According to user reports, the iPhone 15 might have a Bluetooth issue
You’ll see in our iPhone 15 review that we were very impressed with Apple’s flagship, but its launch hasn’t been without its problems – and it seems a significant number of people are experiencing Bluetooth issues with the device.
As reported by MacRumorsBased on comments on the site’s forums, these Bluetooth issues have been going on since the iPhone 15 first went on sale in September 2023. The majority of complaints appear to be related to connecting to older Bluetooth devices, including car stereos and headphones.
Users at MacRumors are talking about audio “disconnecting and reconnecting” and “frequent disconnects” over Bluetooth. Although some affected were told that iOS 17 updates would fix the issues, reports continued to come in even as Apple rolls out new versions of the iPhone software.
Furthermore, going by the user reports, it seems that all four iPhone 15 models – the iPhone 15, the iPhone 15 Plus, the iPhone 15 Pro, and the iPhone 15 Pro Max – are having the same kind of issues here.
Finding a solution
It’s difficult to gauge the extent of the iPhone 15 Bluetooth problem: it clearly doesn’t affect every iPhone 15 or every Bluetooth device, but it’s a common thread on the official Apple Support Forum has now registered 1,718 people saying “me too”.
According to feedback from MacRumors, the only way to resolve these Bluetooth issues is to request a replacement device from Apple; iPhones come standard with a one-year warranty. Rebooting or resetting the phone, or applying “other typical solutions” doesn’t seem to help get Bluetooth working properly.
The fact that some people see the problem disappear when they get a replacement iPhone 15 suggests that only certain devices are defective. We haven’t heard anything from Apple about this issue at this point, but it doesn’t take much detective work to figure out that the Bluetooth module or a related setting could be to blame.
It’s also worth saying that Bluetooth issues often occur across multiple devices, so not all of these complaints (of which there are a substantial number, if you do a quick web search) could be the iPhone 15’s fault.