Many users are reporting ongoing issues with Bluetooth connection with their iPhone 12 or iPhone 13 device while in the car. Bluetooth audio is the most convenient way to connect to a phone when getting in the car. Simply start the car, and it’ll automatically connect.
Not only is Bluetooth available on the vast majority of modern phones and car head units, but it is very energy efficient. Of course, the compromise with Bluetooth is audio quality, especially on the iPhone. Though, most users will likely never notice the lesser quality, especially when in a car where road, engine and other environmental noise is at play.
However, many users are on Apple’s Communities forum are voicing their issues regarding dropped call issues when connected to their cars over Bluetooth. Specifically, the problem seems to be isolated to iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 users and seems to vary between users. For example, some are reporting the issue shows up after a few minutes, while others are having the issue appear after several hours.
The Solution (For Now)
While there aren’t any immediate solutions to the issue, there are some quick fixes a user can do for now. The most straightforward resolution is simply plugging the phone in via USB and using wired audio. It’s not as convenient as Bluetooth and does require the person to remember to plug in every time they get in the car, but it does fix the issue. But if the vehicle doesn’t support USB audio, another solution would be to use Apple’s Lightning to 3.5mm dongle and plug into the car that way if it has a 3.5mm audio jack. If the head unit supports CarPlay, that would be another solution. The issue seems only to affect users using Bluetooth and not CarPlay, so if the head unit supports CarPlay, that would be an option as well.
As of the time of writing, updating to the latest version of iOS 15 does not seem to resolve the issue. Users have also reported that getting their iPhone 12 or iPhone 13 replaced through Apple does not fix it either. So, for now, they’ll need to plug in one way or another and hope that the next version of iOS squashes whatever bug is causing the problem. Or, of course, the user can go the expensive route and completely replace their head unit with one that supports CarPlay. CarPlay would be a massive improvement over most cars’ basic Bluetooth audio support. Although, understandably, it’s an expensive solution, and not everyone can afford to upgrade their head unit.
Source: Apple Communities forum
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