Sense battery is draining quickly

[IanVH]

Hi,

We have 2 Sense devices we use.

I have all bell & whistles disabled, my wife has them enabled (alerts, alarm, tracker, always on screen, calls, etc).

BOTH our devices last 2 days instead of the advertised 6 to 6+ days.

We have the latest firmware, all up to date.

I've seen it now several times where an hour after a full charge the battery drops to 80%

From what I see in the other threads there are several people facing this issue.

This can't be a coincidence, Is Fitbit aware of this situation?

Regards

[Guy_]

Hi @Neuranet  -  here is the full list of battery drainers, though inactive clocks don't drain the battery, but the SpO2 tracker app [found only in the Fitbit App] will. How to resolve the Major issues causing short battery life.

[Neuranet]

Hi Guy_

I wonder then if it was because I uninstalled the tracker then installed it again? Maybe refreshing it from time to time reduces that particular drain? 

[lhicks501]

I wish any of these suggestions had worked for my Fitbit sense so I finally
picked up the phone and called Fitbit themselves and they are having me to
send the Fitbit plot and going to be returned after they replace it
completely and hopefully after this one that comes in I'll have better life
with my new sense.

I hated doing it but I was literally charging every single day because it
was running down so fast and I took everything off that would have been
extenuous in this so I don't feel like I really had a choice.

Best of luck to everyone Hope you can figure out a way to fix your own
instead of having to go to the extreme measure like I had to do

[Guy_]

@lhicks501  - did you try all the issues listed here? How to resolve the Major issues causing short battery life. 

[lhicks501]

Obviously I did since I did state that in this reply and I felt that there
was no other route intake to take with this. The Fitbit technician that I
spoke with in their supervisor were all in agreement that listening to be
returned So please don't ask a question like this when I have already said
exactly the very question you are asking Thank you and have a great day

[IanVH]

I hope this resolves it for you. If it does I guess I'll have to do the same.

I have to charge every other day. If I sync with the app a couple of times a day I don't even get to the 2 day mark...

I have turned off literally everything up point that I wonder why I even wear it since its reduced to a simple watch.

[Neuranet]

Hi IanVH

Did uninstalling the SPO tracker make any difference at all? 

[IanVH]

Hi Neuranet,

Unfortunately, none

All steps that I took by disabling functionalities changed nothing.

If I turn on notifications (sms, whatsapp, calendar) I don't even reach the 2 day mark.

[Neuranet]

Sounds like a hardware issue then, sorry for not being able to help. 

[Emberr]

I'm having the same issue. I've had my Sense for a week and after contacting Fitbit I was told to shut off basically all it's features I paid to have, and to only use the horrifically ugly Fitbit clock faces only.

This is an absolute disgrace of a Fitbit watch. I've been with Fitbit since 2013 and this is by far the worst product they've spat out. I can't imagine how a company can advertise so many features for over $250 and then tell you to shut them off because the battery can't handle it. Poor design, and will most likely push me to make the jump to Apple. 

[Chanrak]

Not even close to addressing the information provided. Two sense units, all things being equal...except wait. They have already identified apps on on one of them and apps off on another. 

Hmmmm. My sense never gets more than 48hrs. Failed advertising.

My sense has copious syn issues with my android phone. Failed advertising.

I come to the Fitbit forum and see all this nonsense...yes, pun IS intended. 

Sad part? Been a Fitbit wearer for years...cheaper models work far better than investing in this Sense model. PoC.

Double sad part? Was going to switch companies...ie. Samsung phone and watch etc... **ahem**ed if I didn't make a bad choice here and stay with Fitbit.

[lhicks501]

I have been recharging every day because by the afternoon it'd be down 70%
or lower and NONE of my premium services were working (already given
payment info for it).

The tech was able to pull my Sense up and see everything, talked to his
supervisor and sent me an email with directions on what to send back as
well as a prepaid mailing label. Very nice and knowledgeable.

Praying this takes care of it

[slimXradio]

I would try doing a hard reset of the watch. On the watch go to Settings > About Sense > Factory Reset. After you do this be sure to remove the watch from your app, then re-add it, complete the setup, update the watch, and then disable any battery draining settings before trying again. 

[Chanrak]

I hope this works. Let us know. 😉

Good luck!

[Emberr]

I've done this as well. I exhausted all troubleshooting available with Fitbit support and they ended up just agreeing to replace it with a new one. Fingers crossed this one works okay and this was just a horrible fluke.

Sent from my iPhone

[Rideordie13]

That has nothing to do w it. It's brand-new Ice done everything

[SunsetRunner]

I also have everything disabled other than steps and I also wear it to check my sleep, that's all. And I have to charge it either daily or at best very other day. Having disabled just about everything, it can no longer be called a smart watch and charging nearly everyday for the few activities is a pain. The problem started after the last software update. It is now essentially a brick that I had the misfortune of buying, particularly because the problem is well-known to Fitbit through the many users who have reported on this issue but I have not received any response from any Admin. I have been using Fitbit trackers from the time one had to carry one in the pocket but I must now to my regret move to a different brand. On the advice of my jogging buddy, I have ordered a Garmin Venu 2s - battery life of more than a week with nothing disabled except GPS and 3 days with GPS on. I take my leave from Fitbit and this forum and wish all Sense users better luck than I had.

[Mad_Davey]

I am having the same issue with my Sense.  I removed the GPS app and clock faces I added then reset the watch.  I am using the SP02 tracking face by Fitbit.  It seemed to get normal battery life for a couple weeks, but now it's doing it again, it's losing roughly 40-50% a day.  I tried resetting with no change.  I will now reset again and follow others advice of changing the clock face to one that is not the SP02.  I would like to mention my wife has the Versa 2, she uses the same SP02 tracking face I was using while she gets 4 days of battery life.  As a side note, I still dislike the haptic button, I question the decision making abilities of whoever approved the functionality of the haptic button design.  The first time I tried to reset the watch by holding the button took me several minutes to get a solid button hold down, to this day it's still a challenge to reset or use the button at all at times.

[eezeepee]

@Mad_Davey I wonder if you have some kind of connection or syncing drain. I just did a recent battery life test and this is what I got:

Day 1

5:15 AM - 99%

5:15 PM - 88%

Day 2

5:15 AM - 77%

5:15 PM - 65%

8:00 PM - 61%

Day 3

8:00 AM - 49%

8:00 PM - 40%

Day 4

8:00 AM - 21%

2 hours of outdoor workout with GPS used 15%

10:45 PM - 5%

So that's 3.7 days worth and about 7.5% per our with outdoor workout GPS. The GPS usage would average to 13 hours which is more than the advertised 12. I usually get 10-12% battery used every 12 hours and 20-25% every 24 hours.

As for the button, for me, the no physical buttons isn't as bad as it sounds. There's nothing to accidentally push when working out (for example, doing push-ups) like on my Fossil Gen 5 Carlyle. The single solid-state button is actually pretty good and responsive. Rather than thinking of it as a button, I give it a squeeze and it's responsive every time. I single press to manually turn on off and on the screen when needed, double press for my quick apps, and I long press for Google Assistant several times a day. It's not actually touch sensitive as tapping it does nothing. It reminds me of the Apple Force Touch trackpad on their MacBooks or Taptic engine, although not quite as good, where it feels like a button push even though nothing moves.

[Mad_Davey]

 Your use averages 25% a day?  I just changed the watch face to the one it shipped with and reset this morning when I posted.  The battery has only gone down about 1-2% which seems to be in line for lasting a lot longer.  When you mention the GPS used, is this something you manually turn on or does it turn on automatically when you are moving a certain amount?  Maybe I do not understand how to use/control my GPS yet.  I have not willingly used any GPS features yet other than initially trying out a GPS mapping app when I first got the watch (now removed).  As for the button, the most reliable result I seem to get is when I put my entire thumb over the entire left side, even then it can take two to three attempts before I get one button push.  Maybe my skin is not as conductive or something, I certainly dislike the button due to not being able to push it reliably.  I can just forget about trying to get double presses.  An actual button would be far preferred over here.