My Samsung Galaxy device keeps forgetting my Bluetooth device

When you first connect a Bluetooth device to your Samsung smartphone or tablet you will need to put the Bluetooth device in discovery mode, activate Bluetooth on your smartphone/tablet and then wait for your smartphone/tablet to discover your Bluetooth device so you can permit the connection (pairing) between the two.

You should not need to do this every time you pair your Bluetooth device to your smartphone/tablet: your smartphone/tablet should remember the Bluetooth device and pair with it automatically when Bluetooth is enabled on your smartphone/tablet and your Bluetooth device is turned on and within range.

If your Samsung smartphone or tablet keeps forgetting the Bluetooth device it has previously discovered it suggests a software bug in your smartphone/tablet. Please follow the steps below to get rid of such a bug.

Note: the instructions below apply broadly to Samsung Android devices. The exact steps needed for your specific device may vary slightly from those below depending on the version of Android your device has.

Perform a software update

Check for, and perform, the most recent software update by following the steps below:

1. From the Home screen touch Apps.

2. Touch Settings (you may need to swipe left or right to locate it first).

3. Touch About device (you may need to touch the More tab first).

4. Touch Software update.

5. Touch Update.

6. Restart your device.

Activate Bluetooth on your Samsung mobile device, place the Bluetooth accessory within a few feet of the device and turn the accessory on. Your mobile device should recognise and pair with the Bluetooth accessory within moments. If this doesn’t happen proceed to the next section.

Search online to see if this problem is specific to your Bluetooth accessory

It could be that your Bluetooth accessory is not entirely compatible with the latest version of Android that your device supports, meaning that updating your Android device will always cause some compatibility problems with the accessory itself by design.

If you find search results online that suggest this may be the case please contact the manufacturer of the Blutooth accessory to learn if an upgrade is possible or if some other workaround exists.

If you find nothing online to suggest the Bluetooth accessory has compatibility issues with the Android versions your smartphone/tablet can run please proceed to the next section.

Perform a factory reset

Follow the steps below to perform a factory reset on your Samsung Android device.

1. Back up all the media, text messages, etc that you wish to save. This can be done through Kies on your PC. A factory reset will wipe your phone clean, restoring the software to how it was when the device left the factory.

2. From the Home screen touch Settings.

3. Touch Back up and reset.

4. Touch Factory data reset.

5. Touch Reset device.

Once you’ve set up your device again have it discover your Bluetooth accessory (it definitely won’t remember your accessory this time around because of the factory reset). After pairing the accessory with your device unpair it after a few moments and then attempt to pair it again.