Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Aren't Fully Disabled When Toggled Off in Control Center on iOS 11 - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Aren't Fully Disabled When Toggled Off in Control Center on iOS 11

by

Apple has confirmed that Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are not fully disabled when toggled off in Control Center on iOS 11.

bluetooth wifi control center ios 11
Even when toggled off in Control Center on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch running iOS 11 and later, a new support document says Bluetooth and Wi-Fi will continue to be available for AirDrop, AirPlay, Apple Pencil, Apple Watch, Location Services, and Continuity features like Handoff and Instant Hotspot.

Toggling off Bluetooth or Wi-Fi in Control Center only disconnects accessories now, rather than disabling connectivity entirely.

If Bluetooth is turned off, the iOS device can't be connected to any Bluetooth accessories until one of these conditions is met:

  • You turn on Bluetooth in Control Center.
  • You connect to a Bluetooth accessory in Settings > Bluetooth.
  • It's 5 a.m. local time.
  • You restart your device.

While Wi-Fi is disabled, auto-join for any nearby Wi-Fi networks will also be disabled until one of these conditions is met:

  • You turn on Wi-Fi in Control Center.
  • You connect to a Wi-Fi network in Settings > Wi-Fi.
  • You walk or drive to a new location.
  • It's 5 a.m. local time.
  • You restart your device.

Apple made this change in the iOS 11 beta, and it gained more attention after the software was publicly released yesterday.

iOS 11 users can still completely disable Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for all networks and devices by toggling them off in the Settings app.

Apple says users should try to keep Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on for the best experience on an iOS device.

(Thanks, FlunkedFlank!)

Tags: Bluetooth, Control Center
Related Forum: iOS 11

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple Just Released a New Accessory

Monday May 4, 2026 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today released a new Pride Edition Sport Loop for the Apple Watch. The band features a rainbow design with 11 colors of woven nylon yarns. The new Pride Edition Sport Loop is available to order now on Apple.com and in the Apple Store app in 40mm, 42mm, and 46mm sizes, and it will be available at Apple Store locations starting later this week. In the U.S., the band costs $49. There...
Read Full Article
Instagram Feature 2

PSA: Instagram Encrypted Messaging Ends on Friday, May 8

Tuesday May 5, 2026 8:24 am PDT by
Instagram will remove end-to-end encryption for direct messages between users from May 8, 2026. When the date comes around, Meta will potentially be able to see the contents of all messages between users on the social media platform. Encrypting messages has been an optional feature in Instagram since 2023, but in March of this year the social media platform quietly updated a help page to say ...
Read Full Article • 54 comments
iOS 26

Apple Says iOS 26.5 Adds Three New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday May 5, 2026 7:36 am PDT by
iOS 26.5 includes three new features for iPhones, according to Apple's release notes for the update, which is expected to be released next week. As discovered during beta testing, iOS 26.5 enables end-to-end encryption for RCS messaging between iOS and Android devices. Apple says this security upgrade is limited to supported carriers around the world and will continue to roll out....
Read Full Article • 27 comments

Top Rated Comments

djeeyore25 Avatar
djeeyore25
113 months ago
This feature is annoying.
Score: 95 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Moonjumper Avatar
Moonjumper
113 months ago
The original iPhone famously came without a manual as everything was so obvious. That time is over.
Score: 91 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mlrollin91 Avatar
Mlrollin91
113 months ago
Where did this 5am thing come from? How did they decided on 5am?
Score: 68 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ghostface147 Avatar
ghostface147
113 months ago
This annoys me. Add a 3D touch option to turn it off. Thanks.
Score: 42 Votes (Like | Disagree)
G
Geert76
113 months ago
it's all about simplicity, right? :rolleyes:
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
E
enrilo
113 months ago
Can you press and hold one of the shortcuts to open the full settings page in the Settings app yet?
Nope... that's the annoying part.
I'd really want the previous behavior. This "feature" is completely useless for a "pro" user and I though it was a bug for 8 betas.

Also: why not to put a flag into settings to restore the complete switch off instead of this. Apple, wtf are you doing?!
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments