Sense won't sync or connect to Wi-Fi

[ColoradoBo]

Fitbit is struggling with software. I have been a Fitbit user for years, but I’m on the fence on leaving and going to apple. When you charge $300+ for a “smart watch,” it should be smart. Why are auto syncs sporadic and sometimes don’t work? Why do I have to sync constantly to update weather? Why do I get the same calendar reminder 100 times?

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[SunsetRunner]

I’ve been checking out apple as well but I don’t know if their sleep study ability is as good - that is my main interest.  My current Sense (which is a warranty replacement after I screamed a long time about too many steps being logged — and NOW it’s happening again) has a cracked screen.  I did not drop it, no idea how it happened.   No warranty for that.  The screen cover I bought from amazon is working ok though for now.

[ColoradoBo]

I don’t know how accurate the sleep tracking is. Some nights it says I slept 5 hours and I know it’s not accurate. It’s a nice feature, but if you really need to monitor your sleep, I would maybe check with your doctor to see if there is a dedicated sleep tracker. Just a thought. 

[SunsetRunner]

I think the sleep tracking on Fitbit works pretty well for me. I just can’t find enough positive reviews on the Apple watch for sleep tracking so not sure if I’m going to jump off the Fitbit barge and buy an Apple. Have been using various Fitbits for years. Now the Sense problem is logging way too many stairs in a day. Over the top. I’m active but not THAT active. I was told they know about it and are working on it but no target date for fixing it. Bah!

Sent from my iPad

[ColoradoBo]

Funny; my wife is having the exact same issue with stairs climbed. We both had a dead on similar day and did a small hike together. Mine showed 46 and hers was double. She may need a warranty replacement. I most recently had the versa 2.

[SunsetRunner]

Ha, yes, mine yesterday said 60 floors. I think it was even higher the day before. yep 75. No way. I did hike with the dogs in our rough terrain but did not climb to the top, just stayed on the flat areas. Just now trying to update the thing and it keeps getting hung up on searching for wifi. I have restarted the watch as well as my iphone 11 Pro Max. There is no problem with our wifi. I just don’t get it. I don’t really want to switch watches and every time I start researching apple ones, I get lost in the weeds reading stuff and give up. I’ve had Fitbit Charge 3 and 4, then jumped to the Sense, which I’ve had for over a year, and the warranty replacement.I keep wondering if there is a new Sense coming out. No answers. It tells me there’s an update. I’m at version 128.5.49

Sent from my iPad

[ColoradoBo]

I would contact Fitbit support with your issues. One thing I will say is Fitbit has great customer service. Since getting my replacement watch I have not had the issues I was experiencing before. The battery life alone is worth staying with Fitbit. I tried apple years ago; between the heavy weight and awful battery life, I still choose Fitbit. I can go 3-5 days without a charge and that is with always on display activated. On Apple Watch 3 without always on display, it needed to be charged almost daily. 

[SunsetRunner]

Sent from my iPad

[Clove6060]

I’m using the 12 pro max

Go into your App Store and download Fitbit update

There have been a few since 128.5.49

I’m running 128.6.12. 

[SunsetRunner]

I have the app on my phone telling me there’s an update.  Have tried 3 times.  Restarted phone, restarted Sense.  It connects.  It syncs, but it cannot find the wifi.  There is nothing wrong with our wifi - everything else is working.   It’s just being wonky.  Turning wifi off and on.  Restarted router.  I have never had trouble updating before.  Frustrating! Not new to Fitbit, have had one for years.  It was only a few weeks ago I noticed there was an update, and that one went fine.  I just don’t get it.

Sent from my iPad

[ColoradoBo]

Before I got the warranty replacement I had the exact same WiFi issue; couldn’t find my home network.

[SunsetRunner]

Hmmm, thanks interesting. This one IS my warranty replacement (for to-the-moon flights of stairs issue).  I am sure I have reached astronaut class or whatever.  Not sure they’ll give me another replacement.  I’ll check with customer support  when I have more time.  It’s just so time consuming!  

[Clove6060]

Does any of this help?  I know you said you’re not new to Fitbit but see if anything here works.

https://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/2047.htm

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi there, @ColoradoBo and @SunsetRunner. @Clove6060 Thanks for sharing your insights and help.

Before anything else, let me share that our team is aware of the issue with the Sense not tracking floors correctly. While there isn't a time frame for the fix, please know they're working to identify a solution. Your feedback will also be passed along to keep them informed.

@ColoradoBo Thanks for your comments and efforts while working on this matter. To look into the syncing issues, may I know if you've multiple Bluetooth connections? I'm asking this as even though your Sense is set up to your phone, having multiple Bluetooth connections may interfere with the syncing process. If you haven't done so, please reconnect your watch to the Fitbit app to see if this improves the connection, and its performance when using other features such as the Weather app and notifications.

To do this, remove your watch from the Bluetooth settings, force quit the Fitbit app, reboot your phone, open the Fitbit app, tap your profile picture > Set Up a Device > Sense > Replace Device. Follow the on-screen instructions and set up the notifications one more time. Please note the Fitbit app needs to be running in the background to sync throughout the day and update the Weather app.

@SunsetRunner Thanks for troubleshooting your Sense prior to posting. I understand where you're coming from and I'm sorry for the experience that you've had. In regards to the Wi-Fi connection, did you make sure to plug the watch into the charging cable? Please note your watch won't be able to connect to 5GHz, 802.11ac networks.

That being said, if after exhausting the troubleshooting steps described help article, your watch doesn't find your Wi-Fi or download the firmware update, I'd recommend contacting our Support team so they can investigate what may be occurring and provide you with assistance. They're available via chat and phone, just click here to get connected with them.

[SunsetRunner]

Thank you for all this, Lizzy!  Yes, my Sense was attached to the charger but I’m going to research that 5G question re our network.  I don’t know what the 802.11 part means but I’ll be checking into more of this when Thanksgiving kitchen chaos simmers down!  Have a good one!

[LizzyFitbit]

Hi there, @SunsetRunner.

You're welcome, thanks to you for reviewing the information shared in my post. No worries, I hope you've had a happy Thanksgiving with your loved ones! About your question, the 802.11ac is the networks protocol and my best advice is contacting your router's provider so they can help you verifying these settings.

Have a good day. 😊

[Rich_Laue]

To put it in English, 802.11 describes the language it speaks. The 2.4 ghz is the speed of the conversation and what we are concearned with. 

[SunsetRunner]

Hi Lizzy, Still busy around here this wknd so I’m waiting until Mon (after our friend leaves) to call Support.  I just tried connecting to wifi again with no luck.  Recently our old modem died so the phone company came and installed a new one, which is ComtrendB69F.  It has an option to connect to 2.4GHz as well as 5GHz.  I changed my iphone to the 2.4 and get full bars, yet when I’m in the Fitbit app in Wifi Setup there is only one bar and it will not connect.  I took my phone all the way into the study right by the modem, still no change.  Is the 2.4 also 802.11?   All our other devices are connecting and working just fine so the wifi is working otherwise.  I have looked/read through the Help sections, and think I need to move on to phone support next wk!  Btw, I have a feeling the last time my Sense updated might have been about the time we got the new modem, so maybe that’s a clue.  Happy Food Coma Weekend!  Time for a hike with the dogs in our forest here.  Maybe I’ll have a brainstorm with some fresh mountain air.  

[Rich_Laue]

Is the SSID different for the two systems? 

[SunsetRunner]

Hi Rich,  I have absolutely no idea.  I have not had time to call tech support yet.  When in Settings on my devices, I have ComtrendB69F_5GHz and

ComtrendB69F_2.4Ghz_EXT.  I usually use the 5 as it seems a bit faster.  Question:  is it possible to update the Sense on cellular?  I was googling that yesterday and it appeared that an older model Fitbit was able to do that.  Another question:  if our modem is just not compatible (which will suck as it’s almost new), maybe I could go to a friend’s house and use their wifi and see if it works for updating>?.   Pretty clueless on this here 🙃