How to Connect Sony Bluetooth Speaker to iPhone

An iPhone with a Sony SRS XB32 Bluetooth speaker.

This post shows how to connect a Sony Bluetooth speaker to an iPhone smart phone. Doing so gives you a much bigger, and arguably better sound when you stream music from the iPhone to speakers like these.

How to Connect Sony Bluetooth Speaker to iPhone, Step by Step

With your Sony speaker switched OFF (power button is dark), run through these directions to connect it to your iPhone mobile device. For this demo, we use an iPhone 12 Pro Max and the Sony SRS XB43 Bluetooth speaker.

1. Go to the Home Screen on your Device

Firstly, press and release the side button (right edge of the phone) and enter your passcode or Face Id to bring up the Home screen.

2. Find the Settings App

We found ours on the second page of the Home screen, as shown next.

iPhone 12 Pro Max -Home- screen showing the -Settings- app.

3. Bring up the Settings App

Thirdly, tap the Settings app icon.

The smart device then shows the first page of its settings, as shown in the next step.

iPhone -Settings- page, showing the -Bluetooth- option.

4. Go to the Bluetooth Option to Continue with How to Connect Sony Bluetooth Speaker to iPhone

Tap the Bluetooth item on the Settings page.

Then you get the Bluetooth Settings screen, as we show next.

The iPhone -Bluetooth Settings- page.

Note that our Bluetooth is running here. But since our test Sony Bluetooth speaker (the XB43) is currently shut OFF (is not in Bluetooth pairing mode), it does not show up in the BT devices list. Also, we don’t see it since we’ve never paired this speaker with this iPhone before.

5. Turn On your Speaker

Turn on the Bluetooth speaker by quickly pressing its Power button. See this, pointed at by the green arrow, in the next picture.

A common Sony Bluetooth speaker, showing the -Power- button.

The speaker then powers up, and its status lamp glows, as seen in the next picture.

The Power lamp glowing.

Also, the Bluetooth lamp will blink in some pattern to indicate that the speaker is ready to receive a Bluetooth pairing request, as we see in the next picture.

The blinking Bluetooth Status light.

If it blinks evenly, then it’s passively waiting for a Bluetooth connection request to come in.

But if it fast flashes or blinks in a pulse-pulse-pause, pulse-pulse-pause pattern, then it’s broadcasting its pairing information over Bluetooth so other devices can find it. I.e. The speaker is in pairing mode in this case.

Moreover, since our test iPhone does not know about this speaker, this Sony Bluetooth speaker will not pair with it automatically.

6. Put the Bluetooth Speaker into Pairing Mode

Now, to see this speaker on your iPhone, place it into Bluetooth pairing mode if it’s not in that mode already. To do that, press the Pairing button, and release when the unit beeps or speaks that it’s in pairing mode, and the Bluetooth STatus lamp begins its rapid or pulse-pulse-pause, pulse-pulse-pause flashing pattern, as we see in the last picture.

7. Find the Speaker on your Phone to Continue with How to Connect Sony Bluetooth Speaker to iPhone

See the screen shot next. We found our speaker, as we point out with the green arrow.

The iPhone -Bluetooth Settings- screen showing a Sony SRS XB43 speaker as discovered but not connected

8. Connect with your Bluetooth Speaker

Tap the listed speaker in the Other Devices list.

The iPhone then pairs with the test speaker here.

I.e. The iPhone’s Bluetooth Settings screen might then change to look something like the following. Note the now-paired Sony SRS XB43 entry, as we point out with the green arrow in the next screenshot.

The iPhone -Bluetooth Settings- screen, showing the Sony SRS XB43 speaker as Connected.