Lifespan of Fitbit Charge 2 or Fitbit Charge HR?

[BarbaraH.]

What do you consider the lifespan of a Fitbit Charge HR or Fitbit Charge 2?  I purchased a Fitbit Charge HR and it lasted 1-1/2 years.  I think they should hold up better than that.  Is this something that you have to plan of buying a new one yearly?  I also think the Customer Service has the attitude that it is just too bad...so sad.  That is very poor.  They cost too much to fall apart that fast.  A cheap Timex watch lasts for years and years. 

[SunsetRunner]

I agree. I had my 18 months when the screen cracked and for the price it cost to buy now of these watches it should hold up better that that (cracked on a camping trip doing nothing strenuous).  Now two months later the battery only last two or three days at best .Took it off of the charger at 100% yesterday around 4pm and today at 8am I only have 35% life left. 

[Suciobeats]

.....my charge 2 lost all HR capability a few days ago.    22 months before that happened.  I did work out with it.   Shame it's only lasting that long with no moving parts.   Definitely need to build something that lasts a bit longer.....

...but then they won't be profitable.  

[Deb3]

My Charge 2 just died at 21 months.  At first, the clock didn't keep correct time, then the screen stopped lighting up when I lifted my arm, and then a whole host of problems occurred.  I restarted repeatedly, as suggested by other forums, but nothing worked.  Now it is totally dead, and won't even charge.  They should last longer than that.  I wore mine daily, but I didn't beat it up.  I will look at other brands.

[ikarl]

I was greatly disappointed when my charge 2 suddenly died after less than a year and a half daily use. I call customer support and all they could offer was a 25% discount on a new fitbit or 40% off on a $300-400 top of the line fitbit and I am thinking fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on you. Are they wanting a couple hundred bucks of their users every other year. I would expect a longer life on device such as this.

[Hamike]

My Charge 2 is is two years and two months old at the time of this posting. I have replaced the band once with a much better quality third party band which cost $14 Canadian. The device itself is still running flawlessly and the battery is still holding it's charge for around 4 or 5 days.

[Rich_Laue]

When it comes to the charge 2 with there replaceable band, I don't consider the band as an essential part that effects the life span. Unless the band is a high quality metal or leather it is bound to fail and why, when I was much younger, watch bands could be found in almost every store.  Over time bands are expected to need replacement, and I'm wondering why some say they have had to replace their Fitbit breaks bands 3-4 time in a year when many more people have gone two years on their original band.

Most people I know have 6+ bands since they are so cheap and several friends make their own with beads or crochet.

When I think about the lifespan of a watch I'm only considering the unreplaceable parts such as what Fitbit calls the pebble and the points that the band attaches to.

For twenty dollars my brother last year bought a kit to replace the band, giving me life to a 4 year old  Surge

[ItsDenise]

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@ikarl wrote:

I was greatly disappointed when my charge 2 suddenly died after less than a year and a half daily use. I call customer support and all they could offer was a 25% discount on a new fitbit or 40% off on a $300-400 top of the line fitbit and I am thinking fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on you. Are they wanting a couple hundred bucks of their users every other year. I would expect a longer life on device such as this.

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This is my exact same issue. My Charge 2 just died (battery won't hold a charge) after just about a year and a half. I also was offered the same discount percentages. However, neither of those of course applies to if I decided to purchase the newest upgrade to the Charge 3. 

Purchasing a new product of the same type every other year or so, is ridiculous. 

[Jameskalvin]

Life span probably 1-11/2 and they dont have even a paid service .

[Rich_Laue]

My Charge 2, received 2 months before Fitbit started shipping them and 3 months before Target has them for sale is still going strong and my niece is using it .She also is whipping my butt in steps. 

[Hamike]

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@Hamike wrote:

My Charge 2 is is two years and two months old at the time of this posting. I have replaced the band once with a much better quality third party band which cost $14 Canadian. The device itself is still running flawlessly and the battery is still holding it's charge for around 4 or 5 days.

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I actually checked the time between charges, still 7 days.

[TacomaGirl95]

Late to reply to this.. but I'm on my 2nd fitbit charge 2 in 2 years.  First fitbit I had for a year and 7 months. the last 7 months it wasn't used often as I started using an apple watch. The Fitbit stopped working completely, wouldn't charge or turn on.  Wanted another Fitbit so eventually bought one secondhand, may have even been newer than my original and now about a month or 2 later it has done the same. No help from Fitbit. They offered a small discount when that happened to the first one but to me it isn't worth spending $180 on one and having to spend $140 every year and a half or less

[jt_stl]

Same here. I loved both my Charge HRs. I think I learned a lot about caring for a Charge HR with the first one- even wiping it off after exercise. But the second one has now died (battery won't hold a charge) after 14 months. It would seem they are designed to last around a year and a half. That makes all the fancy new models too expensive for me to consider.

[Julia_G]

@jt_stl , coincidentally, I was just in a discussion about exactly that!  I can assure you that Fitbits are definitely not designed to last about a year and a half!  If that were true, they would definitely be bankrupt, because they would have to replace every device supplied in the European Union, where they are required by law to provide a 24 month warrnaty.

In fact, most Fitbits last much longer than 12-24 months.  However, all rechargeable batteries have a limited number of cycles -- that's just physics -- no one has quite worked out how to get over that...

Since the batteries in Fitbits are necessarily very small, to get the best life, they should be re-charged regularly.  Ideally deep discharges should be avoided -- it is better to give them 15 minutes charge every day -- maybe while you are showering, or getting ready for the day -- that way you will keep your battery happy, and always have your Fitbit ready to count your steps...

Have you had a look at the new Fitbit Inspire HR?  I think it is actually cheaper than the old Charge HR (I can't quite remember what that cost, but I think I read that the new Inspire HR was the cheapest HR Fitbit ever).  I have one and really love it so far.  It is amazing how much these little things have changed in only a few years.  If you have not had a new one in a while, it might be worth having a look.

[Ice-III]

I have had my charge 2 for about 18-19 months.  It will no longer sync and won't keep the proper time.  I have been through 3 styles of Fitbit and will likely not buy another.  Any suggestions on the next brand to buy.

[jt_stl]

Physics and engineering. I assume Fitbit calculated the MTBF (mean time between failures) of the battery and the Charge HR before releasing it. I can find expected number of charge cycles for laptop batteries. It varies quite a bit depending on the manufacturer. I would guess the Fitbit engineers also measured that. They then had to make a cost/benefit analysis to decide how good a battery they could afford to provide. So I assume Fitbit could tell me how well the Charge HR did in their tests. I've just got these posts to rely on and 18 months seems about the average reported.

I did read an article on laptop batteries that suggested the best option was to recharge when the battery was at 25% and only charge to 90%. I charged whenever I saw a "battery low" indicator in my Dashboard and charged for around 90 minutes, at which time the charge indicator was at 100% on the Fitbit. If I decide to get another Fitbit, I'll try the 15 minutes per day. Though it will take a year or so to know if it helps.

I also read an article that said Fitbit revenue peaked in 2016. I think the jury is still out on whether they are losing more customers through products that don't last long enough to justify  the cost than they are gaining with new product introductions and partnerships.

I did see the Inspire HR. It is pretty close to everything I would want in a tracker, but I am not planning to buy one because the battery is not replaceable.

Ice-III,

Very good question. I hope people reply. I only have experience with Fitbit. My son switched from a Charge 2 to an Apple watch. That's a bit more than I want or need. He hasn't had the Apple watch long enough to know if it will last any better than the Charge 2. He also tends to upgrade his technology every couple of years (new phone, watch, etc) so he would not notice a problem as long as he got two years from his device.

Moderator edit: merged reply

[Jameskalvin]

Fitbit should have service repair for at least 2 years for rest of the world as they provide 2 year warrenty for europe.

I did manage to replace my battery after buying online and replaced the battery but same result it shows complete discharge within 1 minute of full charge

[castaways]

Same here...1 1/2 years on last 2 i bought.  Ridiculous .  Should be 19.95 or less at that rate. 

[siljelidkarlsvi]

Silje lidkarlsvi fra Skodje

[Rich_Laue]

In three months my Charge 2 will nee 3 years old and still going strong. 

[oyvaris]

It's definitely a problem.  I've seen that a battery replacement is available which may fix the problem.  I bought my Charge 2 in January of 2017.  It is just now starting to wear down and function less well.  Two and a half years?  I've had iPhones that didn't last that long and cost waaaay more!  I find that my electronic devices last longer if I keep them well-charged.  Also, the charger that comes with the watch can break within months of owning it.  I've purchased chargers and gone through two three-packs of new chargers from Amazon in the time I've owned my watch.  So, my advice, keep it charged up over 75% all the time. It might last longer.

I'm still in love with mine and probably will get a new one soon. The Charge 2 (3) can look like a bracelet with a nice metal band, the display is super and you just can't beat that app!