My experience with Versa 4

[racheldewitt]

I had the versa 2 and was happy with it... until the sensors suddenly stopped working. They gave me a 25% off discount, so i bought the versa 4 thinking its an upgrade from the versa 2...

For some reason fitbit found it to be a good idea to remove all 3rd party apps for the versa 4. Can't control music or anything on the fitbit anymore. If I'd have known that I wouldn't have bought it.

To make matters worse, I've had the versa 4 for 2 weeks and already the screen is cracked. Didn't hit it hard on anything and I didn't drop it. It's so fragile. Well, the warranty doesn't cover cracks. It's supposed to be gorilla glass, but it's crap. Contacting customer service does nothing but add to my frustrations.

I decided to go with galaxy for my next one.

Moderator edit: clarified subject.

[Guy_]

Hi @racheldewitt - as you are in the window did you know if you are unhappy with the watch Fitbit have a 45 day refund policy.

It may still work even if it is damaged or bought with discount, so worth investigating.

[racheldewitt]

Except I was told since it is damaged there's nothing they can do. I was not happy with it. I think fitbit has gone down the tubes.

[Talahthas]

Welcome back to the Fitbit community, @racheldewitt!

I'm really sad to hear what has happened to your Versa 4. But as you've mentioned your disappointment about your device's glass shattering despite being made out of Gorilla Glass, I'd like to elaborate on that to prevent you from future disappointments in this regard:
Versa 4, as most devices with smaller displays is using Corning Gorilla Glass 3, which is an old version of Gorilla Glass. Older iterations of Gorilla Glass were primarily developed for scratch resistance. But, compared to current versions, they were relatively brittle. Later versions have been developed to be more flexible to be more usable on larger displays in terms of shatter resistance if your device is dropped. So current Gorilla Glas Victus (2) is less prone of breaking but at the same time less scratch resistant than Gorilla Glass 3.
To sum things up, if you're wearing any smartwatch or tracker equipped with Gorilla Glass 3, please handle with care. And if you're using a phone fitted with Gorilla Glass Victus, as current Pixel phones are, use a screen protector to prevent the display from being scratched.

[racheldewitt]

Maybe you misunderstood... it was NOT a scratch. It was a crack and I had not hit it hard on anything. It's just that fragile. I Hage already switched to galaxy, not only because of fragility, but also the limitations of the versa 4

[Talahthas]

That's exactly what I've tried to explain, @racheldewitt. Corning Gorilla Glass 3 that's used with smaller devices is more scratch resistant while being more fragile than current versions of Corning's Gorilla Glass. So we should take special care.

[t.parker]

@racheldewitt when gut tells you that something feels cheap and fragile then it's good to follow that feeling. When I took Sense 2 in my hands that's exacly what I thought - cheap and fragile, toylike so decided keeping it under sleeve during activities and not taking it to places like climbing gym. I believe Versa 4 is no different in that matter. Fitbit wasn't ever known for high quality products. The fact that a single user may need to replace broken device more than twice in a short period of time like a year - when happens rarely, it may be users' bad luck but if as often as we read here similar stories of more users - something wrong with the quality of products. Not a type of Gorilla Glass is a problem but rushed and poor process of designing and manufacturing those devices prone to make mistakes that lead to units failure. When I gave away my Sense 2 I told a person who took it to avoid using it in certain conditions. He does MTB, swims in salty oceanic water and runs in 40°C which I found isn't too great for Sense 2 (I encountered overheating issue). Lots of things that can kill or damage any fragile Fitbit. 🤷

[racheldewitt]

1. Then why advertise it as a fitness tracker if you have to be extremely careful with it? Not good for working out then, is it? And I didn't hit it on anything that I can think of. Didn't drop it. Didn't bump it. Barely used it.