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skierrob2 Author

Level 1

38 points

iPhone SE Bluetooth issues

I have a new iPhone SE and have so far paired it to a 2014 BMW 328i and a 2011 Kia Optima and a 2015 Kia Santa Fe. In all cases, I have terrible quality bluetooth call reception... the audio while on a phone call is extremely scratchy and distorted.

If I pair an iPhone 6S to each of these vehicles (same iOS version - 9.3.1), I do NOT experience these issues and calls are clear.

When I use the iPhone SE to make phone calls outside of Bluetooth, I have no issues and calls are clear.

This bluetooth issue on my iPhone SE does NOT impact Bluetooth music streaming. Only sounds scratchy / distorted with phone calls.

Apple, so far, is blaming the vehicle manufacturers despite there being multiple vehicle models and brands involved.

BMW and Kia state this must be an Apple problem.

Apple Genius bar is absolutely no help -- they state they can't report "software issues" to Apple and are only able to replace bad iPhones.

I'm at a complete loss as to how to get this to Apple's attention so they can fix the issue.

For now, I don't know what to do. All I know is that Bluetooth audio is very important to me in California since it is illegal to use your phone except in a hands free manner.

Anyone know how we can get this information to someone at Apple that can actually do something about it?

Robert

Posted on Apr 4, 2016 5:27 PM

934 replies

dcpmark

Level 1

28 points

Apr 27, 2016 3:14 PM in response to mreg376

mreg376 wrote:

But I thought that the scuttlebutt here was that beta 2 solved the problem, and beta 3 brought it back?

No worries...it's easy to get confused. Especially with uninformed people claiming "hardware problems." I'd be glad to help....which post(s) led you to believe that Beta 3 might have brought it back?

Apr 27, 2016 3:26 PM in response to skierrob2

I'm having the exact issue with my Nissan Frontier. I had no problems with my 4S... Do you have a problem with the display of your vehicle not showing the caller ID??? With my new SE, my display just shows the incoming call number, not the actual caller's name ( I have the callers in my contacts). This is a pain... I was just wondering if you have the same problem with this??

Thanks

predacon

Level 1

4 points

Apr 27, 2016 3:27 PM in response to dcpmark

I believe there was an earlier post indicating that beta 2 corrected the issue. Then the phone was updated to beta 3 and the problem resurfaced. I quickly searched and could not find it.

I found the following point in this post interesting...

Gerard DirksApr 27, 2016 8:10 AM Re: iPhone SE Bluetooth issues
in response to MotleyDiver

SOLVED

yesterday I installed 9.3.2beta3. Still not solved. This morning I make a cold boot of my iPhone SE. Now my Bluetooth issue is solved! i made about 20 calls without any problem.

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

Apr 27, 2016 3:31 PM in response to dcpmark

You're quite the detective. Most have been removed, but there's one on the previous page.

There's obviously a hardware issue with the SE bluetooth. That's the only reason that the same iOS version creates the problem on the SE and not on other models. The only question is whether a software fix can overcome the obvious hardware anomaly. Since beta 3 of 9.3.2 reintroduced the problem, apparently the beta 2 fix, if it ever existed, was an accident, which highlights the problem of relying on betas as a functioning operating system.

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

Apr 27, 2016 3:34 PM in response to rgarrett

The only thing I'm not clear about is your statement that your SE "does not seem" to have the BT issues. Believe me, if your phone has the issue you would know it, and if it doesn't your bluetooth audio would be pretty much identical to the phone you were using before the SE. So the $64,000 question is, does your SE have an audio bluetooth problem or not?

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

Apr 27, 2016 3:36 PM in response to predacon

I found most of the posts have been removed. To be frank, I'm not sure why ALL of these posts are being removed. People who are not in the beta program have not agreed to keep anything about the betas confidential.

Apr 27, 2016 3:45 PM in response to mreg376

You don't have the SE anymore you got buyers remorse and returned right? Stop trolling here then, ITS NOT HARDWARE. The thing has fixed my phone and others who have tried it. So its SOFTWARE get it?

If you didn't know the thing is for anyone who wants to try it as a tester. It won't kill you lol.

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

Apr 27, 2016 3:56 PM in response to brettfromcoffs harbour

Actually I have every intention of rebuying the SE when the problem has been corrected. And I can tell you that by corrected I don't mean running my phone on some intermediate and outdated beta version being afraid to update the phone to see the problem return.

Apr 27, 2016 4:01 PM in response to mreg376

I would say you are jealous as you could of waited and tried the thing and all would be good, better luck next time. Move on now you are just causing confusion bringing up the same thing over and over. Its not HELPFUL.

dcpmark

Level 1

28 points

Apr 27, 2016 4:04 PM in response to mreg376

mreg376 wrote:

Actually I have every intention of rebuying the SE when the problem has been corrected. And I can tell you that by corrected I don't mean running my phone on some intermediate and outdated beta version being afraid to update the phone to see the problem return.

That's great! We all can't wait for you to post here again about your experiences with BT after picking up your SE once 9.3.2 becomes available to the general public.

See you in a week or so......take care!

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

Apr 27, 2016 4:06 PM in response to brettfromcoffs harbour

Yes I'm jealous. Instead of using my 6s which is working perfectly I'd rather be backing up, restoring, and trying multiple beta versions of iOS to get an SE to do what it should have been able to do right out of the box. Yes, I wish I were you. You cracked the case.

akordion

Level 1

15 points

Apr 27, 2016 4:06 PM in response to dcpmark

Which version do you think Apple will release to general public?

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

Apr 27, 2016 4:08 PM in response to dcpmark

No, first I will wait to see how you guinea pigs fare.

mreg376

Level 1

20 points

Apr 27, 2016 4:11 PM in response to akordion

Well, the next version will be 9.3.2. Whether that solves the SE problem is unknown, although I'm sure the "experts" on this board will tell you they know exactly what's going to happen.

Apr 27, 2016 4:13 PM in response to mreg376

What are you scared of, haven't you ever done a Apple thing before? I have done them on macs/phones/ipads, no props Bob.

iPhone SE Bluetooth issues