Sense won't charge

[isunism]

Hi everyone, I don't have a Twitter and it seems like that's the only way to contact customer support so I'm coming here instead. I have tried multiple outlets, charging blocks, and USB connections to get my Sense to charge and it will not. It did slow charge the other week but now, even when the charging screen pops up, it loses battery.

I just plugged it in at 9% (I've been trying to charge it since 27% yesterday), the charging screen popped up, and when it warned me it was slow-charging, it was down to 8%. No matter where I plug it in, I get a warning that it is slow-charging but then it has inevitably lost battery by the time I return to it.

I've tried for days to get it to charge and it's incredibly frustrating. I have read other forum posts and tried all that is recommended.

How do I contact customer support directly? Thanks in advance. 

[Gr82Bfit]

My Fitbit Sense would not charge.  I cleaned with alcohol and cotton swabs, tried different outlets and different USB-110v connectors.  Watch was dead and remained dead.  After reading the article you referenced I cleaned thoroughly with toothbrush and alcohol.  That fixed issue for me.  I guess the corrosion was just too heavy for swabs to clean.  Thanks for tip!

[Aily74]

This is happening to me too! 😩

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Thanks mine is now charging although it still comes up with the “slow charging” message?

[eezeepee]

@Aily74 If you get the slow charging notification, it's probably a poor connection issue.

Make sure your charger pins are clean and popped up as seen on mine.

I have a USB meter and the top pic is a poor connection (Slow charging notification) and the bottom is a good connection.  All I did was wipe the charger pins with an alcohol wipe, if I'm lazy the "dirty way" is saliva on a finger, and then placed the Sense back on. You can see it was only a 31-second difference (some of that time was to make sure the pic was nice and centered) and notice the difference in the amps and the watts. With that good connection, it definitely fast charges and depending on how low the battery is I can get 2.2% per minute or around 50% gained in 22 minutes.

[Aily74]

That’s a handy wee gadget.

Thanks for your help 😄

[eezeepee]

@Aily74 Yeah it's a fun little thing to see how devices are charging like phones, laptops, earbuds, etc. as well as the actual charger block.

[LarryRobot]

I think I realize my problem. One of the four pins on my charger is stuck in. The other three are flexible and you can push them in and they pop out, but this one seems stuck in the charger. How does one get it unstuck?

[eezeepee]

@LarryRobot Welcome to the Fitbit community.

Contact customer support for a replacement. You can try poking at it, banging it out, or even try opening the charger but I haven't heard of anyone here having any success getting a stuck pin out.

[LarryRobot]

Okay, so gross or not, I actually sucked it out. Worked well enough to fully charge the battery (slowly) but clearly a temporary solution. Thank you for your help!

[Jovi777]

I had the stuck pin issue so I purchased another charger. Now I’m having the same charging issue you describe. None of the suggestions worked. Very time consuming and super frustrating! This seems to be a known flaw…Why hasn’t there been a permanent fix?

[LarryRobot]

My temporary solution above worked but shortly thereafter I contacted customer support. I took a pic of the offending pin and they sent me a new charger, free of charge. While clearly a recurring problem, getting a replacement in the meantime is appropriate to me. 

[markedmond1]

Hi

I think it is a manufacturing fault and need to replace under warranty

Regards



Sent from my iPhone

[Shaneoz]

Hi there

My problem was definitely related to one of the four pins becoming recessed
and not making contact with the charging contact points on the back of the
watch.

The problem was solved by buying a new charging cable (I have a spare).

The fault is with the charging cable and not the watch in my case.

[Oldfart428]

I found using an old toothbrush and dish soap to clean the contacts on both the watch and the four watch charger cable pins has worked.

[Kisskrazed]

I'm having the same charging issue with my Sense, however both chargers and multiple USB ports are good.  My fitbit when charging and I'm holding the power button will flash a faint 0% in red and then off.  It has been on different chargers and plugged into various USB ports.  Any ideas?  Charger pins are clean as well as Sense charging locators.  Sense is approx. 6 months old.

[Shaneoz]

Are any of the charging pins slighted recessed and therefore not making
contact with the back of the watch?

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The only thing I can suggest is double checking the four pins on the charging connector that connect onto the back of the watch. If any of them are slightly depressed - the watch won’t charge as you have described.

[markedmond1]

Hi
I contacted Fitbit who supplied a replacement under warranty

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Hi
Same happened to me: contact Fitbit as I believe it is a fault with the product. Fitbit sent a replacement that does charge (at present!)

[cdconard01]

We are now on our second sense in 6 months.  The first one had the face pop off and now the second one will not charge after using for a few weeks.  As much as we appreciate that Fitbit is willing to send out replacements because "under warranty" what happens when we are not under warranty and we keep having problems?  At what point does Fitbit admit that this is a design issue and start issuing refunds?

[markedmond1]

Fair point: hopefully they read your comments as otherwise people will use Garmin , Apple, Withings and other products that are more reliable

[Kisskrazed]

No, all pins are out.  I ended up buying  another (3rd) charger and it is working as it should.  Not a good design at all. Thanks.

[Cinders47]

my charger stopped charging and noticed the front two prongs were embedded- Fitbit kindly replaced the cable and now it’s perfect - Thank you Fitbit