Bluetooth audio stuttering issues on my iPhone 16e

rachel422 wrote:

Hi Jürgen. The issue was occurring also when playing spotify on my Bose bluetooth speaker. The idea of returning the phone seems like a hassle, and I decided to try an extreme experiment as a last resort before returning it. I transferred everything back to my old phone and erased the 16e completely. Then I repeated the process of transferring everything from my old phone to the 16e. It updated automatically to 18.4 during the transfer. This times, I am not experiencing the stuttering and skipping – so far. I have only tested about 20 minutes on each device (car and home speaker). I am hoping this is the end of my troubles. Thanks for your input!

If it updated to iOS 18.4 during the transfer, that means it was not previously on iOS 18.4. Once it is updated to iOS 18.4, you cannot go back to a previous version, even if you erase your phone. It was iOS 18.4 that fixed the stuttering issue.

AllensFarm2 wrote:

iPhone 16e Bluetooth Stuttering.

This is definitely an Apple problem. My iPhone 12 never had any Bluetooth issues and looking at others with exactly the same problem I hope Apple is doing something about it??

Did you update to iOS 18.4?

For the users here that had the Bluetooth stuttering problem, after the update the issue was fixed.

iPhone 16 having exact same issue, intermittent Bluetooth stuttering on various headphones due to Apple Watch being connected simultaneously. Didn’t start happening until iOS 18.2 I think.

Yes, I have the same problem, too. I found a couple of reddit threads with people experiencing the same issue. In my case it appears that the stuttering is related to having another bluetooth connection (an Oura smart ring). If I close the Oura app, so it's not running in the background, the audio appears to work OK, but it's early days and I'm still investigating. Do you have multiple bluetooth connections other than the headphones? I hope it's not a hardware issue with the phone.

My iPhone SE 2020 didn't have the same problem.

Update:

I called Apple Support and of course, none of the proposed solutions fixed it. They said “it is not a known issue” when clearly we are all experiencing it. I was told to take my phone back to the store I bought it from and request a refund / exchange for a new device.

This is clearly either a software issue or hardware design issue. Swapping the phone is not going to change anything but I basically have no other option but to do this and then contact Apple support again if it keeps happening.

I wish I had no bought this phone, it is clearly not ready for release if it has these basic connectivity issues.

Stuttering on multiple audio devices in close proximity with full batteries. None of the standard fixes (rebooting, reconnecting etc) work.

Problem is greatly alleviated if I disconnect my Garmin Fenix 5X sports watch. In order to disconnect that, though, I have to “Forget device” as there is no simple “disconnect device” option for the Garmin.

I think maybe the Garmin uses an older, or different, Bluetooth protocol and it’s screwing up the audio devices?

Super annoying and disappointing. Surprised it wasn’t caught before release!!!! Hopefully an update can fix this.

iOS 18.4 solved that issue on my 16e. Thanks Apple Support! Great troubleshooting!

Same problem here. Bluetooth only stops stuttering when I disconnect my Oura Ring.

I just updated to iOS 18.4 which was released today (March 31). Seems to have fixed the issue.

It is a software issue. Check the iOS version. 18.4 was released very recently, which fixes the issue. All it needs is a software update.

Over on reddit others have confirmed that it's related to having multiple bluetooth connections (e.g. fitness tracker + headphones) at the same time. Moderators, can you escalate this to Apple please?

Same here. 13 mini works with multiple Bluetooth connections simultaneously. Shut off connection to my Fitbit. Connected to the iRV system in my trailer with no issues playing Apple music then reconnected my Fitbit. Seems to be OK until the Fitbit app connects to the Fitbit. One Bluetooth connection at a time basically. Apple fix this issue. On a side note, I read that pretty much all the iPhone 16, all models, are having Bluetooth connectivity issues.

I've just been in contact with Apple support I'm using the IOS 18.3.2 software and having the same issue as you guys iPhone 16e audio stuttering. Apple advisor said the following:

Thank you for bringing this to our attention also. I want you to know that Apple is aware of this situation and we're working hand-to-hand with our developers to fix this stuttering audio as soon as possible. We know that this kind of experience isn't the one that we want for you, specially with new Apple devices, we apologize in advance for any inconvenience you might have encountered when trying to play music

I join to the issue experiencers... Sent the complaint as well.

No need to pair or connect anything else(issue is present regardless smart devices or anything else around). Just the AirPods 4 ANC(latest fw) connected to 16e... every few minutes: jumps/skips/stutters/cut-ins-outs/glitches/strange noise during off/online playback with nothing else polluting the signal environment. Ruins the high fidelity experience under the ground.

Pairing AirPods with MBP? No problem. Works as a dream. Pairing other Bluetooth speakers to 16e? No glitch at all, thank you. Only these two hate each other so much. Probably a SW bug... that they better fix soon in 18.4 and the next AirPods 4 fw. But still worrying they won't. Even though this costed hella lots of money.

same here - Bluetooth only stops stuttering when I disconnect my Oura Ring. Apple need to sort this - clearly there is a bug. I contacted support and they ran diagnostics and said everything was fine then sent a standard message sating Engineers were working on resolving issues and to keep an eye on forums etc...