Are MS bands unreliable junk?

[jcar302]

Before you guys get all defensive, i'm not a hater.
I've supported MS with purchases for years, but i'm really starting to regret getting the family into Microsoft bands.
My wife's band 1 just stop working, again. She's on #3 already, now it doesn't power on.
My mother in laws band 1 lasted like a week before it needed to be replaced
And my sister in laws band 2 made it about a month before tearing.

All were well taken care of.
None made it through the 1 year warranty period.

Not sure when the last time we had my wife's replaced (it wasn't over a year), but it was originally purchased not this last Christmas, the one before it.

I'm going to guess repairing her band is more expensive than a replacement.
Which leaves me in a tough spot.
I doubt if I bring it to the ms store they are just going to give me yet another one out of the warranty period/

I wonder if the GATT support will be added soon, so we could switch to a fitbit, since notifications are very important for us (I can get a hold of her at work because of it, if necessary).

I don't think it's unreasonable to expect 2 years from a MS band (for the record, none of the ones I listed are actually over a year old).

Just another reason why windows phone is bleeding users.
Maybe it's time I start thinking about switching everyone over to android (yes I have that much influence).
I was hoping to put off that decision until I see the "surface" phone, but i'm losing patience.

 

[anon(5326758)]

Junk? In a word, no. But I don't think general consumers are the target audience. They are aspirational devices, to demonstrate what can be done with MS services and to show off design.

Also the band 2 works with android and iOS so there's no connection with "windows phone ... bleeding users."

My band is fine but I get it replaced every time there's an issue. The exchange process is very simple. And they said in the store they will continue to replace bands whenever possible.

 

[vadim frunza]

I personally don't think they are junk but yes I do wish their products would last a bit longer (Band) mostly. Never had issues with phones or my xbox but my band ripped while driving. It was on my arm and it ripped and they said it was abuse. so yeah it kinda sucked. But I reglued it together (superglue) and works fine. I know your issues are different so not sure what can be done there. As far as switching to android... idk I like their phones but I hate how ****ty they get after a few months of use. I loved my apple products and ended up hating all my android. (Personal preference) obviously. We are in the same boat, ive got friends who love their androids and ive had nothing but bad luck and ive got friends who have had major ios issues. I for one love my windows/Microsoft products cause ive never had issues. But that doesn't mean others wont have issues. So to sum it up, Maybe youll have better luck with android, maybe not tho. I know this probably didn't help much but if it did

 

[jcar302]

Junk? In a word, no. But I don't think general consumers are the target audience. They are aspirational devices, to demonstrate what can be done with MS services and to show off design.

Also the band 2 works with android and iOS so there's no connection with "windows phone ... bleeding users."

My band is fine but I get it replaced every time there's an issue. The exchange process is very simple. And they said in the store they will continue to replace bands whenever possible.

The watch itself isn't why they are losing some users, it's that android and ios can connect to pretty much any wearable and receive notifications. From some reading I gather this is based on MS's lack of GATT support, not the device companies themselves.
So if you use windows phone and want notifications on a wearable, you much use the band, which just happens to be a POS.

I'm going to attempt to return my wife's that is broken, but somehow after 2 replacements already and an original purchase of 1.5 years old, I doubt they are going to do much.

I really think they should cram less crap in it and concentrate more on reliability.

As for not maintstream, now we are beta testing hardware for them?

 

[Laura Knotek]

Junk? In a word, no. But I don't think general consumers are the target audience. They are aspirational devices, to demonstrate what can be done with MS services and to show off design.

Also the band 2 works with android and iOS so there's no connection with "windows phone ... bleeding users."

My band is fine but I get it replaced every time there's an issue. The exchange process is very simple. And they said in the store they will continue to replace bands whenever possible.

I believe that the OP means that the Band is pretty much the only wearable that works completely with Windows Phone. If he used an Android phone he would have a big selection of wearables to choose from, and wouldn't be limited to the Band.

 

[anon(5326758)]

I believe that the OP means that the Band is pretty much the only wearable that works completely with Windows Phone. If he used an Android phone he would have a big selection of wearables to choose from, and wouldn't be limited to the Band.

Thanks, that makes sense. Is it really the only fitness band that collects notifications from Windows?

 

[Laura Knotek]

Thanks, that makes sense. Is it really the only fitness band that collects notifications from Windows?

The only other one I know of is the Vector. Quick look: Vector Smartwatch and the Lumia 950 | Windows Central

 

[anon(5326758)]

The watch itself isn't why they are losing some users, it's that android and ios can connect to pretty much any wearable and receive notifications. From some reading I gather this is based on MS's lack of GATT support, not the device companies themselves.
So if you use windows phone and want notifications on a wearable, you much use the band, which just happens to be a POS.

I'm going to attempt to return my wife's that is broken, but somehow after 2 replacements already and an original purchase of 1.5 years old, I doubt they are going to do much.

I really think they should cram less crap in it and concentrate more on reliability.

As for not maintstream, now we are beta testing hardware for them?

Microsoft bands are definitely limited production runs (especially compared to other platforms). Band 1 was supposed to be a market test but it proved to be far more successful than they dreamed, so they pushed forward with a bigger run of the Band 2. They are definitely not mainstream production numbers though. You can call that a beta test. But they take care of their customers like a company would take care of their testers, so I don't mind - I have had two replacements of the Band 2 since launch day (first was for a battery that wouldn't charge any more, second was for a heart rate monitor that stopped working). With both exchanges the techs didn't even spend any time troubleshooting - they said if it doesn't work it needs to be replaced.

I have both the Band and Band 2, and I can say the Band 2 is far more wearable and solid than the original Band - the fully curved design lessens the strain on the band next to the display, and the screen is better.

I hope GATT comes with the anniversary update - I didn't realize that notifications weren't possible on other devices.

 

[anon(5326758)]

The only other one I know of is the Vector. Quick look: Vector Smartwatch and the Lumia 950 | Windows Central

Thank you - the stainless steel Vector looks nice! And Amazon reviews seem to have a few satisfied Windows Phone customers.

I just asked my daughter and she said she doesn't get notifications on her fitbit. I'm tempted to put her on the insider builds to see if that changes things, but I don't want to play tech support with her phone any more than I have to.

 

[mikepalma]

Yes the Band 2 was junk

 

[mprebich]

Yes, and No.

My wife's Band is 1.5 years old and no problems. She has since bought the Band 2 and still okay after 1 month. The Band was passed down to our daughter and she is still using it.

On the other hand, I'm on my 3rd Band and it now has also proven faulty after just one month of use. In all three cases, the Band keeps turning itself off, regardless of battery charge level. I will go through the online/mail-in return process again, this time asking for a Band 2 as replacement. Worth a try. Each time they replaced it no questions asked, but still, this is ridiculous.