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Fix for iPhone 5 Bluetooth audio loss / disconnect?

I recently upgraded from an iPhone 4s to an iPhone 5. I have a Motorola HX550 Bluetooth Headset which worked flawlessly with the iPhone 4s. However, since upgrading to the iPhone 5, I frequently lose audio when in the middle of a call. I am not certain whether it is a full disconnect or just an audio loss. The person on the other end reports still being able to hear me, however, I suppose they could hear me speaking over another source even if bluetooth disconnected. The loss of audio is always preceded by a quick shrill noise, so I can easily tell when it happens. All I have to do to fix the problem is to select Audio Source on the call screen, temporarily switch audio back to the iPhone, and then switch back to the headset, and then it starts working again.


Is is important to note that I am not the only one experiencing this issue:


This is a link to someone using the Motorola H19txt headset experiencing the same issue

https://forums.motorola.com/posts/94ac15ad7c


If you go to the Plantronics website and look at the "Ratings and Reviews" on the Voyager Legend you will see the same issue reported:


http://www.plantronics.com/us/product/voyager-legend (next paragraph is taken from the review since there is no direct link to the review.


Really nice Headset unless you own an Iphone 5. I own several Plantronics headsets and have always loved the quality/ performance. This headset seems not to be compatible with the new Iphone 5. In the middle of a conversation it will lose all incoming audio. This leaves you trying to switch audio sources really fast in order not to lose your phone call. Ive tried 3 legend headsets and they all do the same thing. Hopefully this gets fixed soon because the headset is really nice


Since this issue appears to affect multiple headsets from multiple vendors, I think it is fair to conclude that it is an issue with the iPhone5 bluetooth itself.


I am posting this as a new discussion as I don't see any other posts specific to this iPhone 5 Bluetooth issue. I would have reported this as a problem to Apple, but don't seem to be able to find a way to do this on the web. Hopefully they are already aware, but if not, maybe they will see i here.


If anyone else has experienced this issue, or has recommendations on how to prevent this from happening, I would appreciate your feedback / additions to this post.

iPhone 5, iOS 6

Posted on Oct 13, 2012 8:40 AM

Reply
18 replies

Oct 17, 2012 7:00 AM in response to prmiller

I am having the exact same issue with the Motorola Elite Sliver and the iPhone 5. This headest worked flawlessly with my iPhone 4S and is now unuseable due to this issue. I went to my local Apple store and described the issue to a Genius, who naturally, told me they had not heard of this problem and offered to swap my phone for a new one, which of course has the same problem.


The Genius also suggeste dtha tthe isseu was with the headset, and that I should contact Motorola for a firmware update.

Nov 2, 2012 5:03 PM in response to prmiller

Hello, yes I am having the same problem too. I purchased the Motorola HX550 for my new iPhone 5. I thought it was a problem with Motorola, so I contacted them and they said they have no idea of what is going on and they said it was either the headset, or the phone. They aren't sure. But they would be sure to tag the report in case anybody else is having the same problem..

So I returned my Motorola headset for an exact replacement, and that headset is doing exactly the same thing as described above as we'll. Sometimes when mine loses audio, it makes a loud shriek sound in the sound continues sustained, very annoying!

Come on Apple, let's get this fixed! This issue is happening with a lot of other bluetooth units as well.

Nov 27, 2012 7:05 PM in response to prmiller

Yes, I am having similar problems with the iPhone 5 paired to my HX550. I have used the HX550 for close to a year paired to my old iPhone 4 and it worked perfectly. However, after my recent upgrade to iPhone 5 and iOS6 and then iOS6.01, the call interuptions as described above started to happen. This is a real annoyance and a safety hazard particularly when I use the headset and phone while driving. I suddenly lose audio and had to fumble around to reactivate audio through phone or speaker. I had a few close calls already and Apple should FIX this problem with some urgency!!! With the latest management shakeup, I think they have more to fix than this problem and the loyal fans of Apple will have to suffer longer with all these glitches which should not happen in the first place. Looks like Apple is beginning to unfix lots of features on their iPhones like Maps and now bluetooth. WHAT'S NEXT??

Dec 5, 2012 6:46 PM in response to prmiller

Funny...I called Apple Tech Support recently and they have never heard of this problem. How convenient! Apple's policy: We're to big to be responsible for the small stuff. The bad news...it's all small stuff. All of these products complained about on your disparate Community Forum discussions work with Android and other brands. It is your problem, Apple. Fix it.

Dec 7, 2012 9:43 AM in response to prmiller

My google search hit upon this thread. I've got a Motorola H19txt headset and the iPhone 5 with IOS 6.1. I also experience the dropped audio source problem described here. The problem seems to manifest on the first call after powering up and connecting the bluetooth headset. This isn't initial pairing, this is recognition of an already paired headset. There will be a short electrinic chirp and there will no longer be an audio source selected out of the three shown on the phone (headset, iphone, speaker). I'll select speaker, wait to hear audio, then select the headset. Audio then seems to remain operational for the duration of the call.


I have also experienced the case where the headset begins to emit a continuous schriek. This is also worked around by changing audio source to speaker, waiting to hear normal audio, and then changing back to the headset. I've never had a case where the schriek appears more than once during a call. I have only had the problem with the schriek two or three times. The problem with the dropped audio source, when using the headset, can be reproduced every time the headset is initially powered up and the connection established to the iPhone 5.


Over the last day, I've left the Motorola H19txt continuously connected to the phone. I placed a call this morning and did not have the audio source drop problem. I am continuing to experiment, but I'm going to see if the audio source drop can be isolated to the first call placed after the initial bluetooth connection is established.


Cheers,

woj

May 9, 2013 1:36 PM in response to prmiller

Having the same issue with an h19txt. I had not seen this thread and had bought another h19txt thinking it was the headset... Wrong, as the new one now does close to the same thing. But instead of a chirp and silence, I get the feedback noise from **** until I cycle the audio from the headset to the phone back to the headset. Seeing as how this is the phone and not the headset by experimentation a fix needs to be provided ASAP. This is a major issue as I use the phone for work constantly and I'll have to seek another phone maker if this keeps up.

May 9, 2013 6:10 PM in response to prmiller

Hello,


An update since I posted in December 2012 about the problem.


I've since moved on from using the Motorola BlueTooth headsets with my iPhone 5.


I'm running IOS 6.1.3.


I've got a Jabra EASYGO that does not have the screech or the audio source drop outs like the Motorola. I've also got a Jabra Clipper that does not experience the screech or the audio source drop outs.


I mostly use the Bose Series 2 Bluetooth headset now as the audio quality is the best I've heard. And what's more, there is no annoying screech or audio source drop outs.


As much as I was reluctant to believe it before, I'm leaning towards this being a Motorola / iPhone combination problem. The problem could still be Apple's, but I've only ever experienced the issue with Motorola Bluetooth. I don't know whether the issue might be related to Bluetooth 3.0 which the H19txt is designed to vs. Bluetooth 2.0 which the other products are designed. Two other vendors do not exhibit the problem. A shame since the H19txt was comfortable and had the features, but the audio source loss is terminal from my point of view.


Good luck on your own adventures.

Cheers,

woj

Jul 11, 2013 9:41 PM in response to prmiller

I upgraded to an iPhone 5 last year, and since that time I have had the audio drop out problem at intermittent but bothersome rates. Interestingly, the audio drop occurs only with some Bluetooth headsets, and never with others. The headsets that have the problem are all over the head devices with strong noise suppression and very long battery life. The problem started with the Parrott XT250+, 20 hours talk time and fantastic noise suppression.


I then purchased the RK400 RoadKing, it has 30 hours talk time, and is a little lighter and less geeky looking.


Also superb, but it cuts out more often than the BlueParrot.


However, I have a Bose in ear Bluetooth which never loses audio.


These heavy duty Bluetooth headsets are popular with truckers. They indicate greater distance to/from the device, about double. 60 feet vs. 30 feet, as I recall.


There must be a Bluetooth standard they adhere to that causes the audio loss problem in the iPhone. Just clicking to iPhone and back to the bluetooth will clear it. I also sometimes have a funny noise that indicates the audio is out, but usually it's noticing the other person not speaking. It has caused some serious problems on important business calls. I bought these headsets, and the iPhone5, to handle these calls.


Apple's Genius bar folks do not appear to have heard of this problem. I was asked to demonstrate it, which i did, eventually I was given a brand new iPhone5 to address the problem. The results of that were interesting, the rate of drop about doubled on the new phone over the old.


I was told when the phone was replaced, and again when I went back, that I would probably have to erase everything on the iPhone, set it up as a new phone on iTunes on my computer, and reload whatever apps I wanted (Apple knows which you paid for). I went through this procedure. I didn't suspect it would work, but I tried it. It didn't work. And again, the frequency of the drop out varied. This leads me to believe it may be some odd memory or cache overload since different phone utilization of space seems to be an affecting variable.


That is, I had all but 8 gigs utilized on my 32 gig iPhone 5 when the problem began. When I had the phone replaced and backed up, I trimmed back some of the apps. When I wiped the phone's drive and reinstalled, I wouud up with more memory available, as I deleted 1000 photographs during the reinstall.


It's frustrating, but I have encountered such weird anomalies in the past. I am glad this forum exists to document the problem and hope Apple will notice, acquire a few of the problem headsets, and resolve the bug.

Sep 9, 2013 7:50 AM in response to prmiller

Okay, this has gone to a whole new level for me!! AT&T replaced my Motorola H19txt because of this problem that started only after upgrading from iPhone3 to iPhone5. It persisted for several months. Sometimes I would lose audio in the midst of a call, but the other person could still hear me. Sometimes instead of sudden silence, the bluetooth would make an extremely loud buzzing sound in my ear. The bluetooth worked fine with iTunes and all other apps. It only happened when using the normal phone function. Sometimes it would not happen for a few days and sometimes it happened several times in the same phone call. It was completely random.


Another issue I had was that occasionally if I clicked the bluetooth to hang up, iTunes would start playing automatically, even though there are no iTunes controls on the bluetooth.


After months of this anoying problem, my phone started randomly losing WiFi. Went to the Genius Bar and they reset the network settings assuring me that would fix both broblems. They got worse. The Genius Bar replaced the phone. Next day, the bluetooth problems continued. Few days later I'm back at the Genius Bar and I am told that all this happened because I used the backup from my old iPhone3 and the file is now corrupt. I kept telling them that I had read these reports and others were complaining of the same issues. It was hard for me to believe it was my software. But, they convinced me and wiped everything off my phone. I lost tons of data and setup!! Spent hourse rebuilding apps and setting up tones, etc. THE PROBLEM CONTINUES JUST AS BEFORE.


I asked if the bluetooth problem might be what caused me to lose WiFi and they said that was entirely possible because both bluetooth and WiFi signals are sent/received by the same part of the hardware. So, I am assuming that continuing to use this bluetooth is causing damage to my recently replaced iPhone5, but it may not stop getting WiFi until the phone is out of warantee. It is time that Apple admits that this is a problem in the design and takes some form of responsibility. I love my bluetooth and it is still under waratee for 1 month, but I think Apple should provide me with a bluetooth that will work with my phone and will not cause damage to my hearing or my phone. It has cost me a great deal of aggrivation, real loss, and an incredible amount of time. I am printing all these stories and taking them to the Genius Bar with me. I want a solution and am no longer willing to invest patience in this matter.

Sep 12, 2013 12:41 PM in response to Cyphter

FINALLY GOT THIS ONE COMPLETELY FIGURED OUT!!!


I printed all that was written on this thread and took it to the Genius Bar. After they did some research, they came back with a genuine explanation that was not what I wanted to hear, but at least I finally got the truth:


The Motorola bluetooth has not upgraded technologies to keep pace with industry upgrades. iPhone 5 has. So, the two will continue to have communication problems until they are made more compatable. So, my bluetooth and my new phone had to get a divorce. That marriage was never going to work and it was not because of any neglegence in design or a hardware problem. It is just a May/December romance and the older design just can't keep up.


So, I needed a new bluetooth. It was not Apple's fault that Motorola is behind the times and wanting to sell off older designs before producing the upgraded models. But, because the Genius Bar had run me in circles and told me that giving up all my data I had backed up from my old phone would solve the problem, which caused me a loss of precious data and much time, they offered me a 50% discount on a bluetooth which Apple had vetted to be sure it worked well with the iPhone 5. I must say, I like it even better than the Motorola, and I did like the Motorola.


However, I did ask that the folks at Apple Support and at the Genius Bars get upgraded so they know what is going on and do not give folks like me such a run around. I can see on this thread that Apple was being notified of this problem 10 months ago, at least! So, if anyone else is reading this because they are having this problem, you can save yourself much headache by just traiding in for a new bluetooth. My next stop is to the AT&T store that sold me the Motorola 11 months ago, after the iPhone 5 had been released, knowing that they had not upgraded along with the phones with which they are supposed to work.


Hope others found a workable solution!

Fix for iPhone 5 Bluetooth audio loss / disconnect?

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