Surge Battery Not Lasting.

[djrugby]

Has Fitbit support told any of you to turn off functions - so the watch will work?

I use my Fitbit to track my health, sleep, heart rate everyday.  The only exerise I do, outdoor biking for about an hour everyday.  Sometimes less, sometimes more.  I stop and start my surge Bike Exercise to track it, which gives me a GPS map of every ride.

Eventually, the battery will cease to hold a charge more than two days.  When this happens, I ussually cannot get two rides in the same charge - so charge for more than an hour everyday.  I have called service, and they have been all to happy to send me another Surge, but never once saying what is wrong or if it is fixed.

I have Surge replacement #3 that is only two weeks old and the battery drains fast already.  I rode the bike today, for one hour, and the battery is down 25%, by tomorrow morning it will be down 50%. 

This is an open file with Fitbit Support (#3BG446RNF) and they are monitoring.  I received an email this evening from Fitbit support telling me:  "We suggest using SmartTrack to track your exercises, this way your Surge will not use GPS." .  The email goes on to explain that is why the battery drains as they saw I rode for an hour and 5 minutes today.  Essentially, telling me not to use a function the watch provides. (I already have every other function turned off, back light, auto sync, notifications, text, etc - because they said it drains the battery.)

Has anyone else been told to not use a function so the product will work?

Moderator edit: Subject for clarity

[patsylim38]

Yes. I have the same issue with draining battery life with just GPS on. My husband has emailed Fitbit on my behalf on this issue. Hopefully, they can resolve it for me as I live in Singapore and have to ship the item back at my own cost..

Patsy

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@djrugby wrote:

Has Fitbit support told any of you to turn off functions - so the watch will work?

I use my Fitbit to track my health, sleep, heart rate everyday.  The only exerise I do, outdoor biking for about an hour everyday.  Sometimes less, sometimes more.  I stop and start my surge Bike Exercise to track it, which gives me a GPS map of every ride.

Eventually, the battery will cease to hold a charge more than two days.  When this happens, I ussually cannot get two rides in the same charge - so charge for more than an hour everyday.  I have called service, and they have been all to happy to send me another Surge, but never once saying what is wrong or if it is fixed.

I have Surge replacement #3 that is only two weeks old and the battery drains fast already.  I rode the bike today, for one hour, and the battery is down 25%, by tomorrow morning it will be down 50%. 

This is an open file with Fitbit Support (#3BG446RNF) and they are monitoring.  I received an email this evening from Fitbit support telling me:  "We suggest using SmartTrack to track your exercises, this way your Surge will not use GPS." .  The email goes on to explain that is why the battery drains as they saw I rode for an hour and 5 minutes today.  Essentially, telling me not to use a function the watch provides. (I already have every other function turned off, back light, auto sync, notifications, text, etc - because they said it drains the battery.)

Has anyone else been told to not use a function so the product will work?

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[SunsetRunner]

Did support tell me to do that?  No... but I want my device battery to last for more than 6 months so I turn off everything and only use what I need when I need it, WITHOUT continuous sync.  I Sync 1 or 2 times a day. 

I will say that GPS is a voltage HOG.  My question for you is the following:

1. When you are riding, are you connected to your phone via Bluetooth, and continuously syncing while using GPS at the same time? 

I ask cause doing this on a Cellphone no less a Surge watch, will destroy your battery.  I won’t go into how, but overall, to run your GPS that watch has to be dang near flat open in terms of power boost.  So add continuous Bluetooth sync and you’re asking your watch to last longer than IT ever could due to the two biggest power hogs in the Surge. 

I’m also willing to bet IF Bluetooth strength is lacking and or GPS is weak our Surges are set to boost the signal till its 100%.  Think of your cellphone... if you don’t have full signal your phone will boost at all cost till you have full strength or no battery, pair that phone to a head set via Bluetooth, and boom bye bye phone battery. Same thing but much faster with your Surge.

I have read and know that you, me, or anyone cannot use that watch for all functions all the time and think it will last.( I know you only use GPS for a very little time).  Meaning I don’t use the GPS much... I don’t care about it.  In addition, I NEVER use continuous Sync because I want my Surge and Phone batteries to last.  I will say that my Surge WITH FULL power and NO sync going on will drain a full Bar on GPS during a 2 to 4 mile walk... but I expect that.  

WHY DID I WRITE ALL THAT?  Cause I cannot sleep ;-).  No, it's to let you know what my experience has been with my Surge, as a “Power Prude” vs your experience.  Maybe perspective will help you compare your issue with my results to see if it is a bad product, battery or just too much on at once.

[SunsetRunner]

Imo it should work! An hour ride per day is completely reasonable use!

[astraumins]

I am having a similar issue. I had my first Surge replaced because the band completly wore out in under a year. On my first Surge ,the battery would last me upwards of 4 or 5 days, which was great compared to my wife's Charge HR; which would last 2 days or a little more. Even after almost ayear, the battery life was just fine.

Fitbit sent me a new Surge around Dec of 2015, and by February 2016 the battery wouldn't even last more than 36 hours; and I have never used the GPS. (I am 6' 7", and running is definetly not my thing.)

I even take the Surge off at night to try and get battery to last longer and it does not matter. But then I get no sleep data.

To me, it almost feels like the GPS is always on no matter what, since there is no other reason that the Surge would drain so fast...other than the battery being a piece of crap. If GPS was on, I would totally understand the fast drain. But I have checked it multiple times to see if I have accidently turned it on, but it is never on.

[djrugby]

I have done the same thing as you.  I have received several emails in the past two days from Support.  THEY pointed out another "battery drain".   Syncing.  

Every time I open my Android App to "check my statistics" or check to see if the GPS is on, it automatically syncs.  Support told me that my Auto Sync must still be on, and also told me to remove the Toggle from my computer as it is sync more than they felt necessary.

Some issues there.

1. I now am not alllowed to use my Exerise programs, unless I want to deal with high, and fast battery drain.  That IS what they told me to do.  So, no GPS.  I end up charging every day (or about 36 hours) for a one hour bike ride a day.  AND, then eventually the battery will not even hold a charge.

2. I am to use Smartrack according to support.  I loose GPS abiltity.  BIGGER loss - I loose the abilty to veiw my distance, HR, time elapsed, etc that used to be on the screen.  I have tried numerous ways, it is not possible.  

3. I finish a lot of bike rides and walk or jog immediately for 10, 20, 30 minutes.  Smartrack never picks those movements up.  It does not seem to be able to go from Biking to walking and track it.

4. I used my Android Health Free App - to track my past two bike rides.  The Fitbit Smartrack is not the same as the  Health app: They are about 5 minutes apart in time and about a mile difference in distance.  The Fitbit Smartrack misses some.  I manually start/stop the android app.

THE GOOD NEWS - No GPS use during this charge.  I last charged Friday morning to full charge at about 11:00 AM cst.  Today, at noon, only two bike ride in past three days - I have one bar or 25% left.  I MIGHT GET DAYS!!!  And the only battery drain is syncing.

***For my trouble - Fitbit has offered me free 6 months of their Premuim Service.  I have agreed, but they have not told me how to sign up yet to get it free.  Also, I have asked them via email - "Isn't that going to require Syncing, and drain the battery?".  No response yet.

[Marta1]

Me too!  Three bad ones now since May 5, 2015.  Have to recharge EVERY morning, with basically all functionality turned off.  What good is this if I can't use it?  $250 for a bad product.  And apparently there are several of us.  Really unhappy!

[Pharmercist]

Perhaps this is why the sexy new watch has no on board gps.

I can't get it to sync. According to my device, in the past 30 hours, approximately, I've taken 60 steps and I'm fully charged.

Moderator edit: merged reply

[Amazmom]

I'm new here, but it says the Surge battery lasts 10 hours with GPS on. We all know that's a best case scenario, so maybe having to charge daily is to be expected.

[Marta1]

But I am not using GPS at all! And I have turned off heartrate monitor,
notifications, all auto-sync functions and only manually sync. So it is a
very expensive pedometer that still has to be recharged daily even though
they advertise a 5 day battery life. If I buy another there are brands
known for their GPS function, and some others that advertise a six month
battery life even including heartrate monitoring.

[djrugby]

Amazmom :So far, none of us have found that to be true.  And, neither has Fitbit - givien their instructions.  I uses the GPS one hour a day, and had to charge everyday.  And, the Surge held the charge less and less - hence why they keep sending me a new surge.

Now, they have instructed me to sync the watch only once a day and not to use the GPS - I am to use Smartrack - which does not track all that the other Surge functions track. - so I am not using any of the Exersise modes, unless I want the battery to die.  Seriously - the email received on Sunday from Support, made it very clear that this is my choice - " You'll need to expect that if you're going to use the GPS feature then you'll need to charge your tracker more often. We apologize for the inconvenience.".  

Last nights email informed me that if I want to track distance and pace (Smartrack does not), I must do it myself and use the Manual Log - but they reminded me that manual log would override anything the Surge kept. "In regard to SmartTrack, on your Fitbit app dashboard, tap the Exercise tile to see your exercise history. (On fitbit.com, go to your activity log.) For each SmartTrack-detected exercise you'll find stats such as duration and estimated calorie burn. Distance and pace are not included. If you would like to view your distance and pace stats, you can manually log the workout. Manually logged exercises will always override SmartTrack's automatically detected exercises."

Now, understand - in the paragraph before this - they told me not to sync my watch, which happens everytime I bring up the dashboard.  They told me to remove the toggle from my laptop.

HAS ANYONE been told why the Surge reacts this way, not as advertised, or better yet - been told they are going to fix it.   THAT is the information we all need.  Otherwise, I am sending my Fitbits back to them.

Marta1:  Suggestion.  I learned this yesterday from Fitbit.  1) If your watch is near your computer - whether the software is running or not, the watch will sync. Mine synced 54 times on Saturday as I was working on my laptop.  They told me to remove the Toggle from the USB.  2) If your phone is close to your watch - MAKE SURE the software Fitbit APP is Closed, not just "not visible".  Check your Task Manager.  Otherwise - it just keeps syncing.  Syncing kills battery.

[Marta1]

Thanks AmazMom but I have done that.  I do not keep the doggle plugged in or my laptop on.  I do not believe the problem is with any of us or how we use it - my first Surge lasted five months before acting up - the last replacement was problematic out of the box.  I believe it is a firmware problem with their most recent versions.  Most of the consumer testing is done for a limited time - not long enough to test battery life.  The solution isn't to turn off functionality we paid for (and still not resolve the problems).  I do feel sorry for customer support - they can't fix this and are left to face very frustrated customers.

[VivisFitbit]

Hello there guys! I'm sorry to know about your battery issues. I'd like to share some tips with you, cleaning the contacts just to make sure your Surge is charging properly . You can do it by isomg a toothpick or toothbrush to clean the charging contacts; do not scrape them with anything metal because this can damage the plating and result in corrosion.

Regarding your battery life If you aren’t tracking runs or exercises that use GPS, your fully charged Surge should last up to 7 days as a fitness watch with continuous heart rate tracking and activity tracking.

Your  Surge can track a maximum of about 10 hours of activities that use GPS before needing a charge. To ensure that you’re always tracking your data, we recommend charging your Surge after any activity that uses GPS. 

Hope this helps! 

[Mtymedic]

I also have had the same issue and have had a few replacements. And I was so impressed with them up till now. This is the email I sent to them after I got the email below.

I was so impressed with your customer service untill now. I feel I have been lied to. Told that it would always be taken care of.

And by looking at the community boards it seems this is not an isolated incident but rather a wide spread one. I bought the watch for the features the GPS, the music control, text and phone information. I Run 7 miles a day and it's great to know who's calling or texting.

But it seems that Fitbit knows of the problem and the answer is simply .... Turn off all the functions. So when I do that I now have a $250 Fitbit Zip

I know you have generously replaced mine and many more others. But what is being done to fix the issue?
I understand you can't keep giving away products. But as a consumer I'm very disappointed. It seems you had a great idea and it has been a flop.

And now that I'm "out of warranty" you offer me a 25% discount on products? Perhaps you should consider cutting the losses on the surge and offer those who still have a Surge one last replacement maybe with the "Blaze".


On Apr 27, 2016, at 21:02, contact.fitbit.com wrote:

Hi Scott,

Thank you very much for your prompt response. We're always striving to improve the Fitbit experience for you and the most important thing for us is that you’re a satisfied customer.

Upon checking on the system, we've confirmed that your last replacement Surge was sent on November. However, the warranty is taken from the original date of purchase. But because we back up our products, even though we can't replace your Fitbit Surge, we'd like to make an exception and provide you with a discount from our online store that may be used towards the purchase of any new tracker.

We sincerely apologize for this inconvenience, and we truly long to keep you in the Fitbit family. Please let us know if you'd like us to proceed to generate the discount.

Sincerely,

The Fitbit Team


Reply directly to this email to update your case.

Join the growing Fitbit Community! Get answers. Stay motivated. Find Fitbit friends

[klbsydney24]

Yes....my Surge battery drains quickly.  I ride with it, run with it, walk with it.

FitBit told me that in order to increase the battery life, I should turn off the text and call notifications, turn the HR to 'auto' (I had already been turning it off when I took the Surge off).....I should turn off the 'quick view' function.  I suggested that perhaps they shouldn't advertise "up to 7 days battery life" if it only applies when many of the features are unable to be used.

They said "Thank you for the feedback"........

The band on my Surge is also starting to fray......I little part of it came up and just started fraying from the hard surface underneath.  I've had such poor customer service experience I can only imagine they'll say "stop using the band" 🙂  It's around 8 months old, so really poor life span.

I think that when the band is ruined, which looks to be a couple of months off, I'll switch back to Garmin, which lasted me through many, many active experiences for years.

[jmcging]

Chiming in here to say my Surge of just over a year is now essentially dead after 16 or so hours of just being worn on my wrist and no deliberate actcivities.  It used to be good for maybe 2 days but it's become clear that in teh past 2 weeks or so it's barely l;asting a day with no demand and using GPS in an activity means it's alerting me to recharge in 12 hours or less.  Not exactly happy with that kind of deterioration.

[VivisFitbit]

Hello there guys! At this point I highly recommend contacting Support, please provide as many details as possible, I'm pretty sure they'll take good care of you. 

[jmcging]

I did contact support and after some reasonable questions, taking specific actions and seeing the results, I have a replacement uner warranty in the mail.

[Marta1]

Yes customer service has been good and sent me several replacements, the
problem is the product is bad, so are the replacements and they fail too.
Bottom line is I spent $250 for a product that's warranty is over at one
year and so it's an expensive throw away.

[klbsydney24]

Hi there,

I did contact support, was told I should turn off all the functions on my Surge like the phone notifications etc, and that this should help. It didn't, I let them know this, and "support" replied that there was nothing more to try, so I have reverted back to my Garmin.

Kind Regards,
Kelly.

Sent from my iPad