Note 5 Bluetooth issue

[dwterry]

GOOD NEWS! I called T-Mobile and they overnighted a new Note 5 and it has solved my connectivity problems.

Just a quick recap of what I experienced:
- Gear S2 watch would disconnect if I put the phone in my pocket (sometimes even while I was still holding the phone). FIXED!
- Music being played on a Bluetooth stereo would cut out if I turned my back on it (putting my body in the way of the stereo). FIXED!
- Scanning for Bluetooth devices in an office environment found only 1 device. FIXED (new phone finds about 20 devices)

 

[mtbdaivd]

Keep in mind dwterry that this bluetooth issue seems to occur several weeks into using a note 5 with bluetooth devices. I am on my second Note 5 and 3rd week of use. I still think there is a a hardware or software bluetooth issue with the note 5 that has not been addressed by Samsung. We just keeping sending the phones back for warranty replacements.

 

[recDNA]

Does this happen to every Note 5? I am trying to purchase one.

 

[Glock23-G4]

Does this happen to every Note 5? I am trying to purchase one.

I've had mine since day 1... bluetooth is on 24/7 with no problems.

 

[kajoey]

Does it work well when your phone is connected to wifi?

 

[recDNA]

I've had mine since day 1... bluetooth is on 24/7 with no problems.

Thanks. That is a relief..

 

[edglock21]

I've had mine since day 1... bluetooth is on 24/7 with no problems.

Good to hear - are you connecting to a watch? That seems like one of the culprits here

I'm trying to find a common denominator in what the folks that are having the issue are using - and watches seem to be one.

If not, what are you paired with?

 

[Honda_Insight]

Hate to be one more, but looks like I am. I got my Note 5 on October 11 and weak bluetooth problem stuck on October 31. My headset connection breaks up when I put my phone in a pouch on my belt. This is the same with two different headsets. My Pebble is frequently losing connection too. T-mobile return policy is 14 days. I will call them Monday to see what they say. I'm considering a doing a factory reset, but that doesn't seem to be helping other folks. I don't suspect home wi-fi, since the problem was terrible while riding my bike.

 

[kajoey]

No luck with Samsung on getting a replacement but AT&T was very easy to work with (even though i bought the phone from Best Buy). They are sending me a replacement and hope the bluetooth range issues are fixed.

 

[Honda_Insight]

BAD NEWS UPDATE. This only helped a bit for A day or so. Sent phone to Samsung today for repair.

I chatted with Samsung support. Poured a cup of tea into my mac keyboard so I can't post the chat transcript. I'll try to post the magic sauce that got it working from my note 5.

Go to settings - applications - application manager- all applications - bluetooth. Tap clear data. Reboot your phone. See if Bluetooth is working better.

I'll post more when my keyboard starts working or I get a new one.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Honda_Insight]

BAD NEWS UPDATE. This only helped a bit for A day or so. Sent phone to Samsung today for repair.

This is a transcript of the support that resolved my weak bluetooth issue:
Weak Bluetooth problem started October 31
Samsung Support Website
Please wait for a Samsung Agent to respond.

You are now chatting with 'Sunil G'. There will be a brief survey at the end of our chat to share feedback on my performance today.

Your Issue ID for this chat is LTK...
Sunil G: Hi, thank you for contacting Samsung Technical Support. How may I help you today?
Dwight: My Note 5 suddenly has weak bluetooth. I got my Note 5 on October 11 and weak bluetooth problem stuck on October 31. My headset connection breaks up when I put my phone in a pouch on my belt. This is the same with two different headsets. My Pebble is frequently losing connection too.
Sunil G: I am sorry to read that your device experiencing issues with Bluetooth.
Sunil G: That must be really inconvenient for you to have issues with your new device.
Sunil G: I would be glad to look into this for you.
Sunil G: May I ask a few questions to assist you better?
Dwight: Yes
Sunil G: May I know the model number of your device? You can find the model number from Settings>>About device>> Model number.
Dwight: Model number: SM-N920T
Sunil G: Thank you.
Sunil G: How long have you been experiencing this issue?
Dwight: Two days now. Started October 11
Sunil G: Okay, are you experiencing this issue after installing any application from PlayStore?
Dwight: I've got several dozen applications installed. Not sure which ones in the past couple of days.
Sunil G: Okay, has your device ever exposed to any sort of damage(Physical or Liquid)?
Dwight: No
Sunil G: Have you tried performing any troubleshooting steps? If so please let me know so that we can skip them now and perform a few more.
Dwight: I have rebooted the phone several times. I uninstalled and reinstalled the Pebble (watch) application because I was having trouble reestablishing the bluetooth connection.
Sunil G: Thank you for the information.
Sunil G: Let us try a few troubleshooting steps and check for the result.
Dwight: Cool
Sunil G: I will share the steps to boot the device in safe mode. Performing safe mode will temporarily block downloaded/third party applications.
Dwight: OK
Sunil G: 1. Power off the device.
Sunil G: 2. Press and hold the Power/Lock key for one or two seconds to turn on the device.
Sunil G: 3. When the Samsung logo displays, press and hold the Volume down key until the lock screen displays.
Sunil G: 4. When the Lock screen is displayed, Safe mode is displayed in the lower-left corner of the screen.
Sunil G: Please keep me posted, Dwight.
Dwight: OK, It now says safe mode
Sunil G: Please try to check for the issue by connecting your device to other Bluetooth device.
Dwight: Getting a lot of unfortunately ... has stopped. Google play, etc.
Sunil G: Just to confirm, have you updated your device software recently?
Dwight: OK, have music playing to my bluetooth headset.
Sunil G: Okay, are you able to play music earlier?
Dwight: No system updates for several days.
Sunil G: Okay, may I know the Baseband version of your device? So that I can check if your device is up to date or any update available. You can find the Baseband version from Settings>> About device>> Baseband version.
Dwight: Yes. It still seems about the same. When I put my phone in my belt, the music breaks up.
Dwight: Baseband version: N020TUVU2C015
Sunil G: Thank you.
Sunil G: I see that your device software is up to date.
Sunil G: Please try the below instructions and check for the result.
Sunil G: These steps will refresh the applications and will not delete any user application data.
Dwight: OK
Sunil G: Home screen>>Settings>>More>>Application manager>>All>>Bluetooth. Tap on clear data.
Dwight: Done
Dwight: Headset stopped for a bit. Working again.
Sunil G: Great!! Please restart the device and check for the issue now.
Dwight: OK
Dwight: Restarting
Sunil G: Great!!
Dwight: Got sound to headset going.
Sunil G: Is your device working fine now?
Dwight: Seems to be working fine.
Sunil G: Perfect!!
Dwight: Yea!
Dwight: Thank you very much.
Sunil G: You're welcome. Is there anything else I can assist you with?
Dwight: no,thanks
Sunil G: We thank you for contacting Samsung Technical Support, we appreciate your business. Please click on the blue ‘X’ button on the top right corner of your screen to proceed to the survey. Have a great day!
Sunil G: Take care!! Bye!!

 

[Chino32]

This is a transcript of the support that resolved my weak bluetooth issue:
Weak Bluetooth problem started October 31
Samsung Support Website
Please wait for a Samsung Agent to respond.

You are now chatting with 'Sunil G'. There will be a brief survey at the end of our chat to share feedback on my performance today.

Your Issue ID for this chat is LTK...
Sunil G: Hi, thank you for contacting Samsung Technical Support. How may I help you today?
Dwight: My Note 5 suddenly has weak bluetooth. I got my Note 5 on October 11 and weak bluetooth problem stuck on October 31. My headset connection breaks up when I put my phone in a pouch on my belt. This is the same with two different headsets. My Pebble is frequently losing connection too.
Sunil G: I am sorry to read that your device experiencing issues with Bluetooth.
Sunil G: That must be really inconvenient for you to have issues with your new device.
Sunil G: I would be glad to look into this for you.
Sunil G: May I ask a few questions to assist you better?
Dwight: Yes
Sunil G: May I know the model number of your device? You can find the model number from Settings>>About device>> Model number.
Dwight: Model number: SM-N920T
Sunil G: Thank you.
Sunil G: How long have you been experiencing this issue?
Dwight: Two days now. Started October 11
Sunil G: Okay, are you experiencing this issue after installing any application from PlayStore?
Dwight: I've got several dozen applications installed. Not sure which ones in the past couple of days.
Sunil G: Okay, has your device ever exposed to any sort of damage(Physical or Liquid)?
Dwight: No
Sunil G: Have you tried performing any troubleshooting steps? If so please let me know so that we can skip them now and perform a few more.
Dwight: I have rebooted the phone several times. I uninstalled and reinstalled the Pebble (watch) application because I was having trouble reestablishing the bluetooth connection.
Sunil G: Thank you for the information.
Sunil G: Let us try a few troubleshooting steps and check for the result.
Dwight: Cool
Sunil G: I will share the steps to boot the device in safe mode. Performing safe mode will temporarily block downloaded/third party applications.
Dwight: OK
Sunil G: 1. Power off the device.
Sunil G: 2. Press and hold the Power/Lock key for one or two seconds to turn on the device.
Sunil G: 3. When the Samsung logo displays, press and hold the Volume down key until the lock screen displays.
Sunil G: 4. When the Lock screen is displayed, Safe mode is displayed in the lower-left corner of the screen.
Sunil G: Please keep me posted, Dwight.
Dwight: OK, It now says safe mode
Sunil G: Please try to check for the issue by connecting your device to other Bluetooth device.
Dwight: Getting a lot of unfortunately ... has stopped. Google play, etc.
Sunil G: Just to confirm, have you updated your device software recently?
Dwight: OK, have music playing to my bluetooth headset.
Sunil G: Okay, are you able to play music earlier?
Dwight: No system updates for several days.
Sunil G: Okay, may I know the Baseband version of your device? So that I can check if your device is up to date or any update available. You can find the Baseband version from Settings>> About device>> Baseband version.
Dwight: Yes. It still seems about the same. When I put my phone in my belt, the music breaks up.
Dwight: Baseband version: N020TUVU2C015
Sunil G: Thank you.
Sunil G: I see that your device software is up to date.
Sunil G: Please try the below instructions and check for the result.
Sunil G: These steps will refresh the applications and will not delete any user application data.
Dwight: OK
Sunil G: Home screen>>Settings>>More>>Application manager>>All>>Bluetooth. Tap on clear data.
Dwight: Done
Dwight: Headset stopped for a bit. Working again.
Sunil G: Great!! Please restart the device and check for the issue now.
Dwight: OK
Dwight: Restarting
Sunil G: Great!!
Dwight: Got sound to headset going.
Sunil G: Is your device working fine now?
Dwight: Seems to be working fine.
Sunil G: Perfect!!
Dwight: Yea!
Dwight: Thank you very much.
Sunil G: You're welcome. Is there anything else I can assist you with?
Dwight: no,thanks
Sunil G: We thank you for contacting Samsung Technical Support, we appreciate your business. Please click on the blue ‘X’ button on the top right corner of your screen to proceed to the survey. Have a great day!
Sunil G: Take care!! Bye!!

damn i tried this and no luck..i'm stuck with hitting up TMo for a replacement i guess. i'll try this again though. thanks for the update

 

[myNote5]

I tried this also with no luck with my Note 5! The only solution for me is to turn my WIFI off then I got better connection on my bluetooth to my Gear Fit. I will be able to connect around 6 feet max. I think this is the software issues not the phone.

 

[chrisppppp]

I actually did the same thing and it did improve the bluetooth signal dramatically. Now, it's about 7 feet before the signal breaks down. A dramatic improvement over 1 or 2 feet.

Not sure what's going on but Samsung needs to get their firmware straightened out. Consumers do not have to go through all this trouble to get a "normal" bluetooth connection.

 

[Reinallt]

Same here. About three weeks ago, my bluetooth connection skips or drops when it's a foot away from my note 5 or just in my pocket (gear 2 neo, stereo headset and beats pill). Did the wipe cache, clear bluetooth data even going back to factory defaults. No luck.

I wish Samsung would address this issue as many of us are affected already.

 

[myNote5]

Yup! I was an Apple user and switched to Samsung since note 4. No problem with it until I upgrade to Note 5. My Stylus needs repair and now the Bluetooth issues. If Samsung still cannot act together. They will lose a lot of customers. I'm thinking of switching back to Apple now.

 

[chrisppppp]

I really do regret switching over from my iphone 6 plus but I really love the pen...and flexibility.... Now, after the refresh, my bluetooth is almost back to it's original connection. I'm glad but this shows that this is a software issue and I have wasted a lot of my time trying many many different things.

I guess this is the price I pay for a more complex but not well thought out phone. I will probably go back to an iphone after I'm done with my contract. I should have stayed with my iphone....:-(

 

[hayestim]

I wish people would realize the watches are a symptom of the issue. You see the issue more with the watch because it tells you every time it looses connection. My watch was showing the disconnects before I realized I was having problems with any other devices. I've tried wiping cache and starting in safe mode and everything else on here. Nothing has helped. I'm frustrated myself. But it's not the watch at fault. It simply highlights the issue. It brings it to your attention because it relies on bluetooth to work.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Theresa Humphries]

Well I never had a watch

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[recDNA]

So does every note 5 have this problem? I love my gear 2 and it works perfectly with my note 3. If this happens in my note 5 it would make the purchase a very bad one for me.