After updating my iPhone SE to iOS 12, I am not able to see the bluetooth symbol in the status bar through which I can be aware whether the bluetooth is turned on or not. It is not visible even when paired to my JBL bluetooth speaker. Please let me know if there is any way of making the symbol visible in the status bar.
iPhone SE, iOS 12
Bluetooth is either on or off. And that is why there is no longer a BT symbol on the home screen. It didn't mean diddly when it was there. You still have the symbol and total control over it being active (on) or inactive (off) in Control Center and/or Settings > Bluetooth. For the last couple years, Apple has slowly been leading us down the path to understand it's just not necessary to ever turn Bluetooth off. If you have Apple Watch, it won't connect with your phone if BT is off. If you use BT to connect to your car, you'll see if you're paired in the car screen. If you use a BT speaker or headphone, it will either play music if paired and on, or won't if BT is off.
Why do you think you need a BT symbol on your home screen? Please don't say because it uses more power. That is a false premise people still seem to cling to. The BT radio in your phone uses very little power.
Bluetooth is either on or off. And that is why there is no longer a BT symbol on the home screen. It didn't mean diddly when it was there. You still have the symbol and total control over it being active (on) or inactive (off) in Control Center and/or Settings > Bluetooth. For the last couple years, Apple has slowly been leading us down the path to understand it's just not necessary to ever turn Bluetooth off. If you have Apple Watch, it won't connect with your phone if BT is off. If you use BT to connect to your car, you'll see if you're paired in the car screen. If you use a BT speaker or headphone, it will either play music if paired and on, or won't if BT is off.
Why do you think you need a BT symbol on your home screen? Please don't say because it uses more power. That is a false premise people still seem to cling to. The BT radio in your phone uses very little power.
I don't know why you're arguing with me? Apple removed it. We users have absolutely no input or control over Apple decisions. I get you're not happy, but arguing with fellow users is pointless. The question was asked how to get it back. The answer is you can't. Because Apple removed it. Whether it's important to you or a 1,000 people has nothing to do with this. A definitive answer has been provided. Not one person on this forum can give you a different answer. If you don't like what Apple did, tell them, but not on this user to user only forum. Provide your feedback to Apple via this link: Feedback - iPhone - Apple
Do I take it you don't have an iPhone X or later model?
People with that matter had the BT symbol moved to the Control Center screen as there was not enough room on the home screen. The symbol that did nothing on that screen was redundant since you could look at the Bluetooth icon and see that is was on and disconnect if you needed to by pressing on that icon. Since Apple is moving to to Face ID on all iDevices they made the change for all devices in iOS 12.
rbrylawski wrote:
“bluetooth is either on or off. And that is why there is no longer a BT symbol on the home screen. It didn't mean diddly when it was there. You still have the symbol and total control over it being active (on) or inactive (off) in Control Center and/or Settings > Bluetooth. For the last couple years, Apple has slowly been leading us down the path to understand it's just not necessary to ever turn Bluetooth off. If you have Apple Watch, it won't connect with your phone if BT is off. If you use BT to connect to your car, you'll see if you're paired in the car screen. If you use a BT speaker or headphone, it will either play music if paired and on, or won't if BT is off.
Why do you think you need a BT symbol on your home screen? Please don't say because it uses more power. That is a false premise people still seem to cling to. The BT radio in your phone uses very little power.“
I’m not arguing here sir, simply stating that bad you just stuck with “it’s by design, there’s no getting it back” would’ve been more useful than trying to belittle people it does affect...
So yes, the BT icon apparently DID mean “Diddly” as you so delicately put it in non-belittling context.....
In any event, it took me a minute to find the only answer that mattered being “it’s by design, there’s no getting it back”
So, thank you for that sir, perhaps next time, lead with that, it was great advice!
Considering 12.1 was just released and nothing changed, and all the new iPhones just released have the notch while precludes using the icon (the iPhone X never had it on the first screen), I would seriously doubt it.
Maybe you could try see things from others point of view instead of defaulting to “Love it or leave it”. They are saying they prefer to be able to look at their phone and see if Bluetooth is enabled. You could say “I see, unfortunately Apple has decided to remove that ability and they have not given customers a way to enable the Bluetooth sysmbol, hope this helps”.
Just pull Control Center down and check the icon for Bluetooth. If you don't want to connect with that vehicle (presuming you have before) just tap the BT icon. It will temporarily be off until the next day or until you get into the vehicle you do want to use BT with.
Bigbird52 wrote:
By giving me my choice over my phones functions, I retain ownership. Yes it may use more power, however little but as I use multiple vehicles, not all of them mine, I dont want it pairing with everything I use. It was so simple to check the home screen but now involves a convoluted process. I thought it was a smart phone, now it apppears to be getting it harder to use. I think that your premises are less than reliable. In the end, its my phone and not Apples and I will use it the way I want.
You have NO, ZERO, ZIP, NADDA Control over iOS or even ownership. You may indeed own the phone. But Apple owns the software that operates the phone. When you signed into your new phone the first time and every time Apple rolls out an update to iOS, you agree to the terms and conditions of using THEIR software. If Apple makes a change to the operation system, which is exactly what they did, you can't control that, nor should you have the ability to do so. You can use your phone as you choose. But no matter how much you protest, you're not going to see a Bluetooth symbol on your home screen unless Apple decides to bring it back.
You don't seem to get that other than a useless symbol appearing on your home screen, BLUETOOTH CONNECTIVITY has NOT changed. Nothing is different, except there's no longer a totally meaningless symbol on your home screen. Your car, nor your speaker activates Bluetooth. If Bluetooth is on, your car will connect automatically as will an external speaker if it is on. Most people don't leave Bluetooth headphones or speakers on all the time.
Either way, there is NO point in debating this here. Nothing you say or I say for that matter is being read by Apple, so you're wasting your time. This forum is to ask other users to help solve a technical issue with their phone. The removal of the Bluetooth symbol is not a bug, nor a technical issue. It is working as Apple decided it should. Since you clearly don't like it, you should provide your feedback to Apple via this link: Feedback - iPhone - Apple
Yep, someday if you update there won't be any home button and there wouldn't have been the bluetooth symbol on the home screen nor the battery percentage. Apple doesn't like having heavily customized multiple versions of iOS and since Face ID is the future it went away for everyone. Such is life. Even when I had a 6s Plus I never paid any attention to the Bluetooth symbol since I never turned it off. It wasn't necessary back then and it certainly isn't so now. You will have to live with looking in Control Center at the Bluetooth button.
But who knows if you and 10 or 15 million of your like minded friends submit to Feedback - iPhone - Apple maybe they will change their mind and bring it back.
If you think you're asking Apple to do this on this forum, you aren't. This is a user to user only forum.
Your request should be sent via this link: Feedback - iPhone - Apple
It's not likely going to come back however.
You might consider reading the thread that you posted to, if it isn't too much trouble. And "why" questions are meaningless in this user to user forum, and also technically a violation of the terms of use, which forbid discussing Apple's policies. The only answer to "why" is because Apple decided to not display the Bluetooth icon.
No. There isn't. I suggest both of you refer to the manual, which I linked to above.
I appreciate your comments. I don't work for Apple as no one on this forum does. We are all users, like you are a user. Either way, since you don't like this, telling fellow users how you feel won't change anything. If you feel this is important to you, I encourage you to provide feedback to Apple the only way they'll see it and that is via this link: Feedback - iPhone - Apple
Bluetooth symbol is not visible in the status bar after updating to iOS 12
