Maintain Fitbit web dashboard going forward

As an older user, my eyesight and hand eye coordination are poor. So, I prefer the website dashboard on my PC. That dashboard keeps directing us to the mobile app. Please assure you will continue maintaining both as I cannot rely solely on the mobile app. Please consider all of your customers when providing tools. Many thanks!
996 Comments
SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
I feel the same, the watches have been declining in quality over the last 5 years and I’ve been thinking about it, and and this adds to the challenges with the brand.

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FitbitUser0116
Recovery Runner

I am guessing that with the app, we would be leaving ourselves open to being spammed to death by ads on our cellphones. 

The thing is, if Fitbit had come out and said that they'd continue desktop access for a small fee, I'd have gladly paid it. 

SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
I admire your ability to live without a cellphone in today’s world.

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SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
Thank you for sharing this perspective, when they bought it, I felt it wasn’t for the business itself but for wrist access, as it becomes more important.

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xpdx
Jogger

Everybody has a cell phone, not everybody has eyes that can read tiny charts on a cell phone screen. Aging happens to everyone who lives long enough and almost everybody's eyes have trouble focusing on close and small screens at some point. This is not an unusual or uncommon issue. 

FitbitUser0116
Recovery Runner

I can type up to 70 wpm on a keyboard. Having to type on a tiny cellphone is not nearly as efficient. Being forced to use an app is a huge waste of time for me. I chose to take my fitness needs to My Fitness Pal, where I can still use my desktop computer. 

SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
Thank you for sharing your feelings here. When you find a better option please let us all know.

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SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
Thanks for the suggestion of My Fitness Pal, I’ll check it out.

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SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
Thank you, I agree with you. And my guess is that younger people are having eye issues earlier in life because of their heavy use of cell phones.

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v108
First Steps

I'm glued to my PC with fullsize keyboard and multiple monitors much of the time.  Its a productivity platform.  The cellphone is a crippling platform for me.  I have no need for an electronic leash unless my car breaks down.  So, I use a burner cellphone minimally, but try to remember to bring it along when I exercise.  Its got an ancient version of Android and a tiny bit of free memory, and the only wireless data I use is via Wifi connectivity.  Its officially un-supported by the Fitbit app, but the old app still works more or less.  Because the Fitbit app assumes broadband connectivity, if I forget to start it while in range of my Wifi, I'm screwed.  The web-based interface is critical to me, and I'll probably go rogue and use some python scripts under Linux to pull data from the Fitbit once you pull the plug.  Buh-bye.

SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
Thanks for sharing your challenges with this decision. I’m struggling with up-to-date technology in both cell phone and laptop.

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dstormys
First Steps
I agree....
Jan24
Jogger

Is Fitbit ready and willing to buy back the Fitbits from people who are unable to use a cell phone to track their data and therefore will no longer have access to their data?

We purchased the Fitbit with the understanding that we would be able to track our data.

SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
That’s a great question? Thanks for asking it.

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malangali
Jogger
Dear FitBit:
It is a violation of our agreement for you to drop the web dashboard. I am Visually Impaired, and cannot manage my account on the small phone screen. I bought the FitBit knowing that I could use it on the web browser. You must maintain that functionality.
thierrythierry
First Steps

I totally agree. I believe the web interface is so nice and useful. I prefer to use it on a computer, it is much more comfortable.

KBenjamin
Recovery Runner

Over the weekend, I gave the App the old college try in earnest, and it does not support my needs.

1. Part of my sleep hygiene is to spend an hour or two before bed bringing my heart rate down. Fitbit counts that as sleep. With the web dashboard, I can edit the start time so that my sleep is properly calculated. For the life of me, I can't figure out how to do that on the App.

  • The premium features that I'm paying for don't calculate the stress management score if the Fitbit thinks you fell asleep before 8pm.
  • Also, being unable to adjust the sleep start time skews my sleep score because I'm not sleeping.
  • So, paying for premium no longer supports my sleep tracking needs.

2. I can't create and save custom meals on the app, it takes too long to sit there and add the ingredients from all of my recipes, so the food tracking on the App doesn't support my needs. And for whatever reason, the meals that I added on the web dashboard don't show up in the custom foods on the app. 

3. I've spent way too much time this weekend trying to make the App work for me, and it just doesn't. So, when the web dashboard is gone. So am I.

SouthernBelle
Recovery Runner
I hope Fitbit gets the message, or they sell the company to someone who cares about their consumers enough to run it in a positive way.

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gehoeflinger
Jogger

They don't Care. We are expendable, whinny mostly seniors, not in the demographic they want.

TheJamesL
Jogger

RobinSnav, AGREE!

This is what I feared when I saw that Google acquired FitBit. They (Alphabet-Google) love to change everything and push everyone to a phone app. Some, dare I say, many of us still use a computer from time to time. If they start monkeying with too many of the features I may need to start looking at that other leading brand of Fitness Tracker. Their GPS function seems more accurate anyway.

Rangerfan
Jogger

I do not have a smartphone to be able to use the app.  I have a PC and can only access the dashboard using that.  That's the only way I can track my progress.  Please do NOT discontinue the web dashboard or I may have to discontinue using Fitbit altogether!

Chiqid
Base Runner
I created custom workouts - yet - you can't choose them on your watch when you do them. Soooooo...I go in and choose - Workout. Then, later, i go to the WEBSITE LOG Activities and change Workout to my custom workout name. You don't allow me to use my custom workout on my watch and now you are keeping me from choosing it in the LOG ACTIVITIES !!!
CityLion
Tempo Runner

Sad state of affairs as we suffer Yet Another Google "Sunset" of data that makes sense in favor of data that makes Google cents, and dollars.  

I appreciate Google's reduction of scam friend requests, and the demonstrable, faster recollection through the clouds for what must have been a choking volume of detail Fitbit gathered and maintained.  I am quite disappointed that my detail was abandoned by Google and none of the promises that it was "my data" could be fulfilled through documented batch request steps before my data was jettisoned.  Unlike the legendary great encouragements from the founders of fitbit, Google promises, but fails to innovate.  Clearly I am now only a Google product for sale as in ingredient rolled into "anonymous" data, to maintain the nearly true claim "my" data is not sold.   Can we find some room to hope for improvements because; Google doesn't know when I am sleeping, Google doesn't know when I am awake.  Google cannot tell if I've been bad or good (especially my heart), yet it sells it as if health data, yet it is fake, 

SueC8
Jogger

With arthritis in both hands I need to do everything on my Chromebook, not my cell phone!! Google lets me do texting from my Chrome browser, what is the big deal letting me continue to input my food diary and manage other Fitbit features in a web-based interface instead of the dinky keyboard and ity bity radio dots on a cell phone. A full sized keyboard is ESSENTIAL for Fitbit to continue to be useful for many of us!

Do NOT abandon a web based interface!

oasisofice
Stepping Up

   Looks like this Browser app quit working this morning or earlier, it worked yesterday morning. Too bad, I needed this as I don't like phone apps as mostly the are too lite on basic features. My Inspire2  is DIM and maybe time to replace it. If there was a browser app I would get one of those color Inspire3's, but Oops that ship has sailed.....

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