Sense Firmware Update OS 5.2 (128.5.38)

[FitbitCommunity]

Update 6/14/2021:

This update should now be available to all customers! If you have any difficulty updating, make sure you are following the directions in this article, and then provide as many specific details as possible in your post so that we can assist.

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We’re excited to announce that a firmware update for Sense will be available soon!  Some of you may already have this update available - if you installed it, let us know what you think!

If you don’t see the update yet, that’s expected. Check the Fitbit app in a few days, and you’ll see a message when you can install the update. We expect everyone to receive the update in the coming weeks. We appreciate your patience while we get this update to all of our customers. 

Did you know that we gradually release our updates? We do this to make sure everything is working just right for you. Sometimes we find an issue and it might take a little longer than expected for everyone to get the update. While you might see suggestions on how to “force” an update, we ask that you don’t try any of these workarounds. Most of the time the update won’t be available and you can lose data or encounter other difficulties. The best way to get the update is to be patient and wait for the update banner to appear in the Fitbit app.  

WHAT’S NEW AND FIXED

You can find release notes here.

HOW DO I UPDATE?

Step by step instructions for updating your Sense can be found here.

If you run into any trouble updating, review these troubleshooting tips. 

WANT TO TAKE A DEEPER LOOK? 

Check out our blog post here. 

We’re interested in hearing your feedback on this update! Let us know what you like! If you encounter unexpected behavior during or after your update, please post the details below.

[Asyd]

That's exactly why I DON'T buy the premium service.

[Odyssey13]

As for firmware, I'd never go backwards as you don't know which functions were changed with the latest update. Going forward makes more sense to me. I know sometimes it's frustrating when we wait for the technical side of things to be fixed, but it's worth it in the end. Example: a while back, each Android update seemed to mess up my Fitbit app with challenges. Fitbit would then fix it, only to have Android come up with an update, which broke it again. Ultimately by being patient and waiting, Fitbit resolved the issue and I've not had a problem. This went on for months, but it was resolved. Not everyone who gets a the latest firmware is unhappy, so going back for them wouldn't be an issue. 

[islandpar]

So this arrived today and I'm about to charge it and test later. I'll uninstall the app on my phone and re-install in before syncing them. One thing that caught my eye on the packing slip under the description was the word "refurb". 

@LizzyFitbit, please clarify, does this mean that my replacement unit is a refurbished unit? 

[Guy_]

All good points - however the issues can arise from the Fitbit App, the Firmware upgrade, Fitbit server side processing, Android or iOS updates, clock face updates, or even phone settings or watch settings etc, or possibly the watch itself.

It may seem that one or other are responsible for the issue being experienced and often people spend a lot of effort trying to fix the broken watch when its not at all. It may coincide with an update which compounds an existing problem but the fault was elsewhere.

EG. the recent sudden battery drain issue - which was not a watch fault [in the majority of cases] but a modification in the iOS Fitbit App.

A rollback with such a moving target would be very difficult to deploy - because some people don't get updates, at all, some get them before other people.

Ideally a known fault should be fixed more rapidly but with the phased rollout of everything it can take weeks to go back, or forwards. And in the meantime lots of other things have changed.

A better solution would be to test any software changes better before launching them, rather than have the users test it, and to concentrate on what doesn't work or work well, first, rather than rolling out new features.

Also to have a noticeboard of what the current issues are and what is resolved in each update.

[primortal]

@LizzyFitbit why is the cadence for firmware upgrades every 6 months? That means the if the developer can fix any of these issues we won't get it till November 2021!

I've never seen a software/hardware company in a very long time do this and in todays world it's counter productive.  If this company had proper developers a monthly cadence for bug fixes could be easily done and stick to new features twice a year.

Also for transparency you really should release what's been fixed and what is still broken in firmware.

[noudgie]

@islandpar That's exactly what that means.

[islandpar]

Ok, here's the update on the refurb unit they sent over to replace my original Fitbit the wife purchased for me last November 2020:

THE GOOD

Updated to: 44.128.5.38

Charging: It arrived with an 88% charge and after all the updates, syncing and what nots, it dropped to 65% which kind of had me worried. Charged it  around 6PM yesterday and it got to 100%. As of this time, it still has 86% charge.

SPO2: So far its tracking it. I registered a 94% SPO2 rate

Stairs: So fair its accurate, I've climb 3 flights of stairs and it registers 3, and not the flight stairs in the Empire State Building

Heartbeat , Steps, Exercise, KM walked and Calories so far all good

Was able to sync weather and Spotify.

THE BAD

Not able to sync notifications (text messages, WhatsApp, calendar events) despite following instructions.

This one I had a problem since my original Fitbit and hasn't been resolved.

Will update again after 2 days.

[SunsetRunner]

Thanks for the updates. 

Curious to see how your floor count will go in the next few days. My Sense is counting floors even though no floors have been climbed. 

Keep us posted on your progress with your brand-used Sense. 

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi everyone. Thanks again for participating in this thread.

I understand where you're coming from about the difficulties experienced with the Sense and this new firmware update. Our team values the feedback shared in the Community Forums as it help us to evaluate our procedures, work on our products and improve them. Rest assured your your comments won't to unnoticed and will be passed along to the right team.

If you have a different question not related to the Firmware Update 128.5.38, I'd invite you to start a new topic and share as many details as you can so you can receive help from the Community members and moderators.

@AlphaState Thanks for getting back with more details about this situation. Before anything else, let me explain that you're referring to the quick replies which allows you to send customized responses, or respond using voice-to-text. On the other hand Google Assistant will help you with other tasks such as checking the weather or setting an alarm.

That being said, may I know if you've tried the steps suggested before? If you have, let's try reconnecting your watch to your Fitbit account. To do this, remove your Sense from the Bluetooth settings, force quit the Fitbit app, turn off other Bluetooth connections nearby, open the Fitbit app, tap your profile picture > Set Up a Device > Sense > Replace Device and follow the on-screen instructions. Then set up quick replies and once you receive a notification, try responding using the voice-to-text function. Please note that this function will use the same language set for the Fitbit app and your watch.

[islandpar]

So with just an hour to spare to 48 hours, I'd thought I'd make the update.

Still nothing on notifications relative to messages, just weather  and sense controls keeps disconnecting - @LizzyFitbit how do we resolve this? 

SP02 tracking is continuous and at the levels before my original Fitbit died. Steps are accurate so far but I noticed that the hourly reminders to get up and compete the remaining numbers are no longer consistent. Stairs have so far missed one flight (I went up 5 times but Fitbit registered only 4). Battery at 63%, 32% drop - still haven't charged it again but so far it might make it to 5 days. We'll see how long after another charge, I would let it drop to zero, planning to charge when it hits 25%.

Log in of food, water and weight so far ok. Will be back on Wednesday 

[Asyd]

@LizzyFitbit so, this morning I woke up and both my Fitbit Sense and the app shows I walked 8,956 steps overnight. I have no history of sleepwalking. I might also add that with all the steps, auto-recognize doesn't show anything during the overnight hours.

[Newtripley]

Wow! Thats more "sleep running "!

Do you have "sleep mode" turned on so that your sense doesn't light up or recive notifications whilst you're asleep? Are you a light or restless sleeper if you don't have "sleep mode " on could it be as you move around your sense thinks you are still active and is recording "false" steps?

This happened to someone I know their Fitbit recorded steps whilst they slept once sleep mode was turned on this abated 

I have scheduled sleep mode on my sense and it will still record some steps...late night stumbles to the loo! Etc 

[SunsetRunner]

Ye same her Samsung S10+ Fitbit are really screwed up on the Sense and firmware

[Asyd]

Yup, sleep mode is on @Newtripley and not restless. I've had many Fitbit devices (don't ask me why I keep coming back) but I've never had one record steps in the middle of the night. I haven't yet needed to visit the loo in the middle of the night either...knock wood.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi everyone. Thanks for your comments about the Sense. @Newtripley Thanks for stopping by to help our members.

@islandpar Thanks for keeping me posted about your experience with the Sense. Just to confirm, did you make sure to remove the Sense and Sense controls from the Bluetooth before setting up the replacement? If not, I'd suggest removing all the devices related to Fitbit from the Bluetooth settings, open the Fitbit app, tap your profile picture and set up your watch one more time to reconnect it to your account. You can then set up the notifications  and on-wrist phone calls. Please take in mind the conditions required to get those features working.

@Asyd Thanks for letting me know about your Sense and for the steps tried prior to posting. Before anything else, let me clarify that the Sleep Mode will only prevent you from receiving notifications or turning on the screen. However, this setting won't impact the way your watch tracks your sleep, steps or the rest of your data.

I understand your concern abut getting too many steps tracked while sleeping and I'm wondering if by any chance you have MobileTrack setup in your Fitbit account. As you may know, MobileTrack is a feature that records basic stats such as steps using your phone's sensors if you don't have a Fitbit device available. If there was a fan or anything buzzing nearby, or if your phone was vibrating during that time, that might have caused you to receive incorrect steps tracked. In case this is correct, I'd suggest removing this feature with the steps described here and log a non-step-based activity such as driving to override those steps.

@SunsetRunner I'm sorry for the difficulties experienced with your Sense and the firmware update. I understand where you're coming from and appreciate your feedback. To help you with this, could you confirm if your watch is also counting steps while sleeping? If not, please provide me with more details about the issues you're having with your watch and the steps you've tried so far.

See you around.

[Newtripley]

Ah lucky you (in that you don't have to nip to the loo at night)

Sorry my suggestion didn't pan out its very strange like you I have had many fitbits and (touch wood) my sense is great ...I've never heard of a fitbit device record so many steps whilst the wearer is sleeping...as I mentioned a friends versa was recording unusual step activity at night and activating sleep mode somehow resolved it (to be fair it was nowhere near as high as your step count)...hope you get it resolved 

[tallula86]

Update: Getting a replacement for my black screen Sense following update. Phew, haha. Thanks for the comments and support everyone 🙂

[LostScientist42]

Further to my original post of incorrect stair counts still being a problem after the update, my Fitbit Sense is now suffering from elevated battery drain.

Notifications being sent to my Fitbit Sense is now intermittent and a constant cycle of rebooting devices or app is required to rectify this. It varies each day.

The much advertised ECG feature is still NOT available in my country and delivery date was missed 4 months ago.

[Replay13]

That's what my firmware version says... everything is working ok now.  My SpO2 in Health Metrics quit working a few days ago, so I uninstalled the app for SpO2 and reinstalled the app yesterday and it worked last night.  I'm not sure when my version was updated, I was just checking my Fitbit Sense today and it showed 44.128.5.38 in my phone app ... I checked it because it was this forum was showing something different  OS 5.2 (128.5.38)  

[Clif]

Ever since updating my firmware,  my notifications do not work.  Is there a new fix coming out for this bug?