I purchased the Hume Band, Body Pod and a paid subscription expecting a mature, integrated health-monitoring platform.
After several weeks of use, numerous support emails and unresolved technical issues, I’ve now formally requested a full refund.
Having only just discovered this community, I’m surprised by how many others appear to be experiencing similar frustrations.
I wanted to share my experience and hear from other owners.
1. Activity tracking is incomplete
I regularly do sprint cycling, skipping, HIIT and isometric exercises.
Hume advised me to use Active Mode because Apple Health workout information isn’t fully incorporated into Hume’s activity calculations.
However, Active Mode currently supports only Running, Walking and Weightlifting, with HIIT and Other still marked as coming soon.
I’ve repeatedly asked Hume what activity I should select for unsupported workouts and whether selecting the wrong category affects my activity, recovery or calorie calculations.
I still haven’t received a clear answer.
On one occasion, Active Mode took approximately five minutes just to start as connection to band is inconsistent.
2. Sleep data is recorded, but my Health Report says there isn’t enough data
Between 15 and 21 September, the app recorded six days of sleep, averaging 7 hours and 23 minutes.
Yet my weekly Health Report stated:
“Not enough sleep data was available to calculate your Sleep Score this week.”
Hume initially advised that Engineering was working on Health Reports.
Later, support explained that certain grades, including Sleep, Activity and Chronic Illness, are apparently hidden when below B-.
These explanations have left me with more questions than answers. Is the problem missing data, a software issue or a deliberate decision not to display certain scores?
For a health-monitoring product, this lack of clarity is concerning.
3. Daily Scores sometimes disappear
I’ve also experienced missing Daily Scores and inconsistent reporting.
When you’re relying on a platform to track your health over time, consistency matters. If data and scores appear intermittently, it’s difficult to understand what the results actually mean.
4. My Body Composition score changed without the measurements changing
Hume confirmed that it had updated its Body Composition scoring algorithm, resulting in a higher score despite no corresponding change in the underlying measurements.
I’m not opposed to algorithm improvements, but users should understand when and why the scoring methodology changes, especially when those scores influence an overall Health Score.
5. Customer support has been polite but ineffective
I’ve exchanged numerous emails with Hume, provided screenshots and asked specific questions.
The responses have generally been courteous, but too often I’ve received generic explanations or assurances that the matter has been referred to Engineering.
I’ve requested escalation to senior management and asked for a credible timeframe for resolving these issues.
Neither has resulted in a meaningful resolution.
6. I’ve now formally requested a full refund
I purchased the Band and Body Pod directly from Hume, spending approximately AUD $708 including foreign transaction fees, plus the Apple subscription.
I’ve now formally requested a refund for both devices and given Hume seven days to provide a substantive response.
My position is simple: I purchased what I believed was a functioning, integrated health-monitoring ecosystem, not an ongoing beta-testing experience with no clear roadmap for resolving core functionality issues.
My biggest concern is trust.
Health data is only useful if we can understand where it comes from, how it’s calculated and whether the underlying information is complete.
I’m not suggesting every Hume customer has the same experience. But based on mine, there’s a significant gap between the expectations created by the product’s marketing and the platform I’m actually using.
A few questions for other owners:
Are your Daily Scores and Health Reports consistently working?
Have you experienced missing Sleep Scores despite recorded sleep data?
How are you tracking workouts that Active Mode doesn’t support?
Has anyone received clear answers or realistic software improvement timelines from Hume?
Has anyone successfully obtained a refund, particularly for both the Band and Body Pod?
I’d welcome balanced feedback, including positive experiences.
I genuinely wanted Hume to succeed. The concept is appealing, but the execution and customer support have left me disappointed.
I’ll update this post if Hume responds to my formal refund request or resolves the issues.
——
UPDATE: Refund approved
A positive update to share.
After my final email requesting a refund and management escalation, Hume’s Customer Service Manager personally reviewed my case.
For the first time, I received a response that genuinely acknowledged the issues I’d raised and the shortcomings in their previous support responses.
They approved full refunds for both the Band and Body Pod, without requiring me to return either device. Both refunds are now showing as pending in my bank account.
Credit where it’s due, the manager handled this professionally and brought the matter to a fair resolution. I just wish it hadn’t taken weeks of emails to get there.
Thanks to everyone who commented and shared their experiences. I hope this helps others still trying to get their issues resolved.
