Constant phone disconnections

[Ryeman]

Is this another case of my incompetence or something else?

My Samsung S3 disconnects constantly on trips and has to be manually reconnected (if I notice).

I suspect it relates to roaming from one tower to another but Yeti doesn't automatically reconnect.

Anyone know what's going on?

Ps; tomtom tethering drops out also .......it's a b....y pain ita!

[ejstubbs]

Bluetooth shouldn't drop out just because the phone is swapping towers - that's fundamental to what mobile phones do!

 

I suspect this is a Samsung problem.  My Samsung feature phone was a devil for dropping the BT connection for no apparent reason.  In fact that was the spur that pushed me to get my first (non-Samsung) smartphone.  Since then two Motorolas, a Sony Xperia and a work Blackberry have been rock solid on the BT.

 

I'm pretty sure I've seen a few other reports on here of phones dropping the bluetooth connection which turned out to be Samsungs.  There seems to be something about their bluetooth implementation (they almost certainly use a proprietary BT chip/BT function in the SoC) that some VAG BT units don't get on with (by "some" I mean some individual ones - it doesn't seem to be the case with every one).

 

Sadly, the solution might have to be to get a different phone.  But then the S3 is Android so another Android phone will be basically all the same, and the transition should be relatively painless .  And you should be able to get something equivalent in spec to the S3 for rather less money these days (and without Samsung's annoying customizations - although they have said they're going to scale those back in future).  The Moto G is well regarded atm and very reasonably priced.

Edited 23 July, 2014 by ejstubbs

[33q]

No problem with my iPhone 4S. As above the Bluetooth connection should be maintained regardless of network connection.

[Ryeman]

Yeah, thanks for that.

The Sony Expedia is a possibility due to its camera ability which is a priority for me.

[175GDY]

Have you remembered to switch off the wifi?

[kenfowler3966]

My S3 would not work on my old yeti, however it is fine on the new one so the radio must have been updated.

 

I did a thread some time ago about how to get basic phone function from the S3 in the old radio.

 

It is a problem with the address book, it can have entries that the radio can't manage so it disconnects. I found it reconnected about 10 times then failed completely.

 

The solution is to go back to scratch, reset the radio to factory and hence remove any pairing.

Also the phone needs to be reset and all options for this connection erased by deleting this connection in the phone.

 

Then set it up again to see each other. Keep an eye on the phone asnd a box will come up asking for permission to upload the address book from the phone to the car. Select no and the option to not ask again.

 

The phone will now connect and stay connected, but you will have no access to the address book from the radio.

 

Addresses for numbers can be input directly into the radio, eg frequently used numbers. For other addresses you will have to use the phone itself, but this is not a problem as you really shouldn't be initiating calls when the car is moving.

 

Sometimes the phone fails to connect, just press the connect on the phone scren again, or turn the ignition on and off to let it tery again. Once connected it should stay live.

Edited 23 July, 2014 by kenfowler3966

[Hairball]

My model year 2012 Yeti and Bolero had no problems at all with a Samsung Galaxy SII or now my Galaxy S4, I just allowed it to access the address book ticking the box to always do this on connection (keep the screen live and check the notification bar). No problems connecting either with a model year 2010 Seat Ibiza bluetooth although accessing the address book was by voice only with that.... and it was pants understanding my accent.

Edited 23 July, 2014 by Hairball

[Ryeman]

Have you remembered to switch off the wifi?

Usually.

It's fundamental to getting it to work properly, is it?

[Ryeman]

Thanks for all that.

It hasn't had its first service yet and I'm hoping there might be a software update to resolve ALL

the Bolero's problems, such as address book nr errors, standard volume discrepancy between Media/FM Radio compared to AM Radio.

Lots of good features.....pity there are so many issues to resolve though.

And that handbook.............!

[ejstubbs]

It's fundamental to getting it to work properly, is it?

 

No.  There's no good reason why you should have to turn off wifi for bluetooth to work.  I've happily used my phone as a wifi hotspot in the car for other devices, with the phone connected to the car via bluetooth all the while.  I also listen to music streamed to the phone over wifi using bluetooth headphones with no problems.

 

(Turning off wifi when you don't need it ie if you aren't anywhere near an access point or a hotspot will help prolong the phone's battery life, though.)

[Ryeman]

No.  There's no good reason why you should have to turn off wifi for bluetooth to work.  I've happily used my phone as a wifi hotspot in the car for other devices, with the phone connected to the car via bluetooth all the while.  I also listen to music streamed to the phone over wifi using bluetooth headphones with no problems.

 

(Turning off wifi when you don't need it ie if you aren't anywhere near an access point or a hotspot will help prolong the phone's battery life, though.)

Yeah, thanks for that it's what I do most times but am sure hoping an update for S3 AND/OR Bolero is soon available to fix ALL issues.

I've been doing quite a few trips up country for a permanent move soon and my phone company TPG have advised my data limit of 1gb has almost been breached.....my TomTom gets it's traffic info through tethering so I guess that's what has caused it.

[ejstubbs]

A Bolero update won't help with bluetooth issues.  Bluetooth is handled by a separate module which lives under the plastic cover under the driver's seat.  I've never heard of a firmware upgrade being available for those - you basically have to replace it to get a later version.  Typical cost on eBay is around £100.  I tried that approach myself, getting a VAG bluetooth module several versions later than the one in my Yeti.  My Samsung phone still wouldn't hold the bt connection.  Luckily I was able to sell the bt module on for what I paid for it (though of course eBay took their cut…)

 

The firmware on the phone has also been updated at least twice, using Kies, and that's made no difference either.  I believe that the incompatibility is hard-wired somewhere within the silicon of either the bt module or more likely - since other phones work fine - the phone.

 

Don't hold your breath waiting for Bolero updates, either.  Mine is definitely on an early firmware version but my local Skoda dealer has completely failed to update it, even though it is well known that there is an update available.  His computer says "no", and that's it.  His opinion was that all the people on here who said that their dealers had managed to update their Bolero firmware for them were mistaken.

[Ryeman]

Thanks ej,

You'd think Samsung would be receptive and proactive to problems being discussed on various forums in this day and age.

Looks like an Expedia is not long off, calls/connectivity/camera being my priority.

Ps had a software update (48J8) done when I had a towbar fitted so I'll take it up with the dealer.

[ejstubbs]

You'd think Samsung would be receptive and proactive to problems being discussed on various forums in this day and age.

 

I don't know of many manufacturers who take much notice of discussions on, frankly, rather obscure special-interest internet forums.  One exception used to be Humax, which did seem to take notice of and respond to issues with their PVRs when they were raised on the Digital Spy forum.  That turned out to be one guy in the company who was both enthusiastic about customer service and who had the clout to get things done.  When he left Humax, the support through that route dried up.

 

More and more companies these days do have a person, department or contracted third-party responsible for "social media" but that usually means Facebook and Twitter ie the ones with huge user populations, plus maybe second-tier players like Tumblr, Google+, Instagram etc.  Facebook has 1.2 billion user accounts: on the face of it that looks like a much better target than an independently-run forum with a user base numbering in three or four digits.  That does, of course, ignore the fact that 99% of the forum users are genuinely interested in a particular company or product wheres probably less than a thousandth of one per cent of Facebook users are.  Then again, marketing people much prefer to go after new customers, which they will find on Facebook, rather than existing customers who are the ones who inhabit the forums - it's called "growing market share".  Plus, most marketing people and third-party social media companies 'understand' Facebook and Twitter but would probably founder quite badly in a different online environment, especially one which offers much more scope for feedback and informed two-way discussion like forums do.

 

Some larger companies do run their own user forums - Sony and Vodafone are two that I have personal experience of.  I've not seen much evidence of discussions on those forums having any significant impact on either company's product strategies or responsiveness to customer issues.  Similarly, when a company runs its own 'blog' site it's usually a one-way information flow; even where readers can post comments under blog posts I've never seen any evidence of action arising from any issues raised there - most such companies seem entirely unconcerned about streams of bile being posted below their puff pieces.  It's all rather odd, and quite depressing.

 

Looks like an Expedia is not long off, calls/connectivity/camera being my priority.

 

Expedia is a travel company.  You're thinking of an Xperia. 

 

Personally, I'd hesitate to buy a mobile phone specifically for its camera.  If you want a half-decent camera then a compact digital around the £100 mark will should be able to give you significantly better image quality than any phone.  Just look at the tiny amount of real estate available on the average phone for the lens and sensor.  Even a compact digital has vastly more space for a lens (with a proper optical zoom) and decent-sized sensor, and it will likely be more pocketable than a high-pixel-count-camera mobile phone.  Canon or Nikon are usually sound choices; I believe Nikon use Sony sensors if that's a consideration for you.

 

£100 for a compact digital camera and £150 for a SIM-free Moto G should work out a lot cheaper than an Xperia Z2, even on contract.

 

Ps had a software update (48J8) done when I had a towbar fitted so I'll take it up with the dealer.

 

That would have been specifically for the modification required to support the towbar - primarily turning off the rear parking sensor display when towing, I believe.  That's standard Bolero firmware, it won't have been a new release to fix a bug (although some bug fixes may well have been rolled up in to the towpar prep firmware as a matter of course).

Edited 24 July, 2014 by ejstubbs

[Ryeman]

Thanks again ej

Amazing to think they don't know they have problems......they 'succeed' in spite of themselves!?

Many now think the camera phone is a viable standalone camera these days (within limits) particularly in frontier exploits, but I also have a nikon1v2.

Is there a forum dealing with Samsung you know of?

[mannyo]

Thanks ej,

You'd think Samsung would be receptive and proactive to problems being discussed on various forums in this day and age.

 

 

It would be good, but the S3 is now several generations old and Samsung are not exactly renowned for supporting their older hardware. Usually once a new one is announced the old one gets forgotten about because the numbers in use drop sharply.

[Ryeman]

It would be good, but the S3 is now several generations old and Samsung are not exactly renowned for supporting their older hardware. Usually once a new one is announced the old one gets forgotten about because the numbers in use drop sharply.

That's consumerism for you + enabling social media gossip.

[Llanigraham]

As an example of EJ's fine posting above, this is a Skoda forum, but how many dealers bother to look at it? I know one that didn't even know it existed!

[rriggs]

My S3 used to drop out of BT in my Ford all the time. In the end the phone and the HU both needed updating and then it worked flawlessly for the rest of the time I had the car.

Make sure both are up to date is your starting place methinks...

Cheers

Rog