Boxing Day Deals: Enjoy the festive season with up to 30% off. SHOP.
Stores Cart

Bose Smart Soundbar

Sold from 2024 – present

NOT YOUR PRODUCT?
Help us provide the best support by confirming your product below
Select your product
Product image
SUPPORT OPTIONS FOR
Loading
SEARCH
Enter a search term in the field above.
Nothing found. Please enter a valid search (e.g. connection help, no audio from headphones etc.).

Bose app does not detect product

If the app cannot find the product you have already added to your Bose account, it might show "searching" or "unavailable" when trying to select that product. In some cases, the product might not show up in the app if it is not found. To resolve this, try the following:

Reset your product.

Much like rebooting a smartphone, your product might need to be reset on occasion to correct minor issues. For more info, see Resetting your product.

Be sure you are using the Bose app.

There are other Bose apps (e.g. SoundTouch app, Connect app) designed for older products products. Your product works with the Bose app icon. For more info, see Downloading the Bose app.

On your device, turn Wi-Fi off and back on.

On the device running the Bose app, go to the Wi-Fi settings and turn Wi-Fi off and back on again

Reboot the device running the Bose app.

Electronics might need to be rebooted from time to time to correct minor issues. This is typically done by powering off the device completely and then powering it back on again.

In the Bose app, sign out of your Bose account and then sign back in.

For more information, see Signing in and out of a Bose account.

Close and re-open the Bose app.

Closing an app varies by device and operating system. Common methods for mobile devices are shown below:

On an iOS device:
  1. Depending on your iOS device, either double-tap the Home button or swipe up from the bottom center of the screen to view active apps.
  2. Swipe left or right to find the app you want to close.
  3. Swipe up on the app to close it.
On an Android device:
  1. On the home screen, press and hold the app icon.
  2. Tap App info from the pop-up that appears.
  3. On the App Info screen, tap Force Stop.

Check that your mobile device and Bose product are both connected to the same wireless network.

On the device running the Bose app, go to the Wi-Fi settings and be sure the device is connected to the same network as your Bose product. If the device and product are not on the same network, the app will not find your product. If either device is connected to a 'Guest' network, such a network would not be the same network as the main network, even when the two are being transmitted by the same router or access point.

If using iOS 13 or newer, be sure Bluetooth® permissions are enabled for the Bose app.

When you first install the Bose app on an iPhone or iPad with iOS version 13 or newer, you will be prompted to allow Bluetooth permissions for the app. You must allow this for the app to work properly. To check that Bluetooth is allowed for the app, do one of the following on your iOS device:
  • Go to Settings > Privacy > Bluetooth and enable Bluetooth permissions for the Bose app
  • Go to Settings, then scroll down and select the Bose app. Under Allow Bose Music To Access, enable Bluetooth

In your mobile device settings, be sure location and network permissions are turned on for the app.

Location permissions are used by the Bose app to detect and control your product. If location settings are disabled for the app, it will not work properly.
  • For iOS devices:
    1. Go to Settings > Privacy > Local Network and be sure it is not disabled for the Bose app
    2. Go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and be sure it is not disabled for the Bose app
  • For Android devices, touch and hold the app icon, then tap App Info from the pop-up that appears. On the App Info screen, tap Permissions and be sure Your location is enabled.

Uninstall and reinstall the Bose app.

In case an issue occurred with the app, uninstall it from your device, download and reinstall it, then try again.

Try the app on a different mobile device.

If available, download and install the Bose app on another device to determine if the issue is related to the first device or its settings.

Reboot your router.

Routers may need to be reset from time to time—much like rebooting a computer. Disconnect power from the router for 30 seconds, then wait for it to start up and connect. (Note: Any device connected to the Internet will be interrupted during the reset.)

In the Bose app, remove your product and then re-add it.

Restore the system to its factory defaults and restart the set up process.

For more info, see Resetting your product.

Check to see if other devices on your network are using too much bandwidth.

When a device is active on your network, they use some of the available bandwidth of your router. Some tasks use more bandwidth than others—like video streaming, gaming, video calls, data backups, etc. If devices are performing these tasks, bandwidth can decrease for other devices. Turn off any device or app that might be using a lot of bandwidth, then check if performance improves. If possible, use an Ethernet cable instead of Wi-Fi to connect high-bandwidth devices to your network. This frees up wireless bandwidth for devices that need to be connected wirelessly.

If your router broadcasts more than one network (i.e. 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, Guest), give the networks different names.

Many routers broadcast multiple networks, like a 2.4 GHz network, a 5 GHz network, and a guest network. If you see multiple networks with the same name when connecting a device to Wi-Fi, some devices might not be connected to the expected network.

In your router settings, try temporarily disabling the 5 GHz network and guest network. If the issue is resolved by using only the 2.4 GHz network, rename he 5 GHz network and guest network to something different than the 2.4 GHz network (i.e. MyNetwork2G, MyNetwork5G. and MyNetworkGuest). This will help you and your devices identify the correct network. (Tip: If you rename a network, any devices that were connected to the previous network name will need to be reconnected to the new network name in the device settings menu.)

If your Wi-Fi network uses an extender (like a Wi-Fi repeater, powerline adapter, or access point), try bypassing it.

Network extenders are used to extend the range of a network to cover a large area. Check if the issue is related to an extender by temporarily unplugging it. Since unplugging it might reduce the range of your network, move your system closer to the main router to test if the issue improves:
  • If it does not improve, the issue is not related to the extender.
  • If it does improve, try reconnecting the extender. Sometimes it can help to connect extenders after connecting to the main network.
  • If it does improve but returns after reconnecting the extender, the issue could be related to the extender, its settings or placement.

In the settings menu of your router, try setting the network encryption type to WPA2.

Log in to your router and, in the settings menu, look for a network security or encryption option. Set this to WPA2 Only (other options might include, WPA or WPA/WPA2 Mixed). If WPA2 improves performance, use WPA2 as for router encryption. If you don't notice any difference using this setting, you can switch back to the previous setting. (Note: If you switch to WPA2 and other wireless devices on your network don't support WPA2, they may no longer connect to your network. This is more common with older Wi-Fi devices.)

In the router settings, try disabling Wireless Isolation mode, Wireless AP mode, or Access Point mode.

Log in to your router and look for an option labeled Access Point / AP mode, Wireless Isolation mode, or Wireless AP mode. This might be located in the wireless settings menu. If enabled, try disabling the option. If there is no improvement, you can always switch back to the previous setting.

Check for sources of wireless interference.

It's possible that interference from other wireless devices are affecting the wireless functionality of your product. Check for other wireless devices in the area of your product  (i.e. another router, cordless phone, wireless printer, smart TV, etc.). To determine if a device might be interfering, try unplugging its power cord or disabling Wi-Fi on the device. If the issue is resolved when a particular device is removed, try placing that device farther away from your product, if possible. Additionally, if the device has a wireless channel setting, try a different channel.
Was this article helpful?
Submit
Thank you for your feedback!