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As we know, there are only two usb ports on MacBook Pro with Retina, and it has built-in bluetooth 4.0 support. So could you let us use Fitbit Connect on Mac without dongle?
The software can sync via BT under the iOS software APIs and now the W10 APIs. So why not the Mac OS X APIs? Those should be identical or nearly identical to the iOS APIs.
The dongle won't even work for me under OS X 10.11 on my Mac mini. Most of the time, Fitbit Connect does not even recognize that is plugged in.
Probably not what you want to hear, but if you install Windows 10 on your MacBook, the Fitbit App for Windows 10 will allow you to sync with just bluetooth.
Thanks for your response @PureEvil. Unfortunately that's not an option for me. I just wish Fitbit would update their OS X app already to allow this. However your response goes to show that syncing with a Mac is physically possible without the adapter - they just don't want to write the software to allow it...
@teas_swift, you're right, on my older computer (before the adapter fell out and was never seen again) it often wouldn't recognize that it was plugged in. I totally forgot about that. Does anyone from Fitbir actually pay attention to these forums? I'm getting to the point where I'm seriously considering just switching to another device.
The fact that this isn't supported is frankly ridiculous. I lost my wireless dongle, and now I have to pay $20 for a piece of electronics that probably costs a dollar to make, just so I can sync to my Mac? That's preposterous. This kind of thing makes me not want to buy another Fitbit, to be honest.
Ugh. Don't know why my last comment posted so many times...😑 Is there any way to delete it? Anyway, I totally get it, jkessler. So crazy that the adapter costs as much as it does, and that it's even necessary to begin with. At this point I believe that OS X is the only operating system that requires the adapter at all anymore...
The first reason to implement this would be to improve the user experience. It frees up a USB spot and nobody who has BT4.0+ will ever have to worry about losing their dongle ever again.
Second, a couple hundred threads have been made about dongles not being recognized. This problem has existed for at least 3 years. As my phone is not on the approved list (even though it is Android..) I completely rely on using a computer. Because of the dongle problems the product is rendered useless. Having BT4.0+ sitting there doing nothing just makes it that much more bitter.
So OS X is the only operating system that needs the adapter at this point. Has anyone heard from someone from Fitbit about this issue recently? I've emailed and tweeted them but haven't seen any responses...
I just discovered that the fitbitconnect software for the mac was updated on 30 March and now uses Bluetooth 4.0. I installed it, restarted my Macbook Pro, and instead of saying "dongle connected" in the pull down menu it says Bluetooth 4.0. I unplugged my USB dongle and synched my Fitbit One with the new software. Worked perfectly. Thank you, Fitbit.
@ew.harvey, that's fantastic!! Do you have a link to this software? I just went to https://www.fitbit.com/setup and the only software they're linking is dated November 9, 2015. Thanks!!
@fenway062213 I think they forgot to change the date, I can confirm that I just downloaded the software from https://www.fitbit.com/setup and it synced without any dongle \o/
@ew.harvey@opayen Oh my goodness, you're right!! What the what?! This is so great - finally I'll be able to sync at my desk. They did indeed forget to change the date, but once I uninstalled the older version of Connect and installed this newer one, I was able to sync without the dongle or any issues at all. I didn't even need to sign in to my account again. This took a long time to get released, but I'm still glad it's here. Very handy indeed.
@teas_swift As @opayen mentioned, they forgot to update the release date on their software page ( https://www.fitbit.com/setup?platform=mac ), but the version number referenced there (next to the incorrect date) is 2.0.1.6761. I'm not sure if they forgot to update the version number posted on their website as well - entirely possible if they didn't edit the date right next to it. However, the file I downloaded (that allowed syncing over Bluetooth 4.0) included that same version number, so I'm thinking it may be correct.
I'm glad that some others have had success with the new software. It is annoying that the version number was not changed even though the date of the installer file was (30 March 2016 I think). I did not first uninstall the old version before installing the new one, but I can't imaging that uninstalling first would make a difference. In any case, are those of you who have not had success with Bluetooth (e.g., teas_swift) sure that your computer supports Bluetooth 4.0?
This feature exists! If your Mac has Bluetooth 4.0 LE and you are using the most current version of Fitbit Connect, you can sync your tracker using your Mac's native Bluetooth. Click here to update Fitbit Connect.
Thank you for posting on the Feature Request Board!
No offense to you, DerrickFitbit, the information is much appreciated, but the update itself is too little, too late for me. A few weeks ago I decided to go with the Asus ZenWatch 2 instead of a fitness tracker, and now I use the S Health or Google Fit app on my Samsung phone in tandem with my smartwatch.
Fitbit is either going to do some simple coding, or once the info that Mac OS users have to use a USB enabled "dongle" - they'll move to Garmin or others. You'd think they'd ask a couple of their development team to fix it. Must be profit involved somehow or they'd do it. I'm traveling. Left my dongle back in the US. My HR self imploded (buggy). Fitbit sent me a new HR via international post - but no dongle included. Huge headache.
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