Problem with the Bluetooth connection affecting headphones when outside on Spark 3

AnilSojitra

I am having the exact same problem as this thread:

https://en.discussions.tomtom.com/spark-and-spark-3-runner-2-and-runner-3-473/problem-with-the-bluetooth-connection-outside-on-spark-1009877

My Spark 3 version is 1.7.62, outside bluetooth connection has been affected like this since a few updates ago and it's so bad that I can't listen to music. It's absolutely fine inside with no problems.

Please can you advise if a fix is available yet as I absolutely love the Spark 3 for being able to listen to music during outside sport but one of your updates has broken this.

Please advise

Thanks
Anil

tfarabaugh

You will always get better reception inside as there are more surfaces to bounce the signal back to the headphones. The watch is transmitting an omni-directional signal so when you are outdoors, much of it is lost, which is why you lose signal when your arm goes behind your back as your body is blocking it. Indoors, that signal is bouncing off walls, floors, ceilings, etc., increasing the amount of signal strength the headphones pick up. There is not to much that can be done about it as there are legal limits to the signal strength the watch can transmit at based on the class of device it is. The only suggestion is to make sure the watch and antenna receiver (which is usually on the same side as the controls) are on the same side of your body. They have not indicated they did anything to change the signal strength in any recent updates, although it may have been an unintended consequence of another change. Considering it has been almost 5 months since 1.7.60 broke connectivity and it has still not been resolved I would not hold out much hope for a change here, particularly as TT has already left the wearables market and is not longer producing new devices.

I hope this helped answer your question. If so, please mark it as a solution so others can look for it if they have the same question.

AnilSojitra

Thanks for your response.

The issue is that one of their updates has broken the bluetooth functionality outside. It had been working fine with 100% clarity so it's not an issue of outside or inside.

It's a shame that TT are not seeing to this issue as the device itself is amazing, best fitness wearable out there in my opinion.

tfarabaugh

AnilSojitra wrote:

Thanks for your response.

The issue is that one of their updates has broken the bluetooth functionality outside. It had been working fine with 100% clarity so it's not an issue of outside or inside.

It's a shame that TT are not seeing to this issue as the device itself is amazing, best fitness wearable out there in my opinion.

Yours is the first post I have seen with the issue so I am not sure it is related to the update (the post you linked to is over a year old so it would not be related to any recent updates). It is more likely an issue with your devices. Have you tried a factory reset of the watch to start? If that does not help call Customer Support. To do a factory reset, make sure the Connect software is running and dock the watch to your computer. The Connect window will open; press the gear at the top right and select Factory reset from the next screen. Follow the steps provided, giving the watch the same name and using the same email address. When prompted to register or sign in to MySports, select sign in and use your existing account credentials. It is fairly straightforward and should take less than 5 minutes.

To get the number for Customer Support, click Contact us at the bottom of this page, select the service required and the product name and click Contact Customer Care and then Phone Us. It will give you the phone number for the country your account

I hope this helped answer your question. If so, please mark it as a solution so others can look for it if they have the same question.

AnilSojitra

Well tfarabaugh you are wrong !!

The issue was totally related to an update, admitted by TomTom themselves. They were super helpful and installed an update to fix the issue which it did perfectly. Their support is amazing.

tfarabaugh

AnilSojitra wrote:

Well tfarabaugh you are wrong !!

The issue was totally related to an update, admitted by TomTom themselves. They were super helpful and installed an update to fix the issue which it did perfectly. Their support is amazing.

Glad to hear they figured out the problem, but based on the information given in your question and the posts here on the forum my answer was accurate. There is no need for you to be abusive and obnoxious to someone who was just trying to help you. If I had not told you to contact Customer Support would you have been able to get it resolved? No, you would not. And no other users posted regarding an update breaking their headphone connectivity and there has not been a release to fix that issue specifically that they have announced. It is more than likely that your specific firmware update had a bad install and they had you do a factory reset which returned it to the proper state (which is what I told you to do in the first place). But in any case, glad it worked out for you.

AnilSojitra

tfarabaugh I didn't mean to be mean, it's not like me, must have been having a bad day.

Thank you for the time taken to respond to my query. I appreciate you doing so and offering advice as you did.

Cheers
Anil

nomad66

AnilSojitra wrote:

The issue was totally related to an update, admitted by TomTom themselves. They were super helpful and installed an update to fix the issue which it did perfectly. Their support is amazing.

Hi AnilSojitra - What was the fix?

I've the same problem with a Runner 3 watch, it started about February 2017 after an update. I've just lived with the problem but it's very annoying, especially when the connection drops mid run and you can't reconnect without restarting the activity.

I assumed it would just get fixed in a future update, but it hasn't (unless it's been resolved in the last couple of weeks)

Thanks

Damon

AnilSojitra

Hi Damon,

Here is the response I got from TomTom Customer Support. They haven't specified exactly which update they applied but perhaps you could get in touch with them and send them my email. Good luck.

---
Dear Mr Sojitra,

The reference number for your query is 1802xx-xxxxxx. Thank you for your email.

I am sorry to hear that you are having issues with our headphones cutting out .

I have put a small software update on your account as we have been seeing various issues with Bluetooth recently and this update is a fix.

You can update the watch software by connecting it to a PC with TomTom Sports Connect installed. If you do not have this support programme, you can get it from this link www.tomtom.com/123

If this does not resolve the issue , please let me know and I will be happy to help you further.


With Kind Regards

Mod edit: Please do not post any personal information on a public forum!

nomad66

Excellent - thanks for your reply. I'll contact them straight away