Fitbit denies skin irritation with the Charge

Fitbit Charge

Earlier this year Fitbit was forced to recall the Force Band, which at that time was its flagship product, due to skin irritation issues. Now, there’s a chance that history is repeating itself despite Fitbit claiming the opposite.

It all started with Yahoo’s Alyssa Bereznak reporting in a review of the Fitbit Charge that the fitness tracker had irritated her skin. When she took the device off for a day, the redness went away, prompting her to be careful with Fitbit’s latest wearable.

Fitbit did the right thing with the Force, and we tend to believe what they’re saying.Fitbit was quick to react, saying that this time round the situation is different. Charge users were “likely [due to] sweat, water, or soap being held against the skin under the device, or from pressure or friction against the skin and should resolve quickly when users take a break from the device, usually within hours or days,” the company said in a statement sent to Engadget.

To be fair, Fitbit did the right thing with the Force, and we tend to believe what they’re saying. Before the recall, the company said that its investigation determined that users were suffering from contact dermatitis as a result of the materials used in assembly. The Charge, on the other hand, doesn’t use those materials.

The reported cases represent just a few of the over hundred thousand sold and they differ greatly from what we saw with Force,” Fitbit said in a statement. “While Force’s housing and band were held together with adhesive, which was determined to be the cause of nearly all allergic reactions, Charge’s housing and band are held together with screws, completely eliminating the potential for any adhesive to contact the skin.

We have conducted extensive testing with laboratories and consulted with top dermatologists to develop stringent standards so that users can safely wear and enjoy Charge, and we have worked to ensure that Charge meets those stringent standards.

Nevertheless, Yahoo is pointing users to a Google Document that is being continuously updated with photos and links to reviews from affected users. For the time being, Fitbit recommends Charge owners to keep the device dry, clean, and don’t fasten it too tightly against their wrists. And to update their device with the latest ROM that brings better accuracy along with few bug fixes.