Bluetooth connectivity issues

I have to agree with JustApple2666, this whole issue is an utter farce. To be frank I don't care WHY the issue affects the Mac Mini 2018, I don't care about the in's and out's of it - all I really want is Apple to admit they have messed up big time with this model and either fix the issue with a software update (if possible) or recall the product as it is not fit for purpose as it stands. If they are not willing or able to fix it then there needs to be an explicit explanation that this model may not work with non-Apple peripherals on the product page of their website. Anything other than this is selling a product that is not fit for purpose. I am sure some Apple Fan Boy will pipe up and try to justify why it's not working properly and blame the end users environment but sorry, no, that's just nonsense. I have been using (purchasing) Mac's from the old LC right up to the iMac Pro and I have never encountered these incompatibility issues (where relevant to the technology of the day). I sent my first Mac Mini back after 3 days and this one is much the same - I have the i7 one which cost me close to £2K, this really is not good enough. Maybe it's time for each and every one of us to spread this like wildfire on Redit, Twitter etc and make Apple sit up and notice.

PS. It seems you can lessen the impact if you get some USB to USB C adapters for your external drives and don't plug anything into the 2 standard USB ports but we should not have to! Oh, and it does not completely eliminate the issues, just less frequent.

I don't think zapping pram is what is fixing it. Clearing PRAM involves rebooting the Mac. That all by itself helps to mitigate the issue as far as I can tell. After a reboot I typically have a da without problems, then Magic Trackpad starts to disconnect every couple of hours and the next days, mouse and keyboard follow.

I have the same bluetooth frustrations with my 2018 Mac Mini running macOS 10.14.3. With no USB 3 devices connected or running nearby, wifi disabled, and our office router only broadcasting a 5Ghz signal, I still periodically lose my bluetooth connections with my Magic Trackpad 2 and/or Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad. The issue seems relatively consistent to a high CPU load or the fan spinning up. As of now, my only workaround is keeping the devices wired. I use the machine for work and what I do for a living is time critical to the second. Sudden loss of connectivity can be disastrous for me.

Thank you to all who have posted about this issue so far. I will keep watching this thread for information. I do hope that Apple is reading and working on a solution. It's an unacceptable issue.

What helped me:

Hold Shift+Options, then click on bluetooth menu icon, choose debug > reset and remove all devices, then restart mac. For 2 days i have no issues at all. Btw, i have wifi turned on, but not connected to any network.

A couple messages up thread, I posted about resetting the Bluetooth module. I needed to do that to clear things up mostly. I forgot to mention one other thing I found it necessary to do.

Occasionally the 5GHz signal on my router would disappear and the Mini would connect to the 2.4 GHz signal. Then the drop outs would start happening again. I went into System Preferences > Network and unchecked "Automatically join this network." The problem only happens now if I have to use my iPhone or Verizon mobile hot spot. Then I'm back to the wired world.

I have the same problems with my new Mac mini. Magic Mouse and Keyboard are disconnecting every few minutes and reconnect by themselves. AirPods (2nd Gen.) show up but won't connect/ play music at all. It might be related to an external HDD, connected to the USB A port, though. At least, the symptoms are less, when the HDD is physically disconnected. But what is the sense of having a Mac mini with lots of ports, if I can't use them. Really hope, this can be resolved by a software update. But the mini is out now for several month ;-(

I have a MM 2018, with 32GB RAM, 2TB SSD and the 3.2 i7 6-core. When I replaced my 2015 5K iMac I retained the keyboard and mouse (full size Apple BT Magic Keyboard and the original AA-battery Magic Mouse.

After a day or so I started getting the dreaded BT issues, the mouse would lose connection, become erratic or just relocate the cursor to random spots. The keyboard also would lose contact but not as often.

I swapped out the KB and mouse with the ones from my wife's iMac and they did the same thing.

I then read forums at MacRumors and elsewhere say that it appeared to be caused by using the outermost USB-A port (Apparently this is on the same bus as the BT module) or interference caused by nearby hard drives or other metal objects.

I had my main TimeMachine hard drive plugged into the outer USB port, my other drive was plugged into a powered hub in the inner USB-A port. I disconnected the drive from the outer port and plugged it into the hub. That seemed to do the trick and the mouse worked much better. I have had less dropouts with the mouse and none with the keyboard.

I then relocated the 2 TimeMachine hard drives to a nest under the desktop and hijacked my Logitech UltraThin mouse from my NUC to the Mac Mini. Since I did that I have had no issues at all. I have been using the outer port for a SuperDrive while I consolidated some old CD and DVD files and had no problems then. Now I use that port for the Lightning cable to charge/sync my iPhone and again no issues.

Has there been any official word from Apple on this issue? I am sure they must have had support calls on this problem.

I love my Mac Mini but this BlueTooth and mouse issue has been a pain. I have had better luck with my Logitech UltraThin mouse which is a worthy competitor to the Magic Mouse and works in almost an exact function. The Logitech mouse seems to be less problematic than the Magic Mouse.

I also have an Intel Hades Canyon NUC and I set it up as a Mac alternative for my work-from-home job in case my Mac breaks down. I did this when my iMac was having graphics card issues that led to its demise and my getting the 2018 Mini. Other than the power cable it is pretty much a straight plug for plug replacement. I wish it ran MacOS since I much prefer that over Windows 10.

So far with only using the outer port for charging/syncing my iPhone and using the Logitech mouse things seem to be pretty happy with the Mac Mini 2018 on my desk.

[Edited by Host]

I kind of verified my suspicions: haven't had any issues with wifi off for 4 days. Turned it back on and hours later the problems started with Magic Trackpad disconnecting, then the mouse. Turned wifi off again and stable since.

Could this really be interference? I'll try and turn off 2.4GHz wifi next and only keep 5GHz on.

Oh, that's an interesting observation. Maybe it was coincidence with the wifi after all. Because my connection started to drop when using Windows in a VM and running some heavy tasks there. I also noticed the fans going up and the the BT connections started to die. Then I turned off wifi but I was also done with the high CPU load operation.

Now that I think about it: the last time it happened, it was a similar situation with OBS running. Again I remember the fans revving up and then boom, there goes the keyboard.

If this is really the case, an external BT module plugged into a USB hub with external power supply should stop this from happening, right?

@flavorcha,

no, not that I know. Last advice I got from Apple was to wait for a software update. How a software update will solve a very highly likely a hardware issue is a mystery though. If this issue is bothering you, I highly recommend you just return it while they still accept (2weeks.) After that, they will never accept it. Apple advisers will keep on giving advice, try this and that. Later they will ask you to take a log and send for which they will spend a week to analyze. Soon you will find your two week window is gone.

It is sad to see how they treat their most loyal customers so badly.

I spent 3 days trying every method known until I turned off 2.4ghz signal on my router which I believe is the same frequency as BT. So far so good. If your router supports 5g just kick off that. Worth a try.

You don't have to shut down your 2.4 GHz network. Most routers now let you run both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks simultaneously. The 2.4 only seems to interfere when that's the network the Mac is connected to.

That's what I did; set up a router running both 2.4 and 5 GHz networks. I connect my Mac Mini to the 5GHz; no more problems. I can still connect other devices to the 2.4 network.

I worked out this situation about 5 months ago and have never had issues since.

It is crazy to think that there is no solution from Apple regarding this, especially since their Apple Watch uses the 2.4ghz only yet You can only have your Mac and watch work properly if you have a router capable of both bands - well this has been my experience- happy WiFi playing

I have issues with my Magic Mouse which I did not have on the Mac Mini 2012, I have to disconnect and connect it every day....