Troubleshooting

If Charge 5 isn't working properly, see our troubleshooting steps below.

Heart-rate signal missing

Charge 5 continuously tracks your heart rate while you're exercising and throughout the day. If the heart-rate sensor on your tracker has difficulty detecting a signal, dashed lines appear.

Exercise screen with no tracked heart rate

If your tracker doesn't detect a heart-rate signal, first make sure heart-rate tracking is turned on in the Settings app on your tracker. Next, make sure you're wearing your tracker correctly, either by moving it higher or lower on your wrist or by tightening or loosening the band. Charge 5 should be in contact with your skin. After holding your arm still and straight for a short time, you should see your heart rate again.

For more information, see the related help article.

GPS signal missing

Environmental factors including tall buildings, dense forest, steep hills, and thick cloud cover can interfere with your tracker's ability to connect to GPS satellites. If your tracker is searching for a GPS signal during an exercise, you’ll see “ GPS connecting ” appear at the top of the screen. If Charge 5 can't connect to a GPS satellite, the tracker stops trying to connect until the next time you start a GPS exercise.

Exercise screen with GPS connecting

For best results, wait for Charge 5 to find the signal before you start your workout.

If you still have trouble connecting to GPS or notice that your distance traveled seems inaccurate, try the following tips to allow your device to connect to GPS satellites:

  • Follow the recommendations for wearing your device for exercise. For more information, see Wear Charge 5.
  • Try loosening the band 1 notch.
  • Make sure your device doesn't touch your wrist bone.
  • Avoid bending your wrist backwards.
  • To more quickly establish a GPS connection, point your device toward open sky (clear of heavy tree coverage and away from tall buildings).
  • Establish a GPS connection before beginning your exercise.
  • Hold your arm parallel to your body near your head and at least 2 inches away.

Person with a tracker on his wrist, holding the tracker in front of his chest

For more information, see the related help article.

Other issues

If you experience any of the following issues, restart your tracker:

  • Won't sync
  • Won't respond to taps or swipes
  • Won't track steps or other data
  • Won't show notifications

For instructions, see Restart Charge 5.