I am not getting Siri notifications for Apple exercise activities App

Hi jsmyth92, I don't believe that the issue relates to >>>the watch face is open<<< because the watch face is always open when an activity has been selected and is in progress. When I was receiving fitness activity notification on my walks, the watch face was open, and Siri was announcing each mile split, time of that split, and whenever a ring was closed. The notifications stopped immediately after the update to iOS 15.2, and the firmware updates to both the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max. Try contacting Apple support again, tell them that another person has posted the same exact issue on Apple, and was told that this is a "KNOWN ISSUE" and that many others have also reported it, and that it has been reported to Apple engineers to resolve. If my case # is removed from this post for privacy reasons, then just refer Apply Support to these posting threads at https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253475658. Also tell them that Scott, the Apple Support person who is helping me, has encouraged that I urge others to report this issue so that Apple can look for any individual variations. I was told that this is most likely a result of the iOS 15.2 recent update, and that an iOS further update is needed to fix this issue. Hope this help. Thank you so much for keeping me updated. Good to hear from you. Cheers, Joel

[Personal Information Edited by Moderator]

I have not seen or received any further responses from Apple. As a workaround, I installed the Runkeeper App and run it simultaneously together with Apple's 3-ring Activity / Exercise App. Runkeeper users can specify frequency for notifications by time and distance.

There is also a separate and even more annoying issue in which bluetooth streaming of content, such as music, audiobooks, etc., randomly pauses for a few seconds, multiple times per hour. Have you also encountered it?

Here are links to two other threads dealing with these issues on this Apple community board:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253440262

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/252866714

I also sent an email directly to Apple CEO Tim Cook, as shown in the attached window below:

I have been impacted and very much disappointed and annoyed by both of these issues, to which Apple is apparently tone deaf. I think it would help greatly if more Apple users who have encountered these same issues would (1) open Apple Support tickets, (2) send Mr. Cook a polite personal email so that his staff could see the extent of this issue, and (3) call their local Apple Store with complaints of dissatisfaction.

I suggest that we become more proactive and vocal because of the impact of these issues on both functionality and enjoyment of such premium products.

I always thought that Apple was a customer centered, responsive company which acted quickly and ethically when problems arose. That's why I was willing to pay a premium for what I thought was a quality product that would provide trouble free, enjoyable performance.

Just like many other Apple users who have reported these same exact issues, my patience is almost completely gone, and I have considered returning all of my Apple purchases - Apple 6 watch, iPhone 12 Pro Max, AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, and asking for a full refund if these problems are not fixed very soon.

Thanks for your message, and I hope this helps.

[Email Edited by Moderator]

Dear jsmyth92 and Others,

Updating progress on this issue, I have had several contacts, calls, & messages, from Apple Support. The lack of Fitness / Exercise App notifications from Apple Watch to AirPods Pro & Max have been reported by many others, and Apple engineers are investigating. I just got off the phone with Scott from Apple Support, who has been assigned to my case. He helped me to download and install Apple data tracking Apps on both my Apple Watch and iPhone 12 Pro Max. After finishing a 75-minute walking activity, and taking watch screen shots at each mile, I uploaded these images, and Scott called me again to help me to upload the data from these two devices. He also booked a follow-up call on Sunday, 26 December, and suggested that I post this information to others, urging that they also contact Apple Support, so that the full scope of this issue, and any individual variances can be identified and analyzed. This will help to speed up the process of either a work-around, or of releasing an iOS update to fix this issue.

I did not receive any notifications from Siri on my AirPods Max of the following two mile times, or of ring closures.

I hope this helps, and encourages others in this community to reach out to Apple Support, both for themselves, and as a service to others.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.

Cheers,

Joel

Update to this post, as of Sunday, Dec 19, 2021:

Trying to further identify this issue, I tried wearing my AirPodsPro to determine if they could receive walking activity updates from the Apple Exercise Activity App. I also began walking activities without either AirPods Pro or AirPods Max to determine if Siri was still announcing these notifications on my Apple Watch.

I could hear Siri announce these exercise App notifications on my Apple watch, when I removed my AirPods Pro and AirPods Max. I could also hear other notifications when wearing my AirPodsPro, such as from News Break, CBC News, New York Times, CNN, and Instagram, but I do not receive any notification when wearing my AirPods Max. When wearing these two devices, each are connected to both my iPhone and Apple Watch.

Has anyone else experienced a similar issue?

Does it appear that this issue is related to the recent iOS and firmware updates?

Thank you again for any advice or suggestions.

Thank you for your post. This is exactly the same problem which I have reported. Please keep me updated on you Fitness App notification issues. I will also post any changes or new information here. Also, I would encourage you to also contact Apple Support about this issue to inform them to build a pattern that will indicate iOS or firmware update issues, rather than user related errors. Finally, please also post about this on other Apple sites, such as Mac World, etc. Happy Holidays and thanks again. Cheers, Joel

So, I have just spoken again with Scott, the Apple Advisor handling my issue. He told me that he is also handling cases from about 3 other Apple users on this exact same matter. He submitted my 75-minute tracking data to Apple engineers late on Friday, 24 December, but has not yet heard back from them. He expects to get a response later this week and will then get back to me. Scott also confirmed that when he begins a walking or other workout on his own Apple watch, that workout screen remains open, and he would hear Siri notifications on his AirPods, but he hasn't used the activity exercise App since the update to iOS 15.2, but will do so on Monday at the gym to see if he can hear notifications on his Pods. Also, as I observed, when the Apple Watch crown is pressed during a workout, the watch reverts to the main watch face screen for a few seconds, but then defaults back to the activity screen. Like myself, Scott did not understand the term "when the watch face is open" , because as I previously commented, when an activity begins, the watch face is always open. I hope this helps you, jsmyth92. Have a great week, and please keep in touch. Cheers, Joel

I was able to duplicate what you described wearing my AirPods Max. This is what I did: (1) I put on my AirPods Max, (2) I swiped up on the main watch screen to Bluetooth, and connected my watch to AirPods Max Noise Control to Noise Cancellation checked, (3) I said "Hey Siri, Start 5 minute indoor walk on Activities App NOW", (4) I started walking WITHOUT listening to an audiobook narration on the Overdrive App, (5) I heard Siri on my AirPods Max announce the half-way point, after 2-minutes and 30-seconds, and then announce that I had finished at 5-minutes. But, when I repeated this same procedure, except that I then started listening to an audio book, Katie Couric narrating her autobiography, "Going There", and told Siri "start my 5-minute indoor walk now", the half-way point and 5-minute walk ended were not AUDIBLE on my AirPods Max, they did not interrupt the audiobook, as happened BEFORE the update to iOS 15.2 and the accompanying firmware updates of the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max. I always listen to audio books or music sometimes on my long outdoor walks of 2 to 5 hours. That's what keeps me going without noticing fatigue or pains, and without having to constantly look at my watch to see my progress. If I hear that a lap is too slow, I pick up my pace, to under 20-minutes per mile lap. Other Apps, such as Instagram, FB Messenger, CBC, NBC, NY Times, etc. all interrupt and pause the audio book or music, announce their content, and then the audio book and music continues. That's how it has always been with the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max, except after the recent iOS and firmware updates. I appreciate that you discovered this new information, which I could also replicate, but it does not solve the issue caused by the recent iOS and firmware updates. That's why I urged you to ALSO open a working support file to help all other Apple users who have reported this issue. The more reports, the faster the issue will be fixed for everyone. Thank you again. Cheers, Joel

Hi Rudyboy 2 and others on this thread,

Well good news and no news.

I think my frustrations may be over. On Monday, 14 March 2022 I installed iOS 15.4 update on my iPhone 12 Pro Max and update WatchOS 8.5 on my Apple 6 watch. Early this morning, wearing my AirPods Pro Max, I played an audiobook on the Overdrive App, and began a 65 minute fast walk on a route that for the past 3-months, since 15 Dec 2021, had resulted in at least 15 or more audio interruptions during the same time and route, while playing a similar audio book on the same app.

There were no pause interruptions in the bluetooth audio stream today. None. The playback was seamless, as it had been previous to when I first noticed and reported this issue to Apple Support last December, after updating to iOS 15.1.

Please let me know if any of you can also confirm that this issue has been solved by iOS 15.4 update if you also had the media pause issue.

I am not at all pleased that Apple took 90 days to resolve such a high impact matter which affected all media playback and product enjoyment, if indeed, it has actually been resolved for others as well.

In addition, the other issue I reported to Apple Support, and which still has an open ticket, still occurs when using the Apple Exercise App, the 3-ring activity app that is one of the Apple default Apps in every iPhone. Siri has stopped announcing mile lap times, total distances, and activity speeds from the Apple Watch if other media is playing.

This second issue, apparently doesn't effect all Apple product users. It also started with the update to iOS 15.1, and of course, is being discussed here.

A workaround for it is to use the third party free version Runkeeper App instead of the Apple Exercise App, or run both Apps together. The Runkeeper App does announce laps times, distances, etc.

I hope this constant media pausing works for everyone, and that this other very troubling issue may also be soon resolved.

With fingers crossed, Cheers to all.