Fragile and unsupported

[VersaFail]

My son received his Versa for Christmas this year.  Within 3 weeks, the screen is BUSTED.  He sustained a very minor fall and the screen shattered.  Clearly a fragile piece of glass by reading other reviews.  To make matters worse, I learned that Fitbit has OPTED OUT of certain retailers extended protection plans.  This means, if you purchased one of these plans and have an occurrence like mine, the retailer is only authorized to refund you the cost of the protection plan you purchased.  Fitbit is not allowing them to fulfill the protection replacement.  I highly recommend that you seek out any other manufacturer that supports the protection and longevity of their products.  I called Fitbit to discuss this matter and they only offered me the assurance that this is not a manufacture defect and so I now have a $200 paperweight with exposed broken glass.  Thanks Fitbit.  

[SunsetRunner]

Hi, do not blame Fitbit for this. I really understand your frustation, but that's common policy with/by a lot of manufacturors. A fall is never under warranty, cause, as manufacturors see this as your own fault. From Fitbit's side this is understandable, from your side I understand your anger cause you think they made a "bad product", which is, in this case, not the issue. I realize that my answer is hard for you to understand, but all in all I agree with Fitbit in this case. I do not work for Fitbit, nor do have have any connections with the Firm. 

[Blooze]

I would like to add my own story regarding how "Fragile and Unsupported" Fitbits are. I received my Fitbit Versa as a Christmas gift in December. I started wearing it about 3 weeks ago. A short time ago I was walking through my kitchen and bumped my wrist against the counter: the screen on my Fitbit cracked. I contacted the supported line and was shocked to learn there is no repair or glass replacement option! Fitbit's answer was to offer me a 25% discount to purchase another device. As the previous commenter noted, I now have a $200 paperweight. Guess I will be going back to my "long-suffering" but durable and reliable wrist watch. Needless to say I will not be buying another Fitbit in the foreseeable future AND unless / until the company changes their support policy and/or dramatically improves the durability of their products. VERY disappointing...

[SunsetRunner]

Hi, see my earlier post. Accidents with damage never fall under warranty, whichever manufacturor you have, be it Fitbit, Apple or whatever. I really undertstand the frustration, but it's the common pollicy of all of them. 

[Blooze]

I appreciate your perspective but to clarify, I don't have an issue with the lack of warranty coverage. The damage was clearly caused by my own lack of attention (even if inadvertent). What I'm taking issue with is the fact that I can't even pay to have it repaired! Given the size of this device it seems entirely predictable to me that occasionally Fitbit wearers are going to bump into things with these devices... as with virtually any wearable item. The fact that the company has made a choice to not offer screen repair / replacement services is surprising... and disappointing. This isn't a $25 Timex... it's a $200 piece of tech. Guess I'm just old school in thinking that there is value in designing / building things to last... which in my mind includes offering the customers reasonable support and repair services.

[Rich_Laue]

As for the retailers warranty, no Fitbit has nothing to do with their warranty, It is a retailers warranty and the retailer should honor their warranty, Fitbit is under no obligation to honor a warranty that they did not agree on.

[SunsetRunner]

You're entirely right about that, but it seems that the Versa is made of one piece and therefore you cannot repair it, how sad this is, but this seems to be the reality. Not that I agree with that, on the contrary. Fitbit should make it able to repair broken screens for whatever reason.   

[VersaFail]

They’re willingness to opt out of a 3rd party protection plan, afforded by the third party, speaks volumes to their inability to support their brand through durability. I understand this is not a “defect”. They understand their product is fragile and more likely to break than other manufacturers that participate in this paid for platform of protection.

Kyle Webb

[VersaFail]

I want to be crystal clear.  This is not a matter of warranty.  I understand how warranty works, and my son's experience, as many others, falls outside of manufacturer's defect.  NOT what I am discussing.  My discouragement is that they have OPTED OUT of participation in third party product protection programs.  These are programs that buyers can elect to PURCHASE in addition to retail cost to insure their products in the event of unforeseeable instances.  This is an offering that most manufacturer's do participate in.  Including Apple, to one commenters disbelief.  These are the same protections that you can buy on most tech including tvs, computers, tablets and watches.  It is Fitbit that has opted out.  This seems to indicate that they are aware of the fragility and frequent screen cracks that their products incur.  My advice is to buy from a manufacturer that stands behind their own products through these programs.  Rather than a manufacturer that can only encourage you to purchase a new one.  

[Rich_Laue]

When buying a Fitbit from fitbit.com the user has the option of purchasing an extended warranty from the same company that most use to  purchase an extended warranty for their phone.

However if a person bus the tracker from a brick and mortar store they would need to purchase an extended warranty themselves or through the retailer.

[Andrewa9633]

Yes! I bought these Versas for myself and my daughter. Loved them. Mine got a screen chip earlier in June, cracked a week later, and then died a few days after that. My daughter just noticed her screen is broken today. She's heartbroken. It was her big birthday gift in March and now it's just landfill. It really sucks that Fitbit is charging $200-$300 for a watch and making it both fragile with no protective edge and  impossible to repair. They don't even sell cases or screen protectors for it. Big scam. I'll tell people not to waste money on this. I'm really disappointed. 

[Andrewa9633]

Ok. Update: Fitbit replaced both my and my daughter's Versas for free, and it had nothing to do with this post. I just called. I think the community forum may have lead me to believe they wouldn't replace them. They seemed to think it was important which country I was calling from. Perhaps the posts where Fitbit refused to replace were not Canadian. It might be related to consumer protection laws. 

Anyway, thank you Fitbit. We both have screen protectors now.