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Recent MacOS & iOS won't discover BLE device #26
Description
Hi there!
Have been playing a lot with this library but recently found that recent MacOS and iOS devices won't discover the ESP32 BLE device at all. The same code works perfect on earlier MacOS versions (ie: High Sierra) but won't even discover the Bluetooth device in the list in Ventura. Same with an iPhone 14. On the other hand, all the Android and Windows devices tested so far work flawlessly.
Doing some research, seems to be related to a security issue, as Apple might have included a new requirement, not allowing BLE devices without encryption/authentication schemes. This is the only hint I have.
Can you help me understand if it is possible to configure the BLE connection with a PIN and/or other security parameters?
Thanks!
Activity
lekophantom commentedon Mar 29, 2024
I too am seeing this behavior. I am not sure how much help I can be, but if I get a chance, I will take a look. I do know that the SparkIO project does work with the iPad, so their bluetooth stack may be more amenable to the newer apple security protocols.
lomoalapimienta commentedon Mar 29, 2024
Hi @lekophantom it seems that BLE devices not advertising encryption capabilities won't be displayed and available to connect using the Bluetooth menu. But I've finally managed to connect the device using the Audio MIDI setup application provided by the Mac OS.
Give it a try and let me know!
lekophantom commentedon Mar 29, 2024
I do not have a current mac, but I did have success with the same workaround on ios. I found the app via this issue for Control Surface . I used the BLEScanner app on my iPad. I got a bit confused because if the ESP32 was used for another BLE project and the iPad had connected to it, the app shows the old project's name until it connects.
lomoalapimienta commentedon Mar 29, 2024
ezequielabregu commentedon Mar 31, 2025
You solve it by using an app called "Conji" (MacOS Sequoia/ IOS 18)