Surge altimeter and aircrew

[marktully680]

Hey Fitbit Team,

I just bought the Surge and from reading through these forums I realised it has an altimeter for registering floors climbed, this makes sense however I didn't consider how this was tracked when I bought it, I fly almost daily for work, will this effect tracking at all and give me false readings? I'm assuming commercial air travel was considered in this but would just like to ask the question.

Cheers

[SteveH]

If it detects a rise in elevation then it will only award floors if it thinks you were stepping at the time. I guess the design is to avoid floors from elevators but hopefully it should also help in your situation.

[Gershon]

You will have to wait and see, but it probably won't log altitude changes as it doesn't while I'm driving. 

[shipo · Accepted solution]

I've flown numerous times in the last year with my Fitbit Surge, everything from Cessna 172s through commercial airliners; the Fitbit doesn't register the altitude changes on any of my flights.

[Marcy]

To register floors, steps are needed in conjunction with pressure changes.  Since commercial airliners are pressurized and passengers are seated during most of the travel, registering floors seem unlikely, although, I wouldn't completely rule it out.

[marktully680]

Yeah I figured I wouldn't but I don't fly commercial and don't always operate in the same cabin altitude so thought it might trip it out, but I've flown a couple of times with it now and had no issues, riding a motorbike is the only one that gives me false readings haha go figure

Sent from my iPhone

[noirdesir]

In my experience, Fitbits have been very good at detecting whether an altitude change is due to walking up a slope or stairs or due to you changing altitude because you are in some sort of vessel that is changing altitude. There are few obvious ways you can fool it, walking up an escalator is one, walking inside a train that is climbing also lets cheat. And in a very few occasions, encountering very heavy gusts of wind while walking have added a floor or two that wasn't justified.