Fitbit owners told to stop wearing Ionic smartwatches as they could overheat and burn

Owners of Fitbit’s Ionic smartwatches have been told to stop wearing them in fear they could overheat and cause burns.

More than 100 people have reported being burnt by the watch after its battery overheated, said the US Consumer Product Safety Commission in its announcement.

As such, users wore told to “immediately stop using the recalled Ionic smartwatches” and contact Fitbit for a refund.

Affected users will send back their device for a refund of $299, and the company will also give them a 40 per cent discount for a new purchase.

The recall only applies to the Ionic model, and not other Fitbit smartwatches. That watch was sold in a range of colours – including a special edition that has Adidas branding – and they include the “FB503” model number on the back of the watch.

The watches were sold between September 2017 and December 2021, it said, and Fitbit stopped production of the affected model in 2020.

In all, there have been 115 reports to Fitbit of the battery overheating in the US, and another 59 reports in the rest of the world. There have been almost 120 reports of burn injuries from that overheating, with some sustaining third-degree burns.

Fitbit’s website has a section devoted to the recall, which includes instructions for sending back the watches. It also includes a Q&A section that addresses concerns users might have.

That includes the warning that the smartwatches should be taken off and no longer used, even if they appear to be working normally. It also stresses that the problem has only been identified in the Ionic smartwatch.