Versa Smartwatches - Fitbit OS 4.1.3 Firmware Update (70.80.0)

[AlessFitbit]

Fitbit Update: 5/27

Hey, everyone!

I'm happy to announce that Fitbit OS 4.1.3 was released to all users. If you haven't already please make sure you update to the newest software for your Versa Smartwatch. It's important to always have the watch on the newest software version so that it runs smoothly along with the Fitbit app. 

If you have any difficulty updating your Fitbit device, review these troubleshooting tips.

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Hi, Versa Smartwatches Family! 

We’re excited to announce the release of Fitbit OS 4.1.3. available for Versa, Versa Lite, and Versa 2. 

We started releasing this new update to customers. This is a progressive rollout which means everyone will receive it at different stages. We roll out releases in phases as a cautionary measure so that we can monitor performance closely and make adjustments if needed. 

*Firmware releases aren't distributed based on region or location and can reach anyone no matter where you reside. 

WHAT’S NEW AND FIXED

Read our help article for the latest updates.

HOW DO I UPDATE?

Find step-by-step instructions for updating Versa smartwatch here. 

If you run into any trouble updating your Fitbit device, review these troubleshooting tips. If you have issues after completing the update, try restarting the watch. 

VERSA LITE users - If you have trouble updating the firmware:

Follow the steps in this help article where we outline troubleshooting steps just for Versa Lite. 

We appreciate your patience while we work to roll this out to everyone. 

[KikiM75]

Unfortunately, sounds like the update killed yours, too. So sorry.

[SunsetRunner]

The issues everyone is  experiencing with this firmware are the same issues that have been occurring since last year.  Each firmware version brought in a plethora of issues.  The December update introduced the battery draining issue especially when turning it off.  All if these issues were posted and the post was closed.   Nothing was done to address and correct these issues as you can see from the posts in the April firmware thread and now this one.   

Trouble shooting techniques are not going to help a device that has been corrupted  by a firmware that has been coded incorrectly and not tested properly and thoroughly before rolling it out.  Both of my friends ended up with a bricked Versa and a poorly functioning Ionic due to the debacle of the April firmware.  

[C4trees]

I would like to try all those suggestions but at this point my versa will not even charge enough to reset, restart, or even turn on. It is totally dead!

[geoknitter]

I started experiencing problems with my Versa after this latest firmware update, so followed the recommendations post here. Now that I've shutdown my Versa, it will not turn on. It's battery was up to 100% as I had just taken it off of the charger and saw that that there was a persistent red light on the back. This was already a replacement watch, since my original Versa died while still under warranty. 

I've read other posts where a 25% discount has been offered to customers for replacement watches. Fitbit, how about saving yourself some money and offering a roll-back update option once it becomes apparent that an update causes more glitches than it fixes? My Versa was working just fine prior to this latest update and I was absolutely happy with it. 

[Nealkat]

Very well said.  You hit the nail on the head.  Exactly what happened.  

[BrittFit88]

I agree. Fitbit is just dancing all around it and, so far, has been dismissing all of us with dead watches. Offering a 25% discount and trying to encourage customers to BUY new watches after killing out current watches with a bad firmware update is bad business and a rip off. The customer service is horrific! 

[FLOJU]

Since the recent firmware update to the watch, I have also seen the issue with severe battery drain.  Before the update my daily drain was ~15%, now it is ~40%.  Further, my Versa 2 and my android app, while saying sync was successful have different step counts for a few days now.  The watch reports 4002 right now, while the app reports 399.  I do not log manual workouts, but I do use auto workouts on my elliptical which I use daily.  It seems the watch is tracking the elliptical, but in the app something is going wrong.  Watch firmware version:  35.70.8.0    Android app version 3.22.1

My usage habits have not changed for several months.  The change is the firmware update, battery drain, and incorrect data during sync.

[flowerdealer]

My wife's Versa got this update yesterday and now the screen is black and it won't turn on at all (Watch is charged and still syncs).  Thanks for bricking our recently out of warranty device. 

[KellyCurley]

Mine is now deleting my steps. I did live chat today and when the woman logged into my account she said it said I had 5,880 steps. Both the watch and my Fitbit app said 2,710. She couldn’t figure it out and said she didn’t want to take up more of my time so she will email me. So now I wait and continue to grow more and more frustrated. 

[Ravi_D]

I am rather amazed, how can Fitbit get away so easily bricking our perfectly working device ? They made a bad firmware or I would say put a "kill it" switch in the new firmware deliberately. 

Now when the new firmware has done its jobs by bricking the working device , these guys are here to make money by offering some discount . My question is how can they even expect any of the one whose device is bricked to buy a new Fitbit device ? This should be a warning to other user also , their device will face same fate sooner or later. If they can not fix my device , Fitbit will never get my business again. 

[BrittFit88]

Totally agree! I’ve been pushing Fitbit to my friends and family for years. Now I feel like I’ve been had and set my friends and family up to be had as well. So far, Fitbit support and customer service is a joke. I finally got an email from support and they mocked me and the entire situation. It’s shocking and disgusting that this company thinks they can deliberately kill our smart watches and we won’t put the pieces together!

Sent from my iPhone

[ajsaletra]

Maria,

I have an Ionic and after I did the Firmware update it bricked.  It was a few months out of warranty so I used the 25% discount and got the Versa 2.  My Versa 2 which I have had for a month or so did the firmware update and now like everyone else is not holding a battery charge.  I have a ticket logged and they have asked me to test it.  Since this morning at 6 am when it was fully charged it it now down to 44%.  I saw in the Ionic Forum that a lot of people experienced the exact same issue and my device was only a few months out of warranty.  Between the two devices I have paid around $500 for two watches.  If hundreds of people are posting about the exact same issue and on multiple devices there has to be a much bigger issue here worthy of escalation and maybe some exceptions to your standard warranty.  It is sort of pointless to send me anther replacement if I am going to run into the same issue. 

[C4trees]

None of the suggestions worked. At this point I just have a black screen and it won’t charge at all. I’m very disappointed and don’t seem to be alone according to this blog.

[hingez25]

After I did the update my Versa is only showing the Fitbit logo. I  have tried all the things suggested with no luck. I haven't tried to contact customer service as I have been that route before & it's frustrating. I know they will only offer me a new one at a discounted price as mine is out of warranty with no explanation as to the cause of the problem. I can't believe when there are multiple reports of the same thing they don't address the issue in a better manner. I am so done. 

[SunsetRunner]

This is a really bad case of dejavu.   Everything that had been noted on this thread is exactly what users have posted with every firmware update since last year. The last update I reluctantly did was the one in November and luckily my Versa was ok.  But before downloading the December update I checked the Forum and saw all of the issues that where encountered and reported and opted out of doing that one.   Then read the posts for the April update (again same friggin issues and this time my friends encountered the demise of their devices and forewarned me under no circumstances to download the update). So here we are again with another garbage update that was rolled out in a very quickly (how could this firmware be even tested in that short of a time span?) and again a plethora of major issues.

• These issues are reportedly provided back to the development team, what exactly do they do with the information?  Apparently,  nothing since the same issues are still present with each firmware update. 
• Are the firmware tested thoroughly and accurately in older and newer hardware to see how they react with the updates.  Quite the opposite,  it seems as obsolescence is built into these devices so that they will be bricked or perform in a subpar manner.
• The moderators recommend to have the latest firmware update and the mobile app update on the device.   Since there is no guarantee that these updates will work smoothly and make the device function better it's a gamble especially with an out of warranty device.  So why update if you can't guarantee that the device won't be bricked or not perform as it should and it becomes a useless paperweight?
• The 25% discount is a slap in the face when it's a corrupted firmware update issued by Fitbit that is causing these issues.  Why would anyone purchase another Fitbit device when you will encounter the same issues sooner or later?
• Why keep this firmware update available when you see all the issues that users are experiencing across the board with both the Versa and Ionic devices as per the posts on both Forums? A patch should have been issued or better yet pulled the the firmware update off the server.  
• How many more users have to have their devices bricked or loose functionality before you admit that it's a corrupted firmware?

As you can see from this thread alone users have either left or are contemplating on leaving the Fitbit ecosystem for other brands due to the lack of support and the nonchalant attitude received.  I will be doing the same once I decide on the best option for my needs.

When a business chooses profit over their customers that is a very poor business model. 

[Mambs]

Don't install this update!!! It broke my Versa, and Fitbit does not offer a replacement!

[SeattleStokie]

I spoke to a work colleague today and he mentioned that both his and his wife’s Versas have both been broken by the update - 1 won’t power on and the other has the same rapid battery drain

@MarreFitbit - do you know when an update to fix the issue with rapid battery drain will be released?

Moderator edit: text format

[Lodyangel]

My case 36189219

I contacted customer service yesterday about problems with my Versa. I have had it for less than a year and a half. After the firmware update, the battery began losing charge quickly, only staying on for a few hours. My heart rate monitor stopped working. It stopped recording sleep. The touch screen stopped working, and them went black. Last night after talking to customer service it died for good. I left it on the charger all night and it will not turn on, no matter what I do.

I have heard a lot of people have had this exact same thing happen after the firmware update.  This seems to be Fitbit's fault. 

I want a replacement tracker. 

I have had a Fitbit for the last 10 years. I am a solid repeat customer. I have never had a Fitbit last this short of a time. 

I have followed all suggestions and it is an expensive  brick now. You all need to make this right with your customers.

[hingez25]

I chatted for a 2nd time today & when a factory reset wouldn't work for my issue I was offered a free replacement. I was still in warranty & I didn't realize that & I forgot I also purchased the 2 year plan including accidental damage-as I have had that happen before & it wasn't covered. So I have a new Versa 2 on the way as they don't have my Versa model in the color I chose anymore. Free YAY 

[SunsetRunner]

Unfortunately, Fitbit will not admit fault with their firmware updates.  This has been ongoing since last year.  Each version of the firmware update exhibits the same issues as the prior version as well as adding additional issues to the end user.

You will receive the same rhetoric response regarding the battery draining….you’re not charging the device correctly, perform battery saving techniques, do a battery test, etc.  None of that is going to work!!!!!  The battery draining issue isn't new....this was introduced back in the December firmware update and nothing was done to address and correct this bad code. Users posted about it on the thread for that particular firmware update and the post was closed yet nothing was done to rectify it.  Four months later a new update was rolled out in April and guess what, users started posting about the battery draining issue once again.   The post for that update was once again closed and nothing was done to correct this issue.  Then the May update was quickly rolled out and it’s still present with this update.

In addition, to the battery draining issue, devices have continually been bricked with each firmware update.  If the device isn’t bricked, then the functionality of the device is greatly diminished and not performing as advertised.  Again bad coding within the firmware.

There is no accurate and thoroughly testing being done especially within the older hardware like the original Versa (although these issues have occurred in both the Versa Lite and Versa 2).  How long is the beta testing performed for?  If beta testers report an issue or issues are they addressed and corrected?  Are these firmware updates (as well as the mobile app – that’s another debacle with issues) even quality checked after the beta testing has been completed and issues that have been addressed are corrected before the thought of being rolled out?  The answer is no. It’s more like let’s see what happens.

Since supposedly these firmware updates are progressively rolled out, why when you have users reporting issues that have already been reported in previous updates as well as new issues within the current firmware, why aren’t they addressed promptly and /or remove the firmware update from the server until the issues are addressed and corrected?  Why continue to have firmware available for downloading so that more and more users continue to experience the same issues?  How is this fair to your customer base?  Do you even care that you are losing more customers to other brands?