It gets difficult to operate a Fitbit if its touchscreen isn’t working. While researching this topic, I came across many similar cases where users complain that the Fitbit touch screen doesn’t work or freezes due to unknown reasons.
I will mention a few troubleshooting methods that helped one of my friends resolve an unresponsive touchscreen issue on his Fitbit. You can apply these methods to any touch-enabled Fitbit model, including Versa, Charge, Sense, Ionic, etc.
In this guide, you’ll know how to get your Fitbit Watch touch screen working properly again, and troubleshooting advice on how to identify the issue.
Table of Contents
Why Is My Fitbit Not Responding to Touch?
If your Fitbit won’t respond to touch, I got a few explanations for this issue.
Here’s what to check:
Water Drops On Screen
Dropping water on Fitbit’s screen might make it unresponsive to touch. When your Fitbit’s screen gets wet, it becomes difficult to operate the device in such a condition. As a result, the touchscreen loses its accuracy when it comes into contact with water.
It can make the touch unresponsive even if it’s a small amount of moisture such as a drop of sweat or rain. However, it’s not a major issue, but it does affect the overall performance of your Fitbit’s screen.
Fingers Are Dirty Or Covered
If you are trying to operate your Fitbit while wearing gloves or have your fingers covered in any other way, your Fitbit might not work on touch. Therefore, make sure your fingers are clean and not covered before touching the screen.
Screen Protector
Screen protectors are brilliant for preventing watch screen damage. They usually do not cause any touch issues unless their material uses thicker plastic.
Thicker plastic screen protectors can affect the sensitivity level of your watch’s screen. If you have applied a new screen protector recently, it may not be the right material or may not be fitted correctly, making the touchscreen unresponsive.
Your Fitbit Is Frozen
Occasionally, your Fitbit can freeze without warning. Many community members have reported that their Fitbits unexpectedly do not respond to screen swipes. In my view, it could be a software error causing this issue. Running a force restart might solve this issue.
Physical Damage
Physical damage to a watch may be caused by an impact on the surface of the touch screen, dropping it on a hard surface, pressure from water or other fluids, exposure to extreme temperatures, and vibration.
If you have made physical damage to the watch screen recently, the only solution is to have it repaired through Fitbit.
Contact Fitbit Customer Support for More Information.
5 Tips to Fix An Unresponsive Fitbit Touchscreen
Try to Restart Your Fitbit
A simple restart can resolve a majority of problems, including unresponsive touchscreen issues. Restarting your Fitbit will start clearing all buggy processes that are causing your Fitbit to freeze.
Several Fitbit experts also recommend that you perform a soft reboot before concluding that your watch’s screen needs repairing.
For Fitbit Sense/Versa Series, Hold down the “Power” button for 10-15 seconds until the screen goes blank and a Fitbit logo appears.
Here’s how to restart Fitbit Charge Series and other devices.
Update to Latest Version of Fitbit OS
Your Fitbit’s touchscreen might not respond if you haven’t updated your device in a while. Or, a recent software update may have made changes to Fitbit’s touchscreen, so it is no longer responding.
Whatever the scenario is, Fitbit regularly releases updates to fix these issues. If you’re wondering how you can update a Fitbit that isn’t responding, thankfully, Fitbit allows you to do it from your smartphone.
Here’s how to update Fitbit to the latest Firmware:
- Place your Fitbit on Charge and ensure it is connected to your phone via Bluetooth.
- Open Fitbit app on your smartphone.
- Tap on Profile > Tap on Device Name.
- A message in a pink box may appear if there is any update available. Tap on the Update button, and follow the instructions.
See Also: How to Update A Fitbit’s Firmware.
Try to Close All Apps on Fitbit Watch
If the issue is specific to one app, I suggest finding an alternate. You shouldn’t blame your Fitbit as the app you’re trying to run might have bugs, causing your Fitbit to freeze.
There is nothing to worry about when a third-party app causes issues on your Fitbit. You can close the frozen app on the watch through your smartphone by simply uninstalling it.
Follow these steps:
- Open the Fitbit app on your phone.
- Select Your Profile icon > Tap Your Watch Name > Go to Apps.
- Find & uninstall the app causing your watch to freeze.
A pro tip, do not install apps from any third-party source. You can install apps from the official Fitbit app, which is one of the trusted sources for apps, watch faces, and widgets.
Try Factory Reset
Disclaimer: Factory Reset is not recommended to use unless this is the only option you have now.
It is possible that even after performing all troubleshooting methods, your Fitbit’s touchscreen still freezes occasionally. In such a case, you can try out factory resetting the watch.
Performing a factory reset is only recommended if there is no other option left. Note that, A Factory reset will erase everything from your Fitbit, including media files, data, settings, and all content. Therefore, It is advised to do it at your own risk.
I’ll still recommend a force reboot over a factory reset. But, It’s entirely up to you.
Contact Fitbit Support
Contact Fitbit Customer Support if none of these methods have worked. Your Fitbit’s touchscreen may have a hardware problem, so it must be sent away for repair. Also, for physical damages such as cracks, you can get it repaired from Fitbit.
According to Fitbit’s Repair Policy, products sent for repairs usually get replaced with a refurbished Fitbit device due to the unavailability of spare parts. In cases where repairs are available, refurbished spare parts can be employed to fix the product.
In addition, Fitbit doesn’t retain data from your watch and is not responsible for the loss of your watch’s data. Better to take a backup before sending it to Fitbit.
FAQs: Fitbit Touchscreen Not Working
How Do I Factory Reset My Fitbit?
Here’s how to reset your Fitbit effectively:
1. Visit Fitbit’s official website and Log in to the dashboard.
2. From the dashboard, select the device name to remove (Example: Versa, Charge.)
3. Scroll to the end, And click Remove Fitbit From Your Account.
4. Open the Bluetooth section on your phone, locate your watch and click Forget Device.
5. Lastly, on watch, Go to Settings > About > Factory Reset. And reset your watch to factory defaults.
Can I Exchange My Fitbit for A New One?
According to Fitbit Remedies, Free exchange or repair is only available if your Fitbit is still under warranty. If the defect includes no physical damage, Fitbit does its finest to repair the product at no cost or replace the product with a New or Refurbished one.
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