After Pixel 4a, now Fitbit trackers are getting a bad battery update

Google took Pixel 4a homeowners on a wild trip this 12 months, these nonetheless utilizing this smartphone from 2020. The Pixel 4a Battery Efficiency Program update launched in January 2025 lowered capability by round 44%, halved the utmost charging speeds, and disabled options like Adaptive Charging and charging time ETAs. Now, Google is releasing a comparable Battery Efficiency Program for the Fitbit Sense and Versa 3.

Fitbit Sense and Versa 3 Battery Efficiency Program

Google has posted a client discover for Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Versa 3 homeowners, informing them that a restricted variety of these gadgets are susceptible to overheating batteries. Consequently, Google is rolling out an instantaneous firmware update that may cut back the chance of the battery overheating. Nonetheless, the update can even cut back battery capability as a aspect impact.

The update will enhance the steadiness of the machine’s battery efficiency and cut back the chance of the battery overheating. As a end result, the battery will final for shorter intervals between expenses and you might must cost your machine extra incessantly.

Very like the Pixel 4a update, this problem is alleged to not have an effect on all Sense and Versa 3 gadgets. Google says that in case your machine shouldn’t be impacted, the battery will carry out the identical as earlier than. Nonetheless, if the Pixel 4a update is any indication, we suspect many customers may face degraded battery efficiency even when they don’t have a defective battery. Google has a request kind that you should utilize to determine in case your machine is impacted.

Google says the update has begun rolling out and can attain homeowners over the following month. As soon as customers obtain the update notification, they need to manually update their machine’s firmware. In the event that they don’t do it inside a few days, the machine will sync a few of its knowledge after which manufacturing unit reset itself. Some info can be deleted, together with alarms, targets, credit score and debit playing cards, saved settings, and notifications.

After the manufacturing unit reset, you’ll have to arrange your machine once more, throughout which the brand new firmware can be put in.

It’s not instantly clear if manually putting in the update preserves your knowledge, however even this alone is such a bad consumer expertise.

Very like the Pixel 4a, customers with an impacted Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Versa 3 could also be eligible for a $50 appeasement. You’ll be able to submit a request to examine your appeasement eligibility. In the event you qualify, you’ll be able to declare the appeasement even if you happen to aren’t repeatedly utilizing the machine. You don’t must return the machine even if you happen to declare the appeasement, and you’ll proceed utilizing them after the firmware update is utilized.

Nonetheless, not like the Pixel 4a, there is no such thing as a provision to interchange the defective battery on the affected Fitbits. Health trackers and smartwatches are notoriously tough to restore, even for easier duties like a battery swap, so we aren’t fully shocked.

Particulars are scarce at this stage on what exactly the firmware update modifications, how widespread the difficulty is, and whether or not many seemingly non-affected customers are additionally affected, as we witnessed with the Pixel 4a. These frequent battery discount updates depart a bad style in our mouths as they pop up a number of years later.

For context, the Fitbit Sense and Versa 3 have been introduced in August 2020, and even the Pixel 4a was introduced that month. Sure, not as many individuals would nonetheless be utilizing the identical gadgets. However the few who are utilizing them fortunately will certainly be impacted. If they’ve held on to the gadgets, there’s most likely a good purpose why, and a $50 appeasement could not remedy these points.

We are unlikely to get extra particulars from Google past the posted notices, so we don’t anticipate to get an official reply on what occurred. For impacted customers, we suggest taking the $50 appeasement if you happen to are eligible and upgrading to a new health tracker or smartwatch.