Just got a 330ci and Bluetooth issues

[trouble7]

Hi Everybody. I just bought my first BMW and I love the forum. I need help with the bluetooth. I've tried this with two different phones and same thing always happens. I turn the car on so its in pairing mode, the phone recognizes the car, asks for passkey and connects. The phone and car work beautifully for the whole time. Once I leave the car and go to a store or home, and then come back it keeps saying bluetooth connection failed. From here on out it wont connect at all. Even if i delete the pairing and try pairing it again it will pair but will not actually connect anymore. I did this with a second phone, it worked the exact same way. How do I fix this or is this something I need to talk to a dealer about? Thanks for all your help.

Radek

[trouble7]

Now the radio just says phone and I cant even listen to radio or cd. What gives?

[trouble7]

Nobody Knows?

[aradeath]

what year is the vehicle? in the late '05 - '06 models there is a telematics (blue tooth) module recall.

[trouble7]

Its an late 05 model. I'll be sure to call the dealer about this recall then. Thank a lot. Is there anything I can do to get my radio playing again before I go to the dealer? It froze with the word Phone showing. Is there a way to reset it? Do I need a code? Thanks again.

[aradeath]

no idea, sorry. i never experienced that issue. Ther is supposed to be a way to reset the bluetooth via the radio and steering wheel but i have no idea what that would entail.

[trouble7]

Thanks a lot for your help aradeath.

[aradeath]

Thanks a lot for your help aradeath.

no worries man.. just something i came across under warranty

[parabellum]

I know you said you tried another phone...but do make sure to set your phone to accept incoming connections from friendly devices Automatically by default. That may help...though it seems the recall probably addresses this issue.

I am a bluetooth test engineer for a living...so if you have any BT questions...let em rip.

[trouble7]

I just took my car to the dealer and they said its pretty serious because my radio doesnt work. Everything Seems to have just froze. How come only certain bluetooth phones work on bimmers? Isnt bluetooth just bluetooth? Thanks for all your help guys.

[parabellum]

How come only certain bluetooth phones work on bimmers? Isnt bluetooth just bluetooth

Bluetooth is divided into various profiles (Handsfree, Headset, Phonebook access, A2DP, AVRCP, PAN, Sync, etc....). Each profile allows for a certain functionality between any two devices that have that profile.

Here is where things get complex: The Sig (Bluetooth Special Interest Group) sets the specs for each profile. There are different versions. So if the Carkit in the bimmer has version x and your phone has version y (of the same profile) they may not work properly.

To make this even more silly...there is just enough wiggle room in the spec for each profile...that each manufacturer has some room to decide how things will work...so even if both devices have the same version of the same profile...they may not function 100%. Bluetooth sponsors an event called UnplugFest, three times a year for manufacturers to get together and test their devices before they hit the market. This is one attempt to curb this rather unfortunate problem.

So...no....Bluetooth is not just Bluetooth.

I work for Motorola. We actually have unreleased BMW/audi/lexus/etc... bluetooth units in house, to ensure we work properly with them...but even with our measures...it can be hard to guarantee 100% compatibility with a device that is not made by us...since the manufacturer has more ability than is ideal, over how things will work on a various profile.

[Tedyo]

I know you said you tried another phone...but do make sure to set your phone to accept incoming connections from friendly devices Automatically by default. That may help...though it seems the recall probably addresses this issue.

I am a bluetooth test engineer for a living...so if you have any BT questions...let em rip.

Great.

I have a Jabra 250 headset and two bluetooth phones. Can the device be set up for both devices? Or do I need to get a dedicated headset for each phone?

[parabellum]

Your jabra should be able to work with both phones. It can store multiple link keys in its internal memory, enabling it to stay paired with multiple devices...probably as many as 20.

Just pair each one with the Jabra and you are good to go.

The catch, is that when you turn it on, the Jabra will automatically attempt to reconnect with the LAST device it was connected to...so if you used phone A last, and you want to use phone B...you will have to power on the Jabra (with phone A off or out of range) and then initiate the connection from Phone B to the Jabra through the UI of phone B.

[aradeath]

I know you said you tried another phone...but do make sure to set your phone to accept incoming connections from friendly devices Automatically by default. That may help...though it seems the recall probably addresses this issue.

I am a bluetooth test engineer for a living...so if you have any BT questions...let em rip.

well the issue is, it was working and all of a sudden it stopped. thats wat the recall addresses, faulty telematics units. and apparently his is a worst case because he somehow froze his radio .

[aradeath]

Bluetooth is divided into various profiles (Handsfree, Headset, Phonebook access, A2DP, AVRCP, PAN, Sync, etc....). Each profile allows for a certain functionality between any two devices that have that profile.

Here is where things get complex: The Sig (Bluetooth Special Interest Group) sets the specs for each profile. There are different versions. So if the Carkit in the bimmer has version x and your phone has version y (of the same profile) they may not work properly.

To make this even more silly...there is just enough wiggle room in the spec for each profile...that each manufacturer has some room to decide how things will work...so even if both devices have the same version of the same profile...they may not function 100%. Bluetooth sponsors an event called UnplugFest, three times a year for manufacturers to get together and test their devices before they hit the market. This is one attempt to curb this rather unfortunate problem.

So...no....Bluetooth is not just Bluetooth.

I work for Motorola. We actually have unreleased BMW/audi/lexus/etc... bluetooth units in house, to ensure we work properly with them...but even with our measures...it can be hard to guarantee 100% compatibility with a device that is not made by us...since the manufacturer has more ability than is ideal, over how things will work on a various profile.

great info tho. this is why i hate the way they advertise these devices as having "bluetooth" and anything with "bluetooth" can connect to anything else with "bluetooth".

[Tedyo]

That's what I thought....the thing is Parabellum, I carry both phones at the same time....not a dealer, I have a social phone and a work phone.

Can I not have it recognize both and just ring when either one rings?

[parabellum]

Nope...it does not support multiple ACL links at the same time. Which is BT speak for "It can only be connected to one device at a time".

If you want to be able to quickly connect to either phone...you are out of luck...no one makes what you want.

Two headsets would almost defeat the point....so having the calls forwarded from one phone to another (when you are carrying both) is probably your best bet...but you will get raped on the air time for forwarded calls.

EDIT: Some headsets with CLI displays (small screens to show a UI) will let you scroll through and choose which of the previously connected phones you want to connect to...but you would have to have it disconnected...hear the ring...scroll through the ui and get it connected all while the incoming call is ringing...which might be hard to do (unless you have your VM set to come on after like 30 rings, which is how I roll). To find a headset like this...look at the very top tier offerings like the Jabra BT800. I actually have the BT800...its a great headset and will allow you to do just what I described. But to navigate through the UI takes like 5-10 seconds....

[trouble7]

Wow, thats a lot of bluetooth info. I didnt know any of that about bluetooth because they always make it seem like its all the same. Guess not. Apparently the dealer has so specialist reprogramming my TCU unit or somethng. I'll fill you guys in all the way tomorrow since they needed my car to stay on the computer all night. Thanks a lot for the info, what a great forum. Where is the whole bluetooth located in the car?

[parabellum]

My guess is the bluetooth RF unit (BT chip, BT stack, IO, logic) is all in one unit which is either buried in your dash, or buried under your center console.

Bluetooth Class 2 (which is 80% of the devices out there) has a range of 10M with line of sight...much less when you put metallic objects in the way...so car manufacturers are definitely going to put it as close to the driver as possible to avoid packet loss.

Class 1 is 30M range, but only if *both* devices are Class 1. Class 1 is accomplished by simply turning up the gain on the BT antenna.

[ledfut]

My guess is the bluetooth RF unit (BT chip, BT stack, IO, logic) is all in one unit which is either buried in your dash, or buried under your center console.

Bluetooth Class 2 (which is 80% of the devices out there) has a range of 10M with line of sight...much less when you put metallic objects in the way...so car manufacturers are definitely going to put it as close to the driver as possible to avoid packet loss.

Class 1 is 30M range, but only if *both* devices are Class 1. Class 1 is accomplished by simply turning up the gain on the BT antenna.

Nice to see another wireless engineer around here. Hey, if you need any OTA/TRP/TIS/Specific Absorption Rate or FCC (Pt 22/24...) testing, give me a shout - I'll hook you up at our wireless lab in KY

[parabellum]

^^^ Nice!

Moto has a ton of corporate red tape for what vendors and outside facilities we use though...it would probably take a year to get it setup..lol...

[trouble7]

Ok, got my car back and apparently the TCU unit thought there was an incoming call coming in constantly thats why the radio didnt work. I tried the moto slvr and the radio thing got stuck again. I give up and I am going to buy a razr like everyone else after the dealer fixes this screw up again. Question for you parabellum, are all razr's bluetooth the same meaning razr v3, v3c, v3i? Thanks for any info yo ugot for me.

[parabellum]

In the Motorola line up, you will see similar chipsets across the CDMA phones, and also similar chipsets across the GSM phones. So, in general, if you look at what Bluetooth stack is in the CDMA phones (Qualcomm)...they will be similar. Likewise for the GSM phones.

For what it is worth...even the differences with BT shouldn't cause what you are seeing...but I have no idea what side the bug is on. If you can, maybe try a few different phones in your car before you settle on one.

[trouble7]

I'm settling on the Razr because the first time my sony ericsson caused the freeze, this time my nokia caused the freeze. So hopefully they can just replace the whole bluetooth setup and maybe then something will work. But if anything I guess I can settle for a Razr v3i since it has the memory stick. I'm not too sure about the v3xx just because its bluetooth 2.0 and not the 1.2? What is the difference between that anyway?

[parabellum]

BT2.0 just allows for some enhanced 'behind the scenes' stuff...it was really about performance in certain areas...and BT2.0 is completely backwards compatible with BT1.2. Its just a chipset thing.

The other thing I love about Moto phones with the MMC card, is that they function as USB Flash drives when hooked up to a PC via a USB cable. That is a feature that I use on an almost daily basis now, and I no longer carry a flash drive in my pocket.