Has your fitness tracker strap ever broken or been damaged from general use? A certain amount of wear and tear is to be expected, but after being alerted by a reader to a potential problem with their durability we did some digging and found some trackers may not be built to last.
The Fitbit Charge HR, Microsoft Band 2 and Jawbone UP3 seem especially susceptible to broken bands, or at least, posts on forums and comment threads certainly suggest that’s the case.
Even our reviews for them are littered with reader comments bemoaning their build quality, and after delving into forums a clear pattern has emerged.
The Fitbit Charge HR’s strap seems susceptible to a range of problems, from splitting and cracking, to bubbling and peeling around the screen.
jmw9880 took to Fitbit's forums, saying "the band started peeling around the display screen and a few days later developed an air bubble that has grown. Mine is approximately 5 months old and I wear it all the time, except in water." Many other users have made similar comments.
The bulk of the Microsoft Band 2 strap complaints talk about it splitting or tearing, and the Jawbone UP3’s strap seems to have a tendency to snap, as well as having a dodgy clasp, causing it to fall off user’s wrists.
Beneath our UP3 review, Paul Anderson wrote: "Three years later: UP3: Down 4. The strap of each broke in one, or both, of two places: the clasp and one (or other) 'shoulder' (where band meets the main unit). Life expectancy: 6 - 9 months. Great at measuring, and data generation. Lousy design."
We need you
Of course, there will always be some users with issues, and people tend to be more vocal when they’re having problems, so it’s hard to say how widespread these faults really are, which is where you come in.
We want to know if you’ve had similar problems with these fitness trackers – or any others for that matter, so we can see how big the issue is and which trackers are the worst offenders.
Leave a comment below, and if a trend emerges we’ll take our findings to the companies responsible.
- In the meantime, you might want to consider a smartwatch instead.
