Sense not charging to 100%

[Boo_F]

Hi, I got my Sense in May but lately, it is only charging to 99% regardless of how long it is charging.  It used to charge to 100%.  Is this an indication there will be battery issues?

[JohnnyRow]

My guess is that battery % on any electronic device is just an estimate.  To me 99% is essentially the same as 100%.  And leaving it in charger waiting for it to hit 100% probably puts more strain on the battery.  I have read that for battery life it is best to keep Lithium ion batteries charged between 20 and 80%, though I have no idea how much difference that really makes.  But my point is there is no reason to need to fully charge it every time unless you are not going to be electricity for days; it's just as good to charge it 10 to 15 minutes at a time.  Some people just charge it while in shower and find that takes care of it.

If you obsessed with seeing 100%, you could try letting the battery run completely out to see if that resets it, but if you have trouble starting it up again after letting it die, I won't know how to fix it.

[Boo_F]

Hi! Thanks for the reply. I'm probably just paranoid because my last fitbit
suddenly started having charging issues and before knew it, it just
wouldn't keep a charge at all and it was only just over 2 years old.

[slbert]

@Boo_F  I do understand your paranoia. I had an Ionic that suddenly wouldn't charge past 89%, no matter how long I left it on the charger. One day, it just started quickly discharging until it reached 0% in a matter of a couple of hours. It refused to charge after that. If it were me, I'd contact Fitbit and ask about it, just to have something "on the record" about it, should it suddenly die.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi @Boo_F. It's good to see you around. @JohnnyRow and @slbert Thanks for your great help!

@Boo_F Thanks for letting us know about your Sense, and for reviewing the suggestions shared by our members. I understand your concern about the battery not fully charging and if you've not done so, please try using another power source, as well as the rest of the troubleshooting tips described in this help article. If by any chance this continues happening, I'd also recommend getting in touch with our Support team so they can check your watch's behavior and investigate what may be occurring. Click here to get connected with them via chat or phone.

[Jhyrup2022]

I have the same issue as of 8/26/2022. I also recieved my sense in may. It will only charge to 99% not 100%. That just started three days ago. Plus, Not getting 4 days of charge only about 2. Thats been happening about a month after i recieved my watch, but i paired my cronome Just turned in my old ionic, because of a battery recall issue in may.I purchased this sense watch as a replacment. So i hope it dosn't have a issue with this watch to. I going to contact customer service about this issue.

[mdell]

Same issue here.  I think it started after the last software update but (like my battery level) I'm not 100% sure.

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi there, @Jhyrup2022 and welcome to the Community, @mdell.

@Jhyrup2022 Thanks for joining this thread and I'm sorry you're having this issue with your Sense. I went ahead to check your details and I noticed you already have a case created. I'm sure our team will continue helping you with this matter, so please keep an open communication with them.

@mdell Thanks for letting me know about your Sense. Because your post didn't mention, may I know if you've tried the troubleshooting described in this help article? If you have but the issue persists, I'd recommend contacting our Support team so they can investigate and see what can be done to bring you back on track. Just click here to get connected with them via chat or phone.

[PaulMe]

Hi all,

Sometimes a lithium battery can "lose" its calibration. Happens to laptop batteries.

Suggest you fully charge and allow the battery to drain down to around 5% before fully charging and repeating this two or three times. Best not to allow the battery to drain below 5% as some users have found - these devices sometimes won't recover from a fully flat battery - probably due to not enough charging current hitting the battery.

Failing this, I wouldn't be too concerned as 99 is just a number and as someone pointed out, it's pretty close to 100%. But, if you're not getting several days charge with normal use, then the battery may be failing.

A full reset of the device may be necessary as well, if the above doesn't help.

[mdell]

I haven't done any troubleshooting other than checking the forums to see if this was a known issue.  Battery life still seems to be the about the same even though it caps at 99% so I'm not that worried about it at this time.

[Guy_]

Hi @mdell - note it can take a good 15 minutes to go from 99 to 100%.

Which as @JohnnyRow has indicated makes it barely worthwhile as it will probably lose that 1% in a short time anyway, after some months of owning it.

[willjoe]

If you are obsessed with seeing 100%, you could try letting the battery run completely out to see if that resets it, but if you have trouble starting it up again after letting it die, I won't know how to fix it. Before posting, re-read to see if it would make sense to someone else not looking at your Fitbit or phone.

Regards,

Will

[MCSE1900]

No reason to fill your car all the way up either. Personally I like to buy bottles of water that are not full, too. I'm on my third (and last) fitbit because they just don't last more than 18 months. Something always goes wrong electronically, and they start to have strange electronic quirks, like charging to 99% and staying there. BTW my Sense has the same issue. Next stop: Apple watch