Fitbit has sold a million of its Ionic smartwatches in the United States, but they all were recalled this week.
The Ionic smartwatch, first released in 2017, was recalled by the company and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Wednesday. A faulty battery that can cause burns is the reason behind the recall.
“The battery in the Ionic smartwatch can overheat, posing a burn hazard,” reads Fitbit’s voluntary recall notice. “We are taking this action out of an abundance of caution for our users.”
According to the CPSC, about a million Ionic smartwatches are in use in the United States, and almost another 700,000 abroad. The announcement from the CPSC Wednesday came at the same time as recalls from government bodies in Canada and Mexico.
The recall was triggered by more than 100 reports of Ionic batteries overheating and a handful of serious burns.
“Fitbit has received at least 115 reports in the United States (and 59 reports internationally) of the battery in the watch overheating with 78 reports of burn injuries in the United States, including two reports of third-degree burns and four reports of second-degree burns (and 40 reports of burn injuries internationally),” reads the CPSC recall notice.
Fitbit, which was acquired by Google last year, recommends people with Ionic devices stop using them immediately. The company is offering a $299 refund to users who register and return their devices. The registration process includes providing the email for the Fitbit account associated with the device.
Those who register their device will be mailed prepaid packaging for shipping their device back to Fitbit and can expect the refund to arrive in three to six weeks. In addition to the refund, Fitbit is offering 40% off “select Fitbit devices, bands and services” for 90 days after registration. Anyone who has an Ionic device they no longer use is still eligible for the recall.
Both the CPSC and Fitbit make clear this recall only applies to Ionic smartwatches and not other Fitbit products. Ionic devices were sold between September 2017 and December 2021 and have a rectangular screen with one button on the left side and two buttons on the right of the screen. Every Ionic watch has “FB503” printed on the back of the device near where the watch band attaches to the device.
For Ionic users who cannot or do not want to return their devices, Fitbit recommends following the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s instructions for recycling used lithium ion batteries to dispose of their recalled watches. The company notes people should factory reset their devices before disposing of them.
Fitbit has set up dedicated phone lines for questions about the recall. Anyone in the United States with further questions can call 888-925-1764 for help. Because Fitbit stopped producing the Ionic in 2020 and all Ionic watches are being recalled, the company will only provide the refund and will not be offering new Ionic devices to replace recalled ones.
