iPhone 4/iOS 4 bluetooth muffled on other end

I am now on my 3rd new iPhone 4.
I have tried a total of 3 different, brand new headsets with all 3 iPhones.
2 Motorola H17 and 1 Jawbone Noise Assassin.

All the models, all 3 phones ended up with the same result, people saying

"I can't understand you"
"You're so far away"
etc

I tried using the phone without the headset.

My "cheek" hungup on an overseas call yesterday.
My "Cheek" conferenced in a 3rd person into a call on its own
my "cheek" composed and sent a nonsense email to someone
my "cheek" put someone on hold

Beyond frustrated.

The only way I can use the phone is via speakerphone.

Just got off the phone with Apple support, I am returning my iPhone 4 on Friday to the Apple store I purchased it from. I have spent way too much time and headaches trying to get my Bluetooth working properly. And I agree with a lot of the posts here that the iPhone 4 has major problems. Like the previous post I even tried to just use it as a phone but just like his experience my cheeks kept hanging up or doing crazy things while I was talking. I swapped the phone out twice already and now I can't even use the cheap white headphones that came with the phone because the mic is not working on it so the people can't hear me at all. It doesn't matter at this point whether it's software or hardware it's a pain in the butt. I suspect it's both. And Steve Jobb's comments and attitude are just plain arrogant so I am voting with the only power we consumers have don't buy and return if you don't like. Well I don't like and I am returning..
Congratulations Apple. My faith is lost in you. I know things happen but your response and handling of this issue is one of the worst debacles I have ever Seen. Coming from a company I did have high faith and trust in.
My time is limited on when I can return it. And I'm not going to be stuck with something I can't use. Good luck to all of you on here and I hope they find the problem eventually.

Message was edited by: tfraley1

Go to settings and switch off your wifi when talking using your bluetooth.

I am having the same problem. Muffled voice. Car is at dealership but it appears that it is the phone not the Blu Logic handsfree. Apple has really screwed up!

Switching off the wifi makes no difference for me

I called Apple support to get an update on when this issue was due to be fixed.

- They have no bug assoicated with this issue
- They do not read this discussion board.
- They are not aware of it being an issue
- They are not working on a fix

I found out that I can return my "undamaged" device to a Apple Store for full refund.

I suggest that everyone associated with this thread to stop trying to fix it themselves. It's broken! Call Apple.

I'm done... I cannot live without bluetooth. I'm going to return mine, and stop purchasing iPhones for my company. It's sad to see where this is going. People love their iPhones.

The frustrating part is their feigning ignorance of this issue and continuing to say they haven't heard about this issue even after so many people in this thread calling them up. The muffled voice issue seems to be sporadic. Difficult to try and isolate the causes for it; sometimes it seems to work well and at other times callers on the other end complain of muffled voice or hearing their own voice echoing. Have an appointment at the so called Genius Bar tonight. Will try and explain to the person about the magnitude of this issue and what Apple's take on this is. I really love this phone if not for this big headache. It's startling how such a big corporation blatantly refuses to acknowledge the complaints being raised by customers, leave alone working on fixes for them. All I ask for is an acknowledgement that they are looking into the problem instead of "we never heard of it, you could get a replacement phone".

Same issue as others described. I had an iphone 3g two years with Plantronic bluetooth headset. Never had any problems. **** I could walk all over my house leaving iphone in bedroom and maintain connection. Since upgrading to Iphone4 I get callers telling me I sound like a robot or muffled. My phone is sitting down not even holding it with Wifi off. Its to the point they hang up on me its so bad. I have to say within 5 to 10 feet or bluetooth will drop. I use bluetooth for all my communications.This issue needs to be address or Android here I come!!!

I would recommend that everyone with bluetooth problems would take a few minutes to call Applecare and let them know the problem you are having.

Keep in mind that a main source of data Steve Jobs used to determine if there was a problem with the attenna was the number of calls into Apple Support--which was only .55 percent.

I called in and after talking with the rep I asked to speak with the senior admin rep who wasn't personally aware of the problem but did speak to other reps who were aware and she is "escalating" the problem up to the senior Appleheads. She noted it seems to be a relatively small problem affecting some users. She plans to send me out a new (not refurb) phone which, being newer, "will be different" than the current phone and won't have the bluetooth problem. Hence, it sounds like the newer IPhone 4's have been retooled to fix the attenna/bluetooth problems. But who really knows what to believe...

Message was edited by: MehPhd

For what its worth, I have gone through 3 brand new phones. My newest is new as of 2 days ago (July 20). Still have the problem...

@hoo

It's very probable that apple's gathering the faulty phones for debugging purposes. Of course a new phone won't change anything as apple never announced the bug, therefore a patch.

@Onutz - agreed. Senior tech initially said regarding the proximity sensor they were trying to get them back to engineer's hands for analysis.

In better news, finally, press coverage of the BT issue from Apple Insider:

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/07/22/usersreport_bluetooth_connectivity_quality_issues_with_ios4.html



Users report Bluetooth connectivity, quality issues with iOS 4

By AppleInsider Staff
Published: 03:30 PM EST

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* Some iPhone 4 launch units lose signal when...
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Users of iOS 4 on both the iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS say their handset has constantly dropped wireless Bluetooth connections with both headsets and in-car systems.

Numerous users contacted AppleInsider to say that they have experienced a number of problems specific to iOS 4 with Bluetooth connectivity. A number of people who upgraded their iPhone 3GS found that their phone's Bluetooth became problematic, even though it worked fine before the iOS 4 update. And others who bought a new iPhone 4 have encountered some of the same issues.

"Nearly every time I'm in my car the iPhone disconnects from the built-in Bluetooth system," one reader with an iPhone 4 wrote. "This never, ever happened with my 3G phone. I have a case number with AppleCare and they refuse to acknowledge the problem or replace the phone, even after having the problem persist after downloading a fresh copy of IOS 4, reinstalling the software and setting the phone up bare with no other apps. Could this be another antenna problem?"

In numerous threads on the official Apple Discussions forums, users have shared similar problems (1, 2, 3, 4). Those threads have only grown since iOS 4 and the iPhone 4 were released in late June.

Users have said that their Bluetooth connections will sporadically drop after the two devices are successfully paired. Others can connect, but are met with a message that says "no media found" when trying to play music. And some said they have experienced muffled voices when placing a call over Bluetooth.

Some users on the forums noted that the recent iOS 4.0.1 update did not fix the Bluetooth issues. The minor update featured a cosmetic fix that changed how the iPhone reports bars of signal strength.

The Bluetooth pairing issues are said to exist across a range of devices, including vehicles from Mercedes-Benz and BMW, car stereos from Pioneer and Alpine, and headsets from Motorola and Jawbone.

Some said they have fixed the problem by resetting the phone's settings. This can be done by launching the Settings application, choosing General, Reset, and Reset All Settings. Interestingly, the same fix was said to work for some who experienced issues with the proximity sensor on the iPhone 4. Apple has said it is working on a software fix for the proximity sensor problems with the iPhone 4, but has made no mention of the reported Bluetooth problems.

Call head Tech. also e-mail him... What else can we do? He has not responded back to me?


I am very sad, and now at this point upset that you have failed to return my prior e-mail and phone calls.
You are well aware of the Bluetooth problem with the iPhone 4 or iOS4!
If you would kindly refer to the Apple Forum on Bluetooth sound you would see I am not alone.

Apple Discussion-Bluetooth Muffled on other end: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2481487&start=30&tstart=0

This problem will not just go away.

All our posts and attempts to get this problem fixed is now being forwarded to folks like Channel 2 news
in Los Angeles and others.

What is it going to take for you folks at Apple to acknowledge the problem and fix it?



<Edited by Host>

Yes! Same problem sound like im far away or taking on the phone in bed with pillows in my mouth. There is a problem. I used a jawbone2, 975 Plantronics, and blue ant. There is no way all 3 will sound muffled. I called support they had me turn on/off my bluetooth. He was pushing the issue that it was my headsets, and never heard of this problem, he said. I told him to check the discussions on site. Going to apple store tomorrow. see what they say.

I am having the same issues with both the Plantronics Voyager Pro and the Voyager 925.
Apple, please fix this.

Message was edited by: upsdoc