Picture of an iPhone with a Sony SRS XB33 speaker.

How to Connect Sony XB 33 to iPhone

This post shows how to connect a Sony XB 33 to an iPhone smart phone.  Doing so gives you a much bigger, and clearly better sound when you stream music from the iPhone to speakers like this one.

How to Connect Sony XB 33 to iPhone, Step by Step Details

With the XB 33 switched OFF (power button is dark), run through this routine to connect it to your iPhone mobile device. For this demo, the test phone is an iPhone 12 Pro Max.

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

Next, flip through the Home screen pages until you find the Settings app.  We found ours on the second page of the Home screen, as shown next.

The -Settings- app icon on the iPhone -Home- screen. How to Connect Sony XB 33 to iPhone.
iPhone -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.

Screenshot of the -Bluetooth- option on the iPhone -Settings- page.
iPhone -Settings- page, showing the -Bluetooth- option.

4. Go to the Bluetooth Option to Continue with How to Connect Sony XB 33 to iPhone

Tap the Bluetooth item on the Settings page.

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

Screenshot of the -Bluetooth Settings- page on an iPhone.
The iPhone -Bluetooth Settings- page.

Note that our Bluetooth is running here. But since our test Sony XB 33 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 XB 33

Turn on the XB 33 by quickly pressing its  Power  button. See this, pointed at by the yellow arrow, in the next picture.

The -Power- button on the Sony XB 33.
Sony XB 33  -Power- button.

The speaker then boots up, and its status lamp glows green, as we see in the next picture.

Picture of the -Power- lamp lit up on the speaker.
The -Power- lamp lit up.

Also, the Bluetooth Status lamp will blink in some pattern to indicate that the speaker is ready to answer a Bluetooth pairing request.

The glowing -Bluetooth Status- light.
The -Bluetooth Status- lamp glowing.

If this lamp 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 (double flashing), 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 test speaker will not pair with it automatically.

6. Put the Sony XB 33 into Discovery 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. Then release it when the unit beeps and speaks that it’s in pairing mode. Also, the Bluetooth Status lamp begins its rapid or pulse-pulse-pause, pulse-pulse-pause flashing pattern, as we see in the last picture.

Find the Pairing button on the top button panel, second button from the left as shown next.

Picture of the -Bluetooth Pairing- button.
The -Bluetooth Pairing- button.

7. Find the Speaker on your Phone to Continue with How to Connect Sony XB 33 to iPhone

See the screen shot next. We found our speaker, as shown next.

Picture of the iPhone Bluetooth Settings page, showing a Sony XB 33 as Discovered.
The iPhone Bluetooth Settings page, showing a Sony XB 33 as Discovered.

8. Connect with the XB 33

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 XB 33 entry, as we point out with the green arrow next.

Picture of the iPhone Bluetooth Settings screen, showing a Sony XB 33 as Connected.
The iPhone Bluetooth Settings screen, showing a Sony XB 33 as Connected.

9. Done with How to Connect Sony XB 33 to iPhone !

At last, we have now successfully connected the XB 33 test speaker with a popular iPhone.

Other Sony XB 33 Posts

    1. Sony XB 33 Blinking Orange Light
    2. Sony XB 33 Charging Instructions
    3. Sony XB 33 Power Button Not Working
    4. Sony XB 33 Orange Light Stays On
    5. How to Tell if Sony XB 33 is Charging

References

    1. Official Sony XB 33 Support Page
    2. Where to Buy the Sony XB 33

Revision History

    • 2023-04-09: First published.