Are rechargeable wearable tech devices like the Fitbit Versa and the Apple Watch doomed to prematurely fail?
Posted By RichC on June 3, 2020
It is starting to look like early gadget failure going to become the ‘norm’ now that we’re wearing tech gadgets everyday. My Fitbit Versa watch is not even a year old and has failed. For a while it started to blink and flip through it’s screens, then surged with colorful vertical lines (photo)and a vibrate notification with each button push. 
Then finally after about 30 minutes of tech support, some charging and an restart … it went completely dead. The same thing happened to Katelyn’s Fitbit Versa in under a year of wearing it.
On the other ‘wrist’ …joking… Apple is not doing much better. The first Apple Watch that I gave Brenda “bloated” after being put on its charger and it popped the screen right off the face. It was past the warranty, so unlike Katelyn’s Fitbit, there wasn’t any option besides having it fixed (which costs more than an new watch) or replacing it with newer model. Still, it is disappointing that our family alone has had one Apple Watch fail within a few years of wearing it and two Fitbit Versa watches. Wearable tech is not off to a good start with us (and I suspect there is an early Pebble for Drew in there somewhere too?)
Now the frustrating decision for me is to either accept the warranty and have Fitbit replace the Versa 1 (they don’t even have a black model to match my old one) or to accept their 50% off offer for the Versa2. Frankly, 50% off of the list price isn’t all that great of a deal considering what kind of sale prices are offered by retailers sometimes … yet if there is an inherent problem with the Versa1 or the batteries, do I really want another watch that likely will fail in under a year?
Before making the decision, I’ve asked Fitbit to see if they can scrounge up a black Versa as a warranty replacement; so far the answer is no: “only Peach / Rose Gold Aluminum or Gray / Silver Aluminum” although black can still be found at retailers.
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