can not connect bluetooth iPhone to macbook pro

Spent hours trying all the BlueTooth tricks such as deleting BT .plist file, resetting PRAM and SMC.

Tried many times over to no avail. Then realised that iPad was connecting so realised problem is with iPhone 5 not MacBook.

Searched for iPhone BT issues and found this string. No help other than confirming iPhone does not work (other than for me unneeded hot spot tethering) with MacBook.

At least I will not waste any more time.

My old Nokia phone from years back had BT which worked for transferring files from phone to phone and to PC - I thought I had made a wise move moving from the latter two platforms to Apple. I am becoming more and more unhappy with Apple's incompetence in basic technology - very good at producing dynamic launch events with often obscure innovations at the expense of basics.

mmabood wrote:

basically you are saying that I pay for something that is not going to work.

shame on apple

No, shame on you for not doing due diligence.

The iPhone also will not do my grocery shopping nor will it babysit my children. For shame!

Finchale wrote:

I am becoming more and more unhappy with Apple's incompetence in basic technology

Not incompetence at all.

Just the opposite actually.

I too had the bluetooth connection issue with iPhone 6 Plus. I needed the feature that used to work because my phone speaker went inoperative and I wanted to use my MacBook Air El Capitan 10.11.1 for it's speaker phone capability. I am sure that it used to work.

After doing some reading I tried the tethering and that is the only way the pairing would work.

Sorry to say that this useful feature of bluetooth speaker phone on the computer is now inoperative.

Continuity, the feature that allows you to make and receive calls from your computer doesn't require BlueTooth pairing. It does require that both devices have BT turned on and that both are on the same WiFi network.

See this article for help:

Use Continuity to connect your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Mac - Apple Support