Fitbit RECALLS 1.7 million smartwatches that can burn users, cause fires

03/04/2022 / By Ramon Tomey

Consumer electronics firm Fitbit has ordered a recall of 1.7 million units of one of its smartwatches. The company owned by Google’s parent firm Alphabet said the lithium-ion battery inside the smartwatch tend to overheat and can burn users.

The recall applied to the Fitbit Ionic smartwatch produced from 2017 until 2020, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

The commission said it had received at least 115 domestic and 59 international reports of the Ionic smartwatch’s battery overheating. Seventy-eight cases of burn injuries – including two third-degree burns and four second-degree burns – were reported in the United States. There were also 40 international reports of burn injuries as a result of the overheating battery.

The CPSC noted that about one million units of the Ionic smartwatch were sold in the U.S., with 693,000 sold worldwide. It advised affected consumers to “stop using the recalled smartwatches and contact Fitbit” to arrange returns. Users who return their recalled devices would receive a $299 refund and a 40 percent discount code for select Fitbit devices.

The San Francisco-based Fitbit acknowledged the issue and the CPSC’s subsequent recall order. “The health and safety of Fitbit users is our highest priority. We are taking this action out of an abundance of caution for our users,” the company said. “This voluntary recall is specific to Fitbit Ionic devices [and] it does not impact any other Fitbit smartwatches or trackers.” (Related: Claim: WiFi radiation from Fitbits can cause rashes, illnesses, and blood sugar fluctuations.)

The recalled smartwatches – manufactured in Taiwan – originally came in three colorways. A special edition of the fitness tracker, co-branded with sportswear manufacturer Adidas, was also released in two colors.

Users share stories of “extremely dangerous” Fitbit devices overheating

As early as 2019, several people took to social media to share their experiences with their devices’ batteries overheating and causing injuries.

Iowa resident Ethan Landers is one such individual who reported being injured by his own Fitbit device. Back in October 2019, he took to Facebook to share pictures of the burns he suffered after he slept while wearing the device. Landers warned other users about the potential risks that come with the use of Fitbit fitness trackers.

“I woke up in a panic to my wrist burning. I quickly realized my Fitbit was burning up, so I tried frantically to get it off,” he wrote at the time.

Landers claimed that it felt like the device had “melted through his arm” and that there was “smoke coming out of the Fitbit battery.” He added: “Our bedroom smelled like an electrical fire.” Medics cleaned out the wound and took X-rays to ensure no debris remained in his arm. A trip to a wound clinic found that he suffered a third-degree burn.

“I do not have feeling in parts of my wrist due to nerve damage, and I will have a large scar that will be with me [for] the rest of my life. This was a traumatic experience and I hope no one else has to go through it,” said Landers. He concluded: “If you own a Fitbit, please reconsider using it.”

Another user took to Twitter to share her experience with her Fitbit device overheating and burning her bedroom. Julia Moroney posted: ” This is what my Fitbit Blaze did to my bedroom. These things are no joke. If my bedroom door was open, the whole house would have caught fire. Extremely dangerous.”

In a subsequent tweet, Moroney commented on an observation by the firefighters who responded to her emergency. “They have seen these lithium-ion batteries overheat and go up in flames before,” she wrote.