Can you connect iphone and android bluetooth

Transfer data between iOS and Android via Bluetooth?

I’ve been reading up on how to transfer data between iOS devices over Bluetooth using GameKit. I’m not writing a game, per se, but do have a need to transfer a small amount of binary data between two devices. Between two iOS devices, this is easy enough. However, I was wondering if it is possible to transfer data between an iOS device and an Android device via the same mechanism. Has anyone come across documentation/tutorial that would explain how to do this? Is it even technically possible? Or has Apple put in some sort of restriction that would prevent this? The other option I discovered was Bonjour over Bluetooth. Would this be a more suitable option for this type of operation?

I added the Bump API to my answer as it looks to be a very appealing way to implement data transfer for small payloads.

3 Answers 3

This question has been asked many times on this site and the definitive answer is: NO, you can’t connect an Android phone to an iPhone over Bluetooth, and YES Apple has restrictions that prevent this.

Some possible alternatives:

1. Bonjour over WiFi, as you mentioned. However, I couldn’t find a comprehensive tutorial for it.
2. Some internet based sync service, like Dropbox, Google Drive, Amazon S3. These usually have libraries for several platforms.
3. Direct TCP/IP communication over sockets. (How to write a small (socket) server in iOS)
4. Bluetooth Low Energy will be possible once the issues on the Android side are solved (Communicating between iOS and Android with Bluetooth LE)

Coolest alternative: use the Bump API. It has iOS and Android support and really easy to integrate. For small payloads this can be the most convenient solution.

Details on why you can’t connect an arbitrary device to the iPhone. iOS allows only some bluetooth profiles to be used without the Made For iPhone (MFi) certification (HPF, A2DP, MAP. ). The Serial Port Profile that you would require to implement the communication is bound to MFi membership. Membership to this program provides you to the MFi authentication module that has to be added to your hardware and takes care of authenticating the device towards the iPhone. Android phones don’t have this module, so even though the physical connection may be possible to build up, the authentication step will fail. iPhone to iPhone communication is possible as both ends are able to authenticate themselves.

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Send Files from Android to iPhone with a Bluetooth Alternative

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Cory Stillman. Cory Stillman is a Technology Writer for wikiHow. Cory has experience writing about Film and TV for several online publications, including Screen Rant and Film Cred. He earned a degree in Film and Media Studies with a minor in Creative Writing and certificates in Global Studies and Children’s Literature from the University of Pittsburgh.

The wikiHow Tech Team also followed the article’s instructions and verified that they work.

This article has been viewed 23,055 times.

It may seem that transferring content between an Android and iPhone wirelessly would be difficult, but it is actually quite easy. While iPhones can’t receive files through Bluetooth, you can use a third-party app called Snapdrop that works just like Bluetooth, but over Wi-Fi. This wikiHow guide will teach you how to use Snapdrop to send photos, documents, and other file from your Android to an iPhone.

• When searching for Snapdrop on the Play Store, look for the icon of a series of white concentric circles against a blue background.
• If you don’t want to install an app, you can also access Snapdrop at https://snapdrop.net. Although we recommend installing the Android app for better performance. [1] X Research source

Find Snapdrop’s nickname for your phone. Upon opening the Snapdrop app, you’ll find that Snapdrop has assigned your Android a name. These names are randomly generated combinations of words, like Amber Aardvark or Porcupine Phillip. Take note of your device’s name, as the iPhone user will need this info.

• Both the Android and the iPhone will need to be connected to the same Wi-Fi network for Snapdrop to work.

Tap the iPhone’s nickname on your Android. If the iPhone is «Porcupine Phillip,» for example, tap that name on your Android’s screen.

View and save the sent file. The selected file(s) should arrive instantly on the iPhone. The iPhone user can then view the files, as well as save them by tapping Save.

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Is it possible to connect iOS and android device using Bluetooth?

Of what i understood, a Peripheral (Server) can Advertise to a Central (Client). This central is scanning around itself, and then try to find the Server by looking for the UUID of the service advertised.

When i make a Server on Android, it is waiting for a connection (listening), i know the UUID and the mac address of my Server. But when i scan with my iPhone (scanning for the same UUID of course), i can’t find the server.

• So is there a possibility for the android server to advertise like the Peripheral on iOS?
• Or maybe a possibility for my iPhone client to connect using the mac address of the server?

Which Android open-source framework are you using for BLE? Do you see it with your iPhone if your do not search for a restrictive list of peripheral? Since TexasInstruments has given main phases for updating firmware over the air through BLE, it should work with big files (I heard that you have to implement some kind of notifications).

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Q: Is this amount of data limited ? Can we send something like a photo or a PDF?

Bluetooth Low Energy was not optimised for sending large amounts of data, nor is it optimised for streaming. It is more suitable for sending small chunks of data periodically (e.g. temperature readings, time, etc). Please have a look at this answer to understand how BLE transfer is different from classic Bluetooth. That being said, you can still send large amounts of data over BLE, and the amount of data is unlimited. However, this might end up being unreliable and relatively slow.

Q: So is there a possibility for the android server to advertise like the Peripheral on iOS?

Being a server/client is a completely different thing from being a peripheral/central:-

Peripheral/central dictates how the connection is made. A central device should initiate the connection. A peripheral device should advertise and wait for a connection request.

Client/Server dictates how the data is distributed. The Gatt Server holds the data. The Gatt Client can read, write or be notified (getting a continuous stream of readings) of this data. In most cases, the server is also the peripheral, but this is not mandatory.

So to answer your question, yes, the server can advertise like the peripheral on iOS. However, for Android, this feature is not yet available and will be part of the next version (Android L) release. Please see this answer for more information.

Q: Or maybe a possibility for my iPhone client to connect using the mac address of the server?

As far as I know, in coreBluetooth you would need the UUID, not the MAC Address, of a peripheral device to connect to it. You do not need to know the services being advertised from the peripheral device. Your best bet would be to scan for peripheral devices, and then connect to the one with the UUID and/or the advertising data that u know belong to your peripheral.

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Pairing Bluetooth mobile devices in 3 steps

Nowadays this wireless technology is a common standard that allows us to connect different types of units without any cables or cords. What is Bluetooth used for? It may be used to join a mobile to a car, to join headset to our phone, to use wireless keyboard and mouse with tablet or phone, to act our phone as a modem, to connect mobile to mobile, etc. The average working distance for this technology is not more than about 10 meters so we shouldn’t move connected ones too far from each other.

Today the mobiles are very popular. The total count of them is more that people in the world. So we should know how to connect Bluetooth to the phone to stay modern.

The second device type is varied. One of the most popular wireless gadgets for mobile is a headset. Here is a manual on how to connect the Bluetooth headset unit in 4 steps. Another popular option is pairing a phone with car.

The generic main steps are

We don’t need to connect the units again in further. They automatically connect when they are in the range of each other with wireless mode turned on. Note that using modern technology can increase the level of battery utilization, so we should check the charge level on both units regularly.

Turn off the wireless mode just in case of stop usage. Remove each one from a paired list of other one to completely unpair Bluetooth devices if needed.

The most mobiles released after 2007 have this technology onboard. We may always check it through finding an appropriate setting on the one. Below are detailed pairing instructions for different types such as

How to connect Bluetooth on iPhone and iPad#

Ensure that wireless mode is on, do the same on the second unit and tap on its name in the list of available equipment. The user interface is quite the same for iPad by thanks to Apple.

Check Bluetooth passkey (or enter it if necessary) and choose “Pair” to accept the connection.

Now the mobile and the other unit are paired.

Open it details via information icon and choose “Forget this Device” to unpair the device if necessary.

Attach Bluetooth on Android phone and tablet#

Ensure that wireless technology is on in “Settings\Bluetooth” and tap on the particular available device that must be wirelessly activated too. Repeat search by “Search for devices” or similar if we can’t find a particular unit in the list.

Check passkey for Bluetooth (or enter it if necessary) and confirm the connection.

Open it details via configuration icon and choose “Unpair” to disconnect the unit. Also, we can set own local name of paired one via “Rename”.

How to connect Bluetooth on Windows Phone#

Make sure that the mode is on (look at the below picture) and get the list of available ones. The second one should be enabled too. Then find and tap on the second unit name.

Now the mobile and the other unit are paired.

Tap on device in the list and confirm deletion to unpair it in case of no need.

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