12 Ways to Fix Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth Issue

Are you experiencing a Bluetooth issue with your Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3? Without a doubt, the revolutionary phablet is a multitasking powerhouse, but Bluetooth connectivity issues can nip the foldable’s full potential in the bud. 

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold Bluetooth issues can usually be fixed by resetting the device. You can also troubleshoot the phone’s software and the paired device to identify and clamp down on the root cause of the problem.

But don’t let the tech-speak bother you. In this post, we’ll walk you through 12 ways to fix Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth issues, so you can get your foldable tablet in tip-top shape less than an hour!

Difficulty	Easy ●● ○○○
Duration	30 to 40 minutes
Number of Fixes	12
Things You Need	Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3A different phone or a PCA working internet connectionUSB Cable

How to Fix Bluetooth Issues on Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

The solutions presented below are effective in solving Bluetooth issues on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. This includes pairing issues and devices not detected by Bluetooth.

Don’t worry. All you have to do is follow the steps below, and you should be fine.

1. Reboot your Galaxy Z Fold 3.

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	3
Duration	15 seconds

Restarting your device will shut down all of its applications and processes. This action allows the system to refresh its memory and fix any minor issues, which results in better performance after the device fully reboots.

Follow these steps to reboot the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3:

• Swipe down the notification panel twice.

• Click the power key.

• Click Restart on the power menu.

For an unresponsive Galaxy Z Fold 3, you can use the button combinations to force the device to restart.

Use these steps to force the Galaxy Z Fold 3 to restart:

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	2
Duration	15 seconds

• Press/hold the volume down and side buttons together.

• Keep holding until the screen shuts down and the Samsung logo appears.

2. Toggle your phone’s Bluetooth off and on.

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	3
Duration	5 seconds

A quick and easy way to fix Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth issues is to refresh the connection by turning this feature off and on. Once Bluetooth restarts, it should fix simple connection problems and work again.

Follow these steps to turn Bluetooth off and on:

• Swipe down the notification panel twice.

• Tap the Bluetooth switch to toggle it off.

• Tap the Bluetooth switch again to toggle it back on.

This method should also address and fix minor issues such as Bluetooth devices not detected on Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3.

3. Toggle the Airplane mode on and off.

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	3
Duration	5 seconds

The Airplane mode can also be toggled on and off to achieve the same results as the previous method. When enabled, this mode will disable all network connections temporarily until you manually disable them.

Turn Airplane mode on and off using the steps below:

• Swipe down the notification panel twice.

• Toggle the Airplane mode switch on.

• Toggle the Airplane mode switch off.

Note: Airplane mode is sometimes called Flight mode. The name used for this feature may vary depending on the Galaxy device or the region they originated from.

4. Reconnect your Bluetooth devices

Devices that have already been paired can still experience connection issues. You can remove and reconnect your paired devices to overcome Bluetooth pairing issues on Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3.

Follow these steps to disconnect your devices:

Difficulty	Easy ●●○○○
Number of Steps	6
Duration	10 seconds

• Open Settings.

• Click Connections.

• Click Bluetooth.

• Toggle the Bluetooth switch on.

• Click the gear symbol beside the paired device.

• Click Unpair.

Follow these steps to reconnect your devices:

Difficulty	Easy ●●○○○
Number of Steps	8
Duration	15 seconds

• Open Settings.

• Click Connections.

• Click Bluetooth.

• Toggle the Bluetooth switch on.

• Click Scan to search for the device if it isn’t available on the list.

Note: Make sure that the other device has its Bluetooth turned on. If they’re earbuds or a controller, make sure it’s already in pairing mode (usually characterized by a blinking LED indicator).

• Select/click a device on the list.

• Click Pair to send a pairing request.

• Accept the request to pair on your other device.

Note: You don’t have to do this if the other device is a controller or some earbuds.

5. Pair with a different device.

Difficulty	Easy ●●○○○
Number of Steps	8
Duration	15 to 20 seconds

Another way to fix Bluetooth pairing issues on the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is to try pairing with a different device. This action allows you to determine whether the root of the problem lies on your phone or the other Bluetooth device.

Use these steps to pair to a different device:

• Open Settings.

• Click Connections.

• Click Bluetooth.

• Toggle the Bluetooth switch on.

• Click Scan to search for the device if it isn’t available on the list.

Note: Make sure that the other device has its Bluetooth turned on. If they’re earbuds or a controller, make sure it’s already in pairing mode (usually characterized by a blinking LED indicator).

• Select/click a device on the list.

• Click Pair to send a pairing request.

• Accept the request to pair on your other device.

Note: You don’t have to do this if the other device is a controller or some earbuds.

If you’re able to pair with a different device normally, the initial paired device is faulty and should either be fixed or replaced. Otherwise, your phone requires further troubleshooting.

6. Change the Bluetooth codecs on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 5G.

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	6
Duration	15 seconds

Is the sound quality on your Bluetooth earbuds or headphones bad? If yes, you can activate the developer mode to change the codecs and fix a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth issue to help improve the audio.

Use the steps below to change the Bluetooth codecs:

• Open Settings.

• Scroll down/click About Phone and go to Software information.

• Click on Build Number repeatedly until developer mode is turned on.

• Return to the settings and go to Developer options.

• Scroll down/click Bluetooth Audio Codec.

• Select/click aptX to activate 24-bit audio quality.

Note: If your Bluetooth devices don’t support aptX, you can choose either AAC or LDAC.

7. Change the limit of connected Bluetooth devices.

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	4
Duration	15 seconds

Using the developer options, you can also limit the number of devices that can connect to Galaxy devices via Bluetooth. By controlling this limit, you can fix Bluetooth connections and improve the sound quality of audio devices.

Follow these steps to limit the number of Bluetooth devices:

• Open Settings.

• Scroll down/click Developer options.

• Scroll down/click Maximum connected Bluetooth audio devices.

• Select your preferred number limit.

8. Clear Bluetooth’s cache and app data.

Difficulty	Easy ●●○○○
Number of Steps	9
Duration	20 to 30 seconds

Clearing Bluetooth’s cache and data can also fix Bluetooth pairing issues on Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. Showing system apps can only access the app in the settings.

Follow the steps below to clear Bluetooth cache and data:

• Open Settings.

• Scroll down/click Apps.

• Click the sort menu.

• Toggle the Show system apps switch on, and click OK.

• Click the search bar.

• Type and search for Bluetooth.

• Click Bluetooth.

• Scroll down/click Storage.

• Click Clear Cache or Clear Data.

9. Reset the network settings.

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	8
Duration	15 seconds

Changes in the network settings can trigger issues with Bluetooth pairing and devices not detected when scanning. Resetting the network settings allows you to undo these changes and revert Bluetooth to a working state.

Reset the network settings using these steps:

• Open Settings.

• Scroll down/click General management.

• Click Reset.

• Click Reset network settings.

• Click Reset settings.

• Draw your pattern to proceed.

• Click Reset.

• Wait for the network settings to reset.

10. Reboot the phone into Safe mode.

Apart from changes to the network settings, a newly installed app can also cause problems on your Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. If you have any suspicious apps installed, you can reboot into safe mode to confirm if they’re the culprit.

Use these steps to reboot into Safe mode:

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	6
Duration	30 seconds

• Press/hold the volume down and side buttons together.

• Click/hold Power off on the power menu.

• Click Safe mode.

• Give the device time to boot into safe mode.

• Make sure the lower-left-hand side says “Safe Mode.”

• Enter your PIN to unlock the screen.

During safe mode, downloaded apps are temporarily disabled. While your suspected apps are down, you can test if your Bluetooth connection works by following the steps for pairing in item number 5.

If Bluetooth works, that proves our suspicions regarding your recently installed apps. Uninstalling them should help fix Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth concerns.

Exit safe mode using the following steps:

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	3
Duration	15 seconds

• Swipe down the notification panel twice.

• Click the power key.

• Click Restart on the power menu.

Uninstall the suspected app using these steps:

Difficulty	Very Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	2
Duration	5 seconds

• Press/hold the app’s icon.

• Click Uninstall.

11. Update to the latest software.

Difficulty	Easy ●○○○○
Number of Steps	6
Duration	30 minutes

Without updated software, you could be missing out on essential performance improvements and bug fixes. Regularly checking and installing the latest updates is usually the ticket to solving persistent issues on your Galaxy device.

We recommend downloading and installing updates as soon as they’re available since they also patch up the holes in your phone’s security. Note the process can be a bit long, but it shouldn’t be an uphill climb. 

Follow the steps below to update the software:

• Open Settings.

• Scroll down/click Software update.

• Click Download and install.

• Click Install now.

• Give the device time to finish applying the update.

• Click OK once the update is done.

12. Factory reset your device.

Difficulty	Easy ●●○○○
Number of Steps	7
Duration	60 to 90 seconds

Factory reset is a huge leap from simply rebooting the device, which is why it’s usually reserved as a last resort. Performing this action completely wipes the data and settings on your device, so it’s essential to back them up in your PC or the Samsung Cloud.

WARNING: Factory reset wipes all your data on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. So, back them up if you want to keep them before going through the process.

Once the factory reset is complete, your device will return to the state it was in just after it left the factory, hence its name. Since your phone becomes good as new, this should also fix the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth issues.

Perform a factory reset by following these steps:

• Insert a USB cable into your phone and connect it to a PC.

• Press/hold the volume down and side buttons until the screen shuts down.

• Press/hold the volume up and side buttons to reboot into recovery mode.

Note: In recovery mode, the volume buttons highlight the options in the menu, and the side button is used to click the highlighted option.

• Select/click Wipe data/factory reset.

• Select/click Factory data reset.

• Give the device time to complete the action.

• Select/click Reboot system now.

You may have to bring in the cavalry if all else fails. If the final resort fails to address the Bluetooth issue, you should call the manufacturer and get their expertise on the matter. 

It shouldn’t be hard for you. Just submit your concerns via the Samsung Members app, and experts can look closely at your concern. 

You won’t have to worry about being identified, as you are kept anonymous when sending an issue via the app. Indeed, this is one feature you shouldn’t miss when you want to tap the manufacturing giant itself. 

In a Wrap

Learning how to fix Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth issues need not be a tall order with our comprehensive guide above. Just follow the steps from top to bottom diligently, and you should be able to sail through smoothly just fine. 

Now you know where to go next time you have Bluetooth pairing or Bluetooth not detecting issues. Indeed, that’s the advantage of having proven-and-tested methods at your beck and call.

FAQs about Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 Bluetooth Issues