Mikey Campbell
In announcing Bluetooth 4.2 support for iPhone 6s, iPad Pro and iPad mini 4 last month, Apple published product comparison charts suggesting that same technology was also activated in older hardware. The company recently confirmed that change by updating specific product pages for iPhone 6 and iPad Air 2.
As seen in the screenshots above, captured by AppleInsider reader Matthew on the day Apple unveiled its fall product lineup, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and iPad Air 2 are listed as supporting the new Bluetooth 4.2 standard. At the time, detailed product pages dedicated to those three devices did not reflect such a change, instead listing compatibility with Bluetooth 4.0, causing some confusion as to actual product capabilities.
Apple has since updated its tech specs pages for iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and iPad Air 2 to indicate support for Bluetooth 4.2. Interestingly, each product retains its original model number, suggesting Apple either modified the Bluetooth stack in iOS 9 or built in new chips without changing product designators. The distinction is an important one to make, as only newer components are capable of taking advantage of certain Bluetooth 4.2 features, specifically increases in data transfer speed.
AppleInsider reached out to Apple for clarification and will update this article when a response is received.
Bluetooth Core Specification 4.2 is well-suited for low-power connectivity solutions, especially Internet of Things devices, as it integrates the advanced IPv6/6LoWPAN Internet protocol, according to the Bluetooth Special Interest Group. Compared to previous versions, the latest spec offers speed boosts, higher efficiency and improved security.
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45 Comments
This has happened before, with wireless N, I think it was...
Bluetooth 4.2 consists of a number of features. Some of these features are higher level, like privacy extensions, and can be updated in software. Some features, like the longer packet length, require new hardware.
How do find out what version of Bluetooth your device is running under iOS9?
This has happened before, with wireless N, I think it was...
Yeah, Apple charged $5 to enable it initially.
The only problem with Bluetooth is that Apple pushes the specifications along at a much faster pace (to its credit) than accessory makers do. My 3-year-old Alpine deck in my car as gone from being completely awesome to completely frustrating. With iOS 6 and 7, I'd jump in my car and the phone and deck would connect instantly. With iOS 9 now, I'm the guy in the parking lot with the engine running taking about 5-10 minutes to get the two devices to communicate. My favorite is when Play/Pause are out-of-sync: the iPhone shows the song being paused and the deck says Play. Whichever device you toggle, the other device does the opposite! I have to turn off the deck and close out all music apps on the iPhone. Alpine has offered one firmware update in the 5 years the deck has been available. Apple has provided billions of updates in the same time period. Things don't mesh so well.