Image credit: AIVAnet | Twitter: @aivanet
A battery drain issue and previously reported issues with the Fitbit Charge 5’s Bluetooth connectivity are causing some users to have a difficult time right now.
In 2021, a number of users complained on Fitbit’s community forums about the Fitbit Charge 5’s supposedly seven-day battery life only lasting a few hours. This is when the battery drain problem first became apparent.
Even when the built-in GPS appears to be off, the battery quickly depletes, as is known to happen when using other features like the SPO2 tracker and turning on the built-in GPS.
Not all units are impacted, and it appears that only a few outspoken Fitbit users are vocal about this problem. But the problem has continued into 2022, affecting an increasing number of users.
On July 9, renowned moderator DavideFitbit made a post on the most recent thread, warning readers to be patient while a firmware update is being developed.
“Keep in mind that firmware updates are released progressively; it starts with a small percentage and then it extends to the entire community of users,” DavideFitbit explained. Fitbit Support’s official Twitter account echoes this sentiment, claiming that a fix is in the works.
Image credit: Proper Guide | Twitter: @ProperGuide
The current advice from Fitbit is to reset your device and turn off features like these in settings to prevent unnecessary battery drain.
However, it’s important to note that the Fitbit Charge 5 issue has been well-known for a while, as first reported by Phoneswiki, with users alerting Fitbit in 2021 and the issue being publicly acknowledged by Fitbit in March 2022. Since there hasn’t been a fix in months, some users haven’t been able to use their pricey new fitness trackers at all.
It’s made worse by additional Bluetooth connectivity issues, about which we previously wrote several weeks ago. Some devices obstinately refuse to pair with phones or frequently unpaint after doing so.
On July 14, one message board user wrote: “I turned my Fitbit watch off completely from the settings on my watch and then restarted. This has worked for me so far. We’ll see. I got a message from Fitbit saying they are working on the issue. It is exactly the same message they were sending out a year ago.”
Fitbit’s image will suffer as a result. Its most expensive and feature-rich fitness tracker that isn’t a true smartwatch like the Versa or Sense lines is the Charge 5.
There is no way to estimate the proportion of Fitbit Charge 5 devices that might have one or both of the aforementioned issues. In light of this, we are unable to recommend purchasing a Charge 5 until we are certain a fix is on the horizon.
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