Versa stopped tracking my heart rate

[SM0001]

Fitbit Versa stopped recording heart rate mid ride. Device was still syncing fine and everything else seemed to be alright but LED wasn’t flashing and no readings. I tried all the fixes I’ve seen online including making sure HR wasn’t turned off, restarting, resetting, deleting the app and reinstalling. Nothing worked.

Left it aside and went back to my Charge (which is another issue on its own) to see if that had come to its senses. After a day or two of having no luck with the Charge 3, I went back to the Versa and the green LED was actually flashing. I thought it was fine and put it on only to still not get any readings.

Now, I’ve fairly well given up on this as I’d be shocked if there were any suggestions I haven't tried and being 1 1/2 years old, warranty won’t cover it. What I want to know is if the combination of sweat and fairly high ambient temp could have caused it.

I'm in the market for another wearable and barely hanging on to the Fitbit train. I can’t get a third Fitbit without knowing what’s going on. These things are supposed to be sweat and water resistant.

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[MarreFitbit]

Hi there @SM0001, welcome to the Community Forums. I'm sorry to hear that your Versa stopped tracking your heart rate. I appreciate you've already taken the time to troubleshoot your watch prior to posting here. Nice way to go! 

In order for me to better assist you with this, please confirm that you've followed the steps below:

• Switch the Heart Rate settings from On to Off and manually sync your watch. To switch the heart rate settings on your watch, from the main screen of your watch, swipe left until you see "Settings", next swipe up until you see "Heart Rate" and switch it to Off.
• Once it's done, manually sync your Versa. To do so, open the Fitbit app, tap on the Account icon, tap on your Versa's image and tap on "Sync Now" 
• Next, switch it from Off to On and manually sync your watch once again. 
• Once it's done, restart your watch once again. 
• Next, confirm that your tracker is snug on your wrist (the lights shouldn't be visible) We also recommend when you're not exercising, wear the tracker just above the wrist bone.

Also, for more detailed information, see: What factors can affect my heart-rate reading on my Fitbit device?

In regards to your inquiry about water and sweat resistance, note that all Fitbit trackers and smartwatches are water-resistant, which means they're rainproof and splash-proof and can stand up to even the sweatiest workout. Fitbit Versa series are swimproof  in a lake, or ocen up to 50 meters. 

[SM0001]

Hi MarreFitbit,

I just did that again to be safe and I'm still getting no readings. Also moved the watch down below my wrist bone and made it snug and nothing. If it means anything, I can't see HR reading on the watch screen itself so I don't think it's a syncing issue. 

[MarreFitbit]

Hi there @SM0001, thanks for getting back and for the update. I appreciate you had followed the tips and recommendations provided above. Since this sounds a bit more serious, I've created a support case on your behalf - you should soon receive an email from Customer Support at the email you used to register with the Community forums. Note that we may take a bit long to get back to you since due to recent events affecting our operations, support options are limited and wait times are longer than usual. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to let me know. 😉

[SM0001 · Accepted solution]

The issue couldn’t be resolved and I’m out of the warranty period so Fitbit support offered me a 25% discount to get a new device. Initially bought the charge 4 for the built in gps but lost connection 10 mins into my first ride. Some google search showed that other people have had this problem and Fitbit may be aware of it. Promptly returned and got the Charge 3 on sale for half the price from Sportchek. The discount offered didn’t apply to either of these as Fitbit doesn’t carry the charge 3 anymore and the charge 4 is a new product. I have no interest in getting another Versa.

[kpmomof3]

In other words, it can’t be fixed. Mine did the same thing mid workout. I’ve done all the trouble shooting too. I hate to leave Fitbit after 5 years and three trackers, but they just don’t hold up. 

[Avleichty]

I agree completely.  This is my 2nd Versa and the HR monitors just stopped working without reason. After my first one died, I took speciL care to clean it and dry it after a sweaty workout and it didn't seem to make a difference.  Each device only lasted about 6 months.  Not a great track record.

[SM0001]

At this point, the only reason I kept the charge 3 is that it was relatively cheap. I don’t know if it’s the sampling rate but recording a ride from the tracker results in very poor resolution making it hard to compare rides. So at this point, I’ve gone through 4 different Fitbit’s all with one problem or the other. Very much considering an Apple Watch.

[SunsetRunner]

Reading this thread confirms I’m not alone.  I’ve had my second versa heart rate/ LEDs just die... both in August, during my outdoor cycling months.  2 devices in 20 months...same problem... great concept but not convinced that basic durability is in these.  Not sure where to go next.

[TT2020]

I’m in a similar boat.  About a month ago things started going a bit haywire in my Versa2.  I lost HR tracking too.  I have gone through every step possible to restore.  The only thing that worked was doing a factory reset in the settings on the Versa itself.   However, after doing that my Versa2 started sending out random vibrations through the night, even though I set it to night mode.  The screen will also randomly go to just the Fitbit symbol.  When the screen comes back there is major lag time between screen views.   I have done another factory reset but the problems persist.  I have been a long time Fitbit user having had many different bands now.  Common theme now seems to be as soon as you hit the 1 year mark problems arise.  Given the poor quality I think it is time to seek an alternative.  Fitbit is going to lose more and more users.

Moderator edit: format

[SM0001]

Yh, I'm very much done with fitbit at this point. I still have the charge 3 I got about 2 months ago and the GPS is still unreliable. No fitbit, I didn't just take a shortcut through those three houses. I am at a loss for why it's so bad since it's tracking through my phone. Every other app, including strava, tracks properly. I'll mostly be using it indoors through the winter so it's likely getting tossed come spring. To make matters worse, they keep pushing this active zone minutes thing and nagging to get one of the newer fitbits that has the zone minutes activated. Well that's most definitely not going to happen. Especially since I see no reason why they can't provide it for the older fitbit models. It's purely a software upgrade as far as I can tell.

[TT2020]

Well, Fitbit told me to change my clock face and that would fix things.  I did that and it worked for a day.  Then as of last night it has gone haywire again.  It was randomly vibrating through the night even though I had it set to night mode - that's great for getting proper rest!  So frustrated.

[SM0001]

I know what you mean. My first charge 3 did the same thing. Vibrating randomly and the screen coming on randomly which killed the charge very fast and had to take it off at nights. I don't bring up the charge 3 because that happened after I unknowingly took it in a bath tub for a few mins. The Versa issues were totally out of the blue in the middle of a ride and I never found a solution.

If your versa 2 is out of the warranty period and you want to stick with Fitbit, I'll advice to get a charge 3 (relatively cheap) for now and see how the reviews on the newer Fitbit models pan out in the next few months. Else, probably best to just go with something else.

[AprilAnn72]

Same! And I’m just tired of investing money into a company that won’t even stand behind their products for longer than 12 months. My Versa 2 isn’t quite 14 months old yet. My heart rate and sleep trackers stopped on what appears to be Jan 8-10?? So not even a full 13 months old.

  I don’t  want to do it, but it looks like I’m going to be looking at an Apple Watch. I’ve had 2 flex, 1 blaze and this Versa 2. Four trackers in almost 7 years. That’s a lot. Gives me something to think about. 

[Sallymiller]

There are many queries on these boards about this problem, it seems to be a common problem across Fitbit devices.  Mine stopped showing current heart rate on the app, which I use to monitor my cardio workouts on the Step Mill. 

You will notice that None of the queries ever actually have a fix, they just ask a lot of technical questions about the device being used, and then the thread goes dead, without a solution to the problem.