brand offers a 2-year warranty. Because of the durability, the shop offers an extension of 3-year warranty for a cost as the salesperson shared that the item seldom breakdown within 4 years. Many of my friends who exercise frequently shared that their G watches are very durable (more than 3 years and still going strong) based on heavy usage from running and swimming.

Painfully, I have decided to make a switch out from a Fitbitean to be a "G"rean. Not an easy decision. Sincerely hope to see Fitbit improve your product durability and lifespan.

[Jimmyteo]

Thank you for your feedback. Indeed, I received a lot of feedback from friends and a few retail salespersons who are more neutral. 

I suppose as with any other new product launched, there may be some possible defects that may be overlooked. Durability may be one of them.

I have painfully decided to switch from Fitbitean to a "G"rean.

Hope to come back to be a Fitbittean in 4-6 years' time, if my new tracker lasts that long, or longer.

[Jimmyteo]

@JuanFitbit Just a recommendation. The Fitbit tracker's durability should be competitive with other brands, in terms of life span. To demonstrate Fitbit confidence in your product, the company can consider a 2-year warranty. I think it is reasonable. In the event, if the tracker is faulty, Fitbit can collect back the faulty item and offer a replacement so that your engineer can find out what went wrong and improve on future products.

In the 3rd year, if the item is faulty (not referring to the band or strap), you can offer a Fitbit store credit of 50% so that the customer will continue to patronise and buy Fitbit items. I think a 3-year lifespan and more for a tracker is reasonable and it may be time for the person to upgrade.

You can offer a discount on the new item if the customer returned the used Fitbit after 3 years. This helps to keep loyal customers. 

Food for thoughts...

[suzibeck2]

My Alta HR lasted just over 2 years. The band attachment just broke off my Charge 4 at 14 months. I have some other model that I got on Prime Day last year that I will break out now. If I don’t get at least 2 years from it I will look into other brands. I’m very disappointed in my Charge 4’s durability. 

[Barbg46]

My charge 4 broke after only 14 months (where the strap connects to the tracker).
I expected it would last longer than this. I live in NY State. Is this covered under a warranty?

[Neicygirl]

It appears that two years is the lifespan! I am having problems with mine, and it will be two years ago that I purchased it in February, 2020! I am so disappointed!

[blueflize]

Our family has been using Fitbit products for 6 or 7 years and the trackers usually failed by 2 years. Hard to see that pattern till you have had a few. My charge 4 has the screen dimming issue that is a known issue and was slowly fading. By the time it was apparent what was going on the warranty period was up.Reading the Fitbit responce below has made my mind up to change brands. That response translates to. I will state that the products are fine and I do not acknowledge there are issues with the product. When all you make is trackers and have done for a long time, you would expect them to be a product on a level of Apple Iphone that fully supports the customer with a long lasting reliable product. Makes me think... Hmm do Apple make a watch..why yes they do.

[Habitaz]

This has happened to so so many us. I have 3..yes 3 Fitbit Charge 3 and not one of them will work. Dark display, 001 code and one which only half the display works, the other half is completely dark. Fitbit is now avoiding me as I have brought these issues to them and they have no solution. The Fitbits are now just trash..totally worthless. Two have less than 6 months use and one just over a year. No resetting or any troubleshooting has resolved any of the three different issues. Super bummed at this product and company. Apparently the Fitbit 3 has major issues and a faulty product. I have read about it in multiple forums online. I hope you have better luck with your device. I won’t be purchasing from Fitbit again and will discourage others from doing so.

[Jimmyteo]

Thank you to all for all your support. It is official. I have converted myself to Garmin.

[SunsetRunner]

My Charge 4 also broken at exactly the 14 month mark!  In the US, it's not warrantied and the best they'll do is send you a 30%-35% discount coupon so you can go buy another defective Fitbit.  I haven't heard of the Charge 5 being defective, but my 3 was, and I have so many straps that only fit the Charge 4, but I've seen multiple people online who've bought a replacement Charge 4, only for it to happen again. It's some type of defect.  I guess we don't have that much consumer protection here.

[SunsetRunner]

Well, don't get tricked into buying the Charge 4.  The screen is nice and bright.  The connectors seem to snap off between fourteen and twenty months, routinely.

[Hooten12]

My Charge 4 also stopped working properly shy of two years. I’ve chatted with customer service four times and tried all their solutions to no avail. I had a Charge 3 that also died around the two year mark. I would like to try the Charge 5 but fear of having a similar durability issue. 

[Habitaz]

Please do not spend anymore money on Fitbits. There are literally hundreds if not thousands of stories of Fitbits and the problems they have. They do not last even with minimal use! 

[ArchAngelDante]

I just posted about this as well. It appears the lifespan is about 2 years.

[Markham62]

I've been a Fitbit user for close to 10 years and replaced my non-working Charge 4 just about 18 months ago with a Charge 5. I like the newer model but it has now also stopped working even after trying to recharge, restart, etc. It powers on and provides the time, date and heart rate but won't count steps accurately any longer. Debating whether to stick with Fitbit but I also paid for Premium and like all the data it provides on sleep analysis, so will contact customer service if I can figure out how.