Is Your Fitbit Ionic Not Turning On? Here’s How You Can Fix It

Have you just strapped your Fitbit Ionic on after a while only for it to not boot up at all? If so, don’t worry! This is quite a common issue. Chances are, you might not even be able to charge your Ionic as well.

With that said, we’ve compiled a list of the best fixes you can take advantage of in order to get your smartwatch back into operation again.

Before we get started, do note that this process can get quite tedious and involves a lot of trial and error. Therefore, you’ll need to probably repeat all these steps a few times to get the desired results.

Why Does Fitbit Ionic Stop Turning On?

Surprisingly, while this issue is very common, there seems to be no official statement from the company regarding this matter. So, all that we know is through common consensus. From what we’ve gathered, having the device reach drop down to 0% is the primary cause of your Fitbit Ionic not turning on. 

Check Your Charging

If you are trying to turn your Fitbit Ionic on after a while, chances are that it has run out of charge and your charger might just be the one that’s malfunctioning. Firstly, you should charge your Ionic for at least an hour.

If, after doing that, your device still does not turn on; there are a few handy steps you can try to ensure that your charger isn’t at fault:

  • Use A UL-Certified Wall Charger: Oftentimes, chargers don’t meet the specifications required to charge your devices. So, make sure you buy a UL-Certified Wall Charger and try not to charge your device through a hub / or from a laptop.
  • Clean Your Contacts: If you’ve not used your device for a while, your charger might’ve gotten a bit dusty. If that’s the case, clean the contacts of your charger using an alcohol swab. Make sure to dry out your contacts before you place your Ionic in them.
  • Charge For At Least A Day: Yes, you heard us. Sometimes, Fitbit batteries are so discharged to the point that they need an extended period of time before they are back up and running. So, before you move on to more drastic measures – keep it charging for 24 hours.

If, after following all your steps, your Ionic still does not turn on, then your charger is not to blame, and instead; you can move on to other steps we’ve mentioned down below.

Restarting Your Device

Image Credits: Burl Solomons 

There are two distinct methods you can use to turn your Fitbit Ionic on and off. One’s a simple soft restart while the other has the chance to erase all your information and boot you back into factory mode. 

Luckily, since all your data is synced to the Fitbit application on your phone, you won’t be losing any of your badges / steps

Soft-Restarting Your Device

Image Credits: iFixit 

Here are the steps you need to follow to soft-reset your device if your Ionic doesn’t seem to be turning on:

  • Hold the left and bottom buttons for about 10 seconds until you see the Fitbit logo
  • Now, let go of the buttons as soon as you do. Your device should back to normal

If the method above seems to have worked for you – great! Otherwise, you can move on to hard-resetting your device. 

Hard-Resetting Your Device

From what we’ve seen, this does not seem to be an unofficial fix. However, various users on the Fitbit forum amongst other places have seemingly sworn to this method. Here’s what you need to do:

  • Hold all three buttons on your Fitbit Ionic for 45 seconds
  • Now, wait until you see the logo. If you don’t try it again and make sure your device is not on charge.

In most cases, this should resolve your Fitbit Ionic not turning on. If it doesn’t – you might need to head down the dreaded path of warranty claims.

Claiming Warranty

If your device is still in warranty, Fitbit does indeed file this as an issue liable for claims. As of yet, most users either get a replacement or a hefty discount for their next Fitbit purchase. 

Depending on what type of issue you have, you might not even need to send your bricked device in and would rather be asked to recycle it responsibly. To claim your warranty, you’ll need to contact customer support. Make sure you have the Fitbits serial number / proof of purchase handy. 

You might be interested in checking out the newest and best Fitbit watches.

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I bought my first smartwatch in 2018 and have been wearing one ever since. It might get frustrating at times to receive 100 notifications a day. That's why we need to know how to make the best of them and how to use them to improve our daily lives, not the other way around. I write about the newest smartwatches, I create top picks, and I write helpful guides and simply explain complicated things.