5 ms·

I agree with this sentiment. But then I discovered the Fitbit has a 7 day battery life. That's a game changer.

atlasunshrugged 7y ago
I got a Fitbit for this reason but I've been incredibly dissatisfied with the quality. I'm now on my 3rd device in ~6 months. First one stopped taking a charge, second the screen went out. Hopefully the 3rd time is the charm
- pfranz 7y ago
  I've had all 3 gens of FitBit and never had hardware issues. My gripes have all been on software (refusing to integrate with Apple Health, I don't like the new "sleep score", and I don't want a "premium" monthly payment). I did upgrade when the previous ones were no longer functional, but I had used them constantly for a few years each time. However, I used to leave the charger plugged in my bathroom because I would charge it when I showered. I noticed the charging posts got crud on them and got smaller over time until my FitBit would no longer charge. Eventually, I started unplugging it except for when I was charging and that fixed my issue.
- dkonofalski 7y ago
  I had the same experience with multiple FitBit devices. Every single one of them had to be replaced, after only a few months, within the warranty period. The only device I ever owned that didn't need a warranty replacement was a FitBit Aria scale and that was a return/replace with the store after the first one was DOA.
- drewg123 7y ago
  Try a Garmin Forerunner or Fenix. My wife and I have had the same bad luck with most wearables. I went through 3 MS bands, she went through 2 fitbits and all of them physically broke. I had a Motorola Android Wear and Polar M600, both of which degraded to less than 24 hours of battery life after less than a year of ownership of each. I have a Garmin 645M, which I've had since launch, and it still works fine and has days of battery life, even when doing morning runs listening to spotify from the watch. I finally convinced my wife to try a Garmin 245, and she hasn't destroyed it yet.
- xtrimsky1234 7y ago
  Garmin or Suunto provide much better quality than Fitbit, Fitbit is a cheap quality. Garmin, Apple and Suunto aren't. Just check what the pros are using :)
briandear 7y ago
Can you make a call from your Fitbit? Considering how fast Apple Watch charges, a 7 day battery life isn’t that compelling considering how much you get from an Apple Watch compared to Fitbit.
- charlesju 7y ago
  If you need a watch that can make phone calls then the Fitbit is not a good watch choice. I personally don't like making any phone calls and if I have to, my phone is usually near by. But that's a very personal choice.
rimliu 7y ago
Take a look at Withings. You can get weeks to months of the battery life with limited but very useful features set.
- atlasunshrugged 7y ago
  Have you tried the new Withings with ECG? I'm curious about that, this winter I'm going to switch to something new and it's basically between the Withings and the Apple Series 5
lisnake 7y ago
My Xiami Mi Band 4 has 4 weeks of battery life, basically does same things as Fitbit
- GordonS 7y ago
  I could certainly live with charging every 4 weeks. But isn't that more a "fitness tracker watch", rather than a "smartwatch"? When I think of smartwatches, I'm more thinking of ones running an Android or Apple OS, with apps available etc.

I got a Fitbit for this reason but I've been incredibly dissatisfied with the quality. I'm now on my 3rd device in ~6 months. First one stopped taking a charge, second the screen went out. Hopefully the 3rd time is the charm

pfranz 7y ago
I've had all 3 gens of FitBit and never had hardware issues. My gripes have all been on software (refusing to integrate with Apple Health, I don't like the new "sleep score", and I don't want a "premium" monthly payment). I did upgrade when the previous ones were no longer functional, but I had used them constantly for a few years each time. However, I used to leave the charger plugged in my bathroom because I would charge it when I showered. I noticed the charging posts got crud on them and got smaller over time until my FitBit would no longer charge. Eventually, I started unplugging it except for when I was charging and that fixed my issue.
dkonofalski 7y ago
I had the same experience with multiple FitBit devices. Every single one of them had to be replaced, after only a few months, within the warranty period. The only device I ever owned that didn't need a warranty replacement was a FitBit Aria scale and that was a return/replace with the store after the first one was DOA.
drewg123 7y ago
Try a Garmin Forerunner or Fenix. My wife and I have had the same bad luck with most wearables. I went through 3 MS bands, she went through 2 fitbits and all of them physically broke. I had a Motorola Android Wear and Polar M600, both of which degraded to less than 24 hours of battery life after less than a year of ownership of each. I have a Garmin 645M, which I've had since launch, and it still works fine and has days of battery life, even when doing morning runs listening to spotify from the watch. I finally convinced my wife to try a Garmin 245, and she hasn't destroyed it yet.
xtrimsky1234 7y ago
Garmin or Suunto provide much better quality than Fitbit, Fitbit is a cheap quality. Garmin, Apple and Suunto aren't. Just check what the pros are using :)

briandear 7y ago

Can you make a call from your Fitbit? Considering how fast Apple Watch charges, a 7 day battery life isn’t that compelling considering how much you get from an Apple Watch compared to Fitbit.

charlesju 7y ago
If you need a watch that can make phone calls then the Fitbit is not a good watch choice. I personally don't like making any phone calls and if I have to, my phone is usually near by. But that's a very personal choice.

rimliu 7y ago

Take a look at Withings. You can get weeks to months of the battery life with limited but very useful features set.

atlasunshrugged 7y ago
Have you tried the new Withings with ECG? I'm curious about that, this winter I'm going to switch to something new and it's basically between the Withings and the Apple Series 5

lisnake 7y ago

My Xiami Mi Band 4 has 4 weeks of battery life, basically does same things as Fitbit

GordonS 7y ago
I could certainly live with charging every 4 weeks. But isn't that more a "fitness tracker watch", rather than a "smartwatch"? When I think of smartwatches, I'm more thinking of ones running an Android or Apple OS, with apps available etc.