I had the annoying problem that my Apple iPods disconnected from my Windows PC every time I reached the end of a YouTube video. I had to go into Bluetooth settings and click “Connect” every time. This got old very quickly!
Why am I posting this in a hearing forum? Because I think the fix I found also improves the connection reliability of all Bluetooth connected headsets in Windows - including my Phonak P90s!
I’m a Windows Systems Engineer. What follows is quite techie, but I think most are not really interested in the deep dive, so I will try to keep it as simple as I can!
WARNING. This involves a Windows registry edit. If you are not comfortable doing this, ask an expert, or don’t do it! I don’t want to hear that you have messed up your PC!
Much of the way that Windows functions (or does not!) is configured by settings in the Registry. Microsoft changes these settings when you select options like background screens or mouse speed. Alos, when programs are installed, vendors also add or change registry settings.
If you Googe search for “iPods disconnecting in Windows”, you’ll get many “answers”, many of which are irrelevant or want you update drivers or to buy some “fixit” program. The following is a fix that I filtered from all the chaff, and which noticeably improved Bluetooth reliability for me. YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY!!
If you are listening to audio on a Bluetooth device (iPods, hearing aids) and walk out of range, the Bluetooth standard defines that Bluetooth should automatically reconnect when you again once in range. Also, it seems that the combination of Windows and YouTube automatically disconnects when any video finishes. That means if I’m watching a series of videos, I need to click “Connect” each time!
The fix that improved things greatly for me is to edit the registry setting for Bluetooth to tell Windows my headphones are a uPNP device. That’s Universal Plug and Play - briefly, don’t ask me, just (re)connect! This fix is described here Airpods Keep Disconnecting from Windows 10: 6 Easy Fixes (windowsreport.com), in section 5, “Edit the registry”. You use the tool "regedit to edit the Windows registry, but beware, if you don’t know what you are doing you can render your Windows useless and not able to boot! At your own risk!
This change adds a new string value to the registry key that is named “PnPCapabilities” under Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Class{e0cbf06c-cd8b-4647-bb8a-263b43f0f974}\0000 and sets that new key to the value 24. Please note that if you make this change, you must shutdown and restart Windows, because this part of the registry is only read when Windows first starts.
NOTE. If this does not work or something unwanted happens, you can simply delete the key “PnPCpabilities”, restart and you are back to where you were before.
As far as I can understand, this added key and value affects ALL Bluetooth audio devices. After setting this value, not only did my iPod disconnection problems go away, but it seemed that my P90’s reconnected much more reliably when I returned to my desk.
I fully realise this may be complicated for many (blame Microsoft)! If you have questions, I’ll try to answer them. If you apply this fix and it improves your hearing aid experience, please post back here!
Richard
