Zip rapid battery drain on iOS version 2.41.1

[KateFitbit]

Update 3/21/2018: It has taken the team longer to identify the root cause of why some users are experiencing rapid battery drain with while syncing the Zip to an iOS device. We will continue to investigate, but I don't currently have a timeline for fix. Along with turning off all day sync, we do suggest syncing to a computer or Android device if possible. Thanks for your reports and patience. 

Update 11/25/2017: We are still aware that some users on iOS are reporting rapid battery drain and are working on the issue. Once I hear further, I will update this thread. Thanks for all your reports. 

I've been notified that there are reports of Zip battery draining quickly on iOS version 2.41.1 and our team is currently investigating. If you are experiencing this, we recommend disabling all-day-sync for now. I'll update this post once I hear more. Thanks as always for your patience and understanding. 

Turn off All-Day Sync:

1. From the Fitbit app dashboard, tap or click the Account icon in the top right-hand corner. 
2. Tap on your device 
3. Find the option to turn off All-Day Sync.

[DeeSchu]

Knock on wood, mine has been staying fully charged for the past 3 week.

[cassie14]

I’m knocking on wood, too. My Zip battery has been holding its charge for 6 weeks! Maybe they are doing something about the problem.

Sent from my iPhone

[cathyjcj]

Mine seems to be working great again also.

Sent from my iPhone

[JaneAZ]

When I updated last night, my iPhone 6 to IOS 11.2.2 which is latest software update- when manually syncing my 2 month old Zip tonight, it drained battery to 50%. This tells me something is related to iOS updates as my Zip had been holding full charge for the last month or so since having battery drain issues. Will this ever be resolved???

Sent from my iPhone

[Kasten]

CRAZY BATTERY DRAIN! New battery on Monday, zero battery on Wednesday. I have a zip that was purchased new just a few months ago. My phone is new and my iOS is current 😞 Is anyone missing the original Fitbit and the Fitbit One? I feel like my Fitbit experiences keep getting worse, not better.

[Stellie18]

I hardly dare say this without touching as much wood as is possible but my zip bit seems to have behaving at least for the last couple of months which is longer than it had done for a while.and I hadn’t changed anything.

 I now feel I have tempted fate !

[michaelj52]

add another unhappy ZIP user - my battery was replaced 3 days ago and is already dead. I walk 1 hour at 2.5 mph (treadmill) and record 0.5 miles and 1000 steps - should be 2.5 miles and 4000 steps. The only good thing about the app is tracking food/calories. Do all of the fitbit products have this problem or just the ZIP?

I see you fix to turn off all day sync - we'll see how that works.

😞

[AlCasa]

that worked for me- going to 7 weeks still at full power. I do 10,000+ steps everyday

Al Casadei
Sent from my iPhone

[H-zip]

Hi,

I spent some 90 minutes on the phone to fitbit. As I have an Alta which I use evenings and 3 full days I was told that syncing was causing the drain issue on the zip battery because of Bluetooth. There are issues with iPads not being as compatible and appears to have been so for 4 years.
I was advised to put my zip and Alta on my pc. But I’ve still experienced battery issues even so and the pc isn’t really practical for me.
So I wear the zip for work on the wards, sync it on my pc then take the battery out every evening and wear my Alta and sync to my hearts content on my iPad the rest of the time. I’m in challenges with friends so I like to sync hourly in evening being competitive. This seems to have resolved the issue with the battery currently. I had been through 3 batteries in 4 weeks.

Sent from my iPad

[cathyjcj]

Mine has been working really well for a while. And I turned all day sync back on

Sent from my iPhone

[ADKzip]

Mine was better until I turned all-day sync on but I did get about 4 months out of latest battery -- 50% less than the original 6 months, but better than in the interim.  I have now turned all-day sync off on the iPhone.  This irks me because Fitbit continues to advertise compatibility with iOS that clearly is lacking.

Also agree with other posts that the Windows app is less than stellar.

I continue to see plenty of messages indicating problems with this and other FitBit devices and strongly suggest reading other Fitbit and other device forums before buying any new devices -- advice I have also passed along the various tech journalists who might otherwise not have the long view.

[michaelj52]

Sound advice
I have been reading posts of other fitness monitors searching for an alternative. Waiting for new batteries for my ZIP to try the no sync option.

Sent from my iPhone

[dille]

Glad to hear I am not alone with fast battery drain.  They use to last 5 months for me and now I'm lucky to get 5 days. I love my zip but will shop around for a different brand of tracker if it is not soon fixed.

[michaelj52]

turning off the "all day sync" may not be enough. every time I access
the app to update my food intake the app does a sync with the ZIP - this
is not necessary.

The app should have a "manual sync only" setting that will not try to
sync the ZIP until I tell it to sync. (IMO)

[Mkd2]

Any solution yet? I only get a day and a half per battery?!  

[michaelj52]

just replaced battery in ZIP. (2018-01-27 @10:00)

turned off "all day sync" - but every time I access the app it forces a
sync to occur - so every time I enter food, water, etc there is a sync.
every sync sucks power out of the battery. the CR2025 is a small battery
with only 163 mAh of power.

To prevent unneeded syncs I disable the bluetooth on my phone until I
need to sync the ZIP.

*For this test however I will leave the bluetooth enabled on the iPhone
but close the app when I am not using it.*

I also turned off "Background app refresh" for the iPhone FitBit app.
The UP app does not have this setting so it seems that the UP app must
be running in the foreground to sync.

FitBit software should have a "manual only sync" option so the sync only
happens when we tell it to.

I have also received my Jawbone UP today. This uses a CR2032 which has
240 mAh of power (47% more). I am using both at the same time - fresh
batteries installed at the same time.

will see how long each device runs on a single battery.

I like the FitBit app over the UP app - but that may be just the
learning curve.

[H-zip]

Don’t have Bluetooth on, don’t have all day sync on and have app on pc not phone. These 3 steps recommended by fitbit as there are issues with iPhone and iPad app. I’ve found removing the battery daily has helped as I have an Alta that I want to used eve and weekends. Keep battery as often not actually drained. Not great but more reliable for the moment

Sent from my iPad

[michaelj52]

well that didn't take long.

The ZIP is reporting "Battery Low" at 10:00 today - that is 24 hours for a new battery.

I did a couple more "Sync now" from the app and now the battery shows GREEN.

This my be a ZIP firmware issue falsely report a battery low condition.

I will wait till the ZIP battery dies completely.

to be continued.

[claudiasc]

My Fitbit Zip used to shut off at midnight but doesn't any longer.  Going through batteries like water through a sieve. 

[michaelj52]

my ZIP battery went dead tonight at 10:00 pm (approximate)

that is about 60 hours

a worthless piece of technology if the battery needs to be replace every 3 days (less than actually)

the Jawbone UP is still running strong

I will replace the battery in the ZIP and see if I get more than 60 hours.

again - I have turned off the background app refresh, close the app every time I use it, and turn my phone bluetooth off at night.