Bluetooth Interference - Apple Watch and iPhone 6

She did read my reply and probably had no issue with it. If I use my iPhone and Watch with my X3 and it works then I try it with your X5 and it fails that would show the problem being your car not the iPhone. BT is backward compatible and will work with BT 2.0 (which was buggy in itself) and 2.1. But if the car manufacturer did not correctly implement BT then the newest iPhone would have trouble with it. Apple could write code in that case to work around the flawed BT implementation in that vehicle and every other vehicle but pretty soon you would be looking at some really bloated and ugly code.

If you read some of your own threads you posted they are repeats of another article that was a repeat of another article, etc. Quite often with these reports they trace back to one article that is then referenced by 30 other sites. Such is the nature of the internet. Your article regarding GPS devices only impacted certain models and there is an extensive thread here regarding that. It really had to do with a security block (the devices couldn't pass on location information and it was fixed in iOS 8.4 after Apple worked with users and the distributors. It was also an epic fail by the people who sell those devices.

This may be new to you but to Meg and myself we have seen this many, many times. For Apple to research these issues (and they are) they need information from users. They do not maintain a fleet of every vehicle out there with every version of their Handsfree equipment. Yes, it is not working on some cars but there can be thousands of reasons why. But for the most part it IS working on most cars. Apple has to be careful not to rush things and fix some cars but then turn around and break others.

Also, I left out the fact that I have also paired with a BMW 328 and 650 (charity drive for the Olympics). It worked. If your X5 was near I could try mine with your car. If it didn't work where would you surmise the issue is?

seminolefans wrote:

Okay since you didn't read his reply, I'll just quote him: "If it works in one model BMW and not in another that would place the problem with BMW, not with Apple."

Yes, you have quoted correctly. And, no, it still doesn't mean "my car doesn't have the problem, so therefore no other car from the same manufacturer can have the problem either".

I'm inclined to read deggie's posts rather closely as I generally learn something.

You don't have a lot of technical background do you?

You didn't answer my question about your combination of 1.0, 3.0, 4.0

But I'm just overwhelmed with the fact that you were a public beta tester. I am quite aware of the fact that there are articles about iPhone BT and a variety of cars. I'm also aware there is a wide range of implementation of BT in a variety of cars. I'm also aware people have problems. I went through an echo problem in my former car and iOS 3 and 4. It was finally fixed in iOS 5 and by doing an firmware update on my car.

Now do a search for Samsung and BT in cars. Then HTC and BT in cars. Keep going with searches on WiFi and various different types of equipment. Go back as far as you want. Search for interference. Connection problems. You will find them all.

Also remember that most of Apple's code is just calls to the BT chipset they use. And while you're at it do a search for Uconnect and BT. It has lots of problems going back a long way. Of course now it also has hacking problems.

Glad you contacted Apple and gave them your information. I'm sure you are not the only one who has done do and engineers may be putting a profile on someone else's iPhone.

And what makes you think Apple isn't investigating?

You can definitely learn something from it -- it's just wrong. Let's break it down: "If it works in one model BMW and not in another that would place the problem with BMW, not with Apple". So if an iPhone 6 Bluetooth pairs with a 2015 BMW X3 with Bluetooth version 4.0 using a mix of CDT (from Taiwan) and TRC (from Japan) BT 4.0 chips, using firmware version 33.9 coded by XYZ corp in the Netherlands, but doesn't correctly pair with a 2008 BMW M3 using Bluetooth version 2.0 using all chips from UYT (from Germany) and version 3.11 of BT firmware coded by UYT engineers in Great Britain, it therefore follows that the problem is with BMW? Uh no. It does zero to prove that Apple's IOS or chipset firmware code for addressing BT 4.0 systems is 100% correct or that the iOS of firmware code for addressing BT 2.0 systems is 100% correct. The causes could be many! The iPhone could have been dropped and the BT chip is now malfunctioning. The BT chip on the iPhone could be poorly connected to the BT antenna in the iPhone during manufacturing in China. The lines of code for addressing BT 4.0 devices may be perfect while a singe variable in the lines of code addressing BT 2.0 devices could be bad. The iPhone motherboard could be slightly cracked and creating intermittent interference with the BT 2.0 signal. The possibilities are endless. What is NOT certain is that "If it works in one model BMW and not in another that would place the problem with BMW, not with Apple." This is just ludicrous.

I didn't answer your question because I chose not to because I never asked you to diagnose my issues, and I am now certain you are not qualified to do so. What I did do was rebuff your attempts to shift blame onto third party manufacturers and away from Apple.

So what makes you an authority on Apple code or hardware? Why should anyone place any stock in your unpersuasive opinions unsupported by evidence? Are you an Apple employee or contractor? Do you procure hardware for Apple? What makes your opinion on Apple code or hardware anything but another opinion? Is Apple compensating you to make these claims?

As for Samsung phones? I have no idea. I don't and have never owned a phone made by Samsung. So why drag Samsung into this? Are you trying to shift blame now on Samsung? Your new argument is "well Samsung has BT problems too?" Seriously?

seminolefans wrote:

The causes could be many! `

I think deggie and I both agree on that. All the causes you postulate that could mean the problem is with the iPhone could just as easily apply to the car. Assuming that the fault is always Apple's is ludicrous.

You are starting to steal my line now about many variables.

In the example you use about connecting, losing connection, etc. with an older 2.0 device that would not involve Apple coding. All backwards compatibility for connecting with older devices is contained in the firmware on the chipset, Apple's engineers do not write thousands of lines of code for connecting with legacy systems. If there was a "bug" in the chipset that would not connect with the BT 2.0 used in the Honda Fit the only way to correct it would be to replace the chipset in all the iPhones. But that is an unlikely event. As new standards are released the code for older, final versions of Bluetooth, like 2.1, are pretty much locked in and carry from chipset to newer chipset. But if you have a car that used a new stereo system with 2.1 there is a much, much higher likelihood that errors in implementing the BT standard would be in the 2008 older vehicle. Hopefully there would be a way to update the firmware. In my Chrysler model cars there was no way to do that and they have trouble with newer phones from any manufacturer.

Again if you want to take the time you can find BT issues with all the other manufacturers of phones. Just too many variables. I would guess the least number of problems you would find would be with smartphones running Windows 8.

I'm not assuming the fault is always Apple's! I am saying that there are countless reports of people having BT connectivity problems with Apple iPhones and over 20 manufacturers of autos (and numerous other computer peripherals) -- therefore strongly suggesting that the problem may be at Apple's end. If it's not, Apple should be able to rule it out. But they have to be willing to consider the complaints of users -- which does not mean trolling complainers and shifting blame to third party manufacturers.

What 20 manufacturers?

You can't get it through your head that this doesn't mean that the iPhone doesn't work with all the cars with those manufacturers or even the majority. It means that the authors have seen complaints (usually from here) that people have posted such issues and say they have these cars. But they don't specify the year, the model, which electronics are being used, etc. In some threads here where people complained it didn't work later someone comes along and solves their issue. Other times they go to their dealer and solve their problem, Sometimes they go to Apple and solve their problem.

But by your logic Samsung also has a major problem with BT, HTC has a major problem with BT, LG has a major problem with BT, etc. As Meg already said the only common denominator is Bluetooth.

I seriously doubt I will live long enough to ever see the release of a new smartphone with an new OS that doesn't have issues pairing with BT in cars.

Really? An iPhone 5 or 6 doesn't run BT 2.X, 3.X and 4.0? (Hint: Answer is Yes). An Apple Watch doesn't use BT 4.0 while the phone is simultaneously paired with an auto with BT 2.0? (Hint: Answer is Yes).

<Edited by Host>

I have similar connection problems with our Cadillac SRX and our Lexus. My apple watch automatically disconnects when I take either car. I have discovered that I can have either car and the apple watch connect by turning bluetooth off on my iPhone and back on. However, this is a hassle if you do not discover this until you are already driving

Oh just update for particulars on what I have for hardware software:

iPhone 6s 128 space grey (iOS 9.1) , Apple Watch stainless 42 mm (watch OS 2.01), MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Late 2013), iPad Air 1 128 GB (iOS 9.1), Apple TV 4 64 GB

Mazda 6 (2016 model) with latest Mazda Connect software.

I would have edited but it seems that feature is no longer visible/available.

ive installed iOS 9.2 and watchOS 2.1 and have noticed no difference in the interference problems I have been having whe using both devices with my 2015 Honda FIT. I wasn't expecting there to be an improvement, however, since the version notes for the phone upgrade and the watch upgrade made no mention of attempting to correct the problem. Personally, I believe they'll solve it in a later update, assuming the problem can be corrected at all.

I purchased an Apple Watch today. Running most current software on both the watch and my iPhone 6. Everything was working great...until I got into my 2012 Jeep Wrangler with UConnect. If I make a call off the watch it pairs through the phone to the car BUT there is no audio. The call was connected but I couldn't hear who I called and she couldn't hear me. Second...when I play music off the watch it plays on the phone but the music is not transferred to the car stereo. Both of these problems are quite annoying and defeat the purpose of being "hands free". I haven't had time to find a work around as of yet and I'm not sure there is one.

I don't know why Apple has so much issues with Bluetooth interference, but it's pretty annoying. I just bought the 9.7" iPad Pro and what do you know it has the exact same issues as the iPhone and Apple Watch. I use an app to control my DSLR camera via WiFi but if I use my phone I have to disable Bluetooth and disconnect my watch or the WiFi performance is horrible, the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil have the same issue, so if I use the iPad to control the camera I have to disable Bluetooth on the iPad and disconnect the pencil, or I get the same horrible WiFi performance due to interference.

It wouldn't be so bad if they sorted the software for the Apple Watch so that you can set default WiFi networks separately from the phone, as it causes serious issues with routers that support both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz, if my phone is connected to 5Ghz as it should be then the watch can't connect via WiFi, also to get the Watch to connect to 2.4Ghz then my phone has to already be able to connect to the 2.4Ghz side of my router, but this means it tends to connect to that first instead of the much faster 5Ghz. This is a silly limitation that needs to be fixed.