My Adv360 Pro cannot connect to my mac studio。

[xbear23]

My Adv360 Pro cannot connect to my Mac Studio via Bluetooth, but can connect to the left keyboard via USB. I've tried all the methods but can't connect. Has anyone else encountered the same situation?

[ReFil]

Have you ensured the Bluetooth profile is clear? Can you go into specifics of what you've tried?

[billjive]

This happens to me on a daily basis. I can get it paired to my MacBook Pro but after longer periods of idle, or if I take my laptop somewhere else and bring it back it almost always nukes the connection. At a minimum I need to clear the BT profile on the keyboard, forget the device on my Mac and reconnect to the "new" device in the BT list.

[xbear23]

I have resolved the issue by repeatedly pressing "Mod+Windows" several times. Thank you very much, you can close this issue now.

[billjive]

Um, weird. xbear23 had a really detailed post that doesn’t appear here any more (I got the notification in email). His experience is EXACTLY mine. I have also tried Mod+Windows several times and it doesn’t help the situation.

I’ve started to just plug in my keyboard via a USB cable just so it reliably works.

I’m going to quote the post xbear23 made here because seriously it’s the same experience I’ve had:

I have tried the following methods:

Disconnecting the keyboard's Bluetooth connection on the Studio and attempting to reconnect.
Resetting the Bluetooth settings by pressing the "Mod+Command" keys on the keyboard and attempting to reconnect.
Attempting to reconnect by pressing "Mod+1~5" on the keyboard.
Deleting the keyboard on the Studio and attempting to reconnect.
Updating the official firmware： “Adv360-Pro-Factory-Default-Firmware-v2.0-11-1-22”.
After I deleted the keyboard from the Studio for the first time, it couldn't be connected again. My keyboard can be found by the Studio, but when I click on the "Connect" button, a loading icon briefly appears, then the "Disconnect" button is displayed, which immediately changes back to the "Connect" button. No matter how many times I repeat this process, it doesn't work.

[xbear23]

I had actually tried many times before to clear the keyboard's Bluetooth settings using "Mod+Windows(Command)", but only pressed it once. Today, after submitting my post, I tried again and pressed it many times, including on the left and right sides. Then, my keyboard successfully connected, so I deleted my post. Now, everything is working fine with my keyboard.
So, you may try pressing it multiple times, including on the left and right sides. @billjive

[KinesisCorporation]

Bill-

Is your Profile LED flashing slow or fast? Slow indicates there is still a pairing stored on the keyboard, fast would indicate that the keyboard itself is ready to be paired. If its flashing slow then it hasn't actually been cleared.

Is it possible your "BT Clear" command got moved/deleted from the Mod layer on your keyboard? Or more likely you moved the Windows key in your primary layout" and thus Mod + Windows isn't actually triggering a command at all.

[xbear23]

In my experience, even if the profile LED is fast flashing, it may not necessarily connect successfully. Before, I was certain that my profile LED was flashing quickly, and I tried switching profiles many times using "Mod + 1~5", but it didn't work. So, try pressing "Mod+Windows" multiple times, including in combinations on the left and right sides, because that's what ultimately worked for me to successfully connect my keyboard. It's really strange, though.

[ReFil]

If someone could get logs from the mac bluetooth handler that may prove helpful in answering why this is happening

[ReFil]

What version of MacOS are you using? did this appear after an update?

[billjive]

This has happened me since Day 1 using the keyboard. It's always been with MacOS Ventura, any version has the same issue.

The LED flashes fast and re-pressing Mod + Windows multiple times doesn't change anything.

What's the best way to get the logs you want? I could record anything related to bluetooth in the MacOS console app (logs)..

[ReFil]

Have you updated the firmware on your board at all? Sometimes finicky bluetooth issues can be fixed by flashing the settings reset file available in this repository to both halves then loading the latest firmware. Note that this will unpair it from the computer and it will need to be "forgot" in macos before connecting again as the encryption keys need to be regenerated

Thanks for getting logs, it would be useful to see why the mac drops the connection. You can either attach them here as a txt file or email them to me at willow@polarityworks.com

[billjive]

Yep I updated to the 2.0 firmware from the GitHub repo back when I got the keyboard.

I'll see if I can capture logs next time this happens...

[ReFil]

Could you also try installing the settings reset firmware as detailed in this link: https://kinesis-ergo.com/support/kb360pro/#troubleshooting

please use this settings reset file: https://github.com/KinesisCorporation/Adv360-Pro-ZMK/raw/V2.0/settings-reset.uf2

And this firmware: https://github.com/KinesisCorporation/Adv360-Pro-ZMK/suites/10964917033/artifacts/571668418

[billjive]

Ok - done. I'll let you know if that makes the bluetooth connection more reliable.

Now my new problems is I can't remember how I got my MacOS mappings working correctly on this keyboard. Do you guys have any pointers?

[KinesisCorporation]

@billjive What do you mean by MacOS "mappings". Do you mean just changing your thumb keys to the historical Advantage "Mac mode"?

[arogulin]

I have exact same issue as @billjive: when I get my MBP16 to another room for a call and then go back, sometimes (not every time, I would say 50/50) the keyboard starts to slowly flash the blue LED (profile 2). And much more rarely (maybe once in 2 weeks) this happens after the weekend when I have not used this macbook, but used the keyboard with another macbook. I keep a wired keyboard for this all the time on my table to be able to enter a password and the procedure to fix this issue is the following:

1. Press Bluetooth resetting shortcut on the keyboard, which in my case is Mod+Alt(left thumb cluster, the top right key) to put it into pairing mode.
2. Open Bluetooth settings in MacOS (Ventura 13.2.1) and forget "Adv 360".
3. Open any other settings in MacOS and then return back to the Bluetooth tab, "Adv 360" will appear on the bottom, available for connection.
   This procedure works like a charm every time, but it's not the best user experience to keep a spare keyboard on the table, or when I'm in a hurry and every second counts.

I will wait for @billjive to report his results on flashing the settings reset firmware, and if that will help - I will do the same. I was blaming MacOS for this issue, but looks like it could be the keyboard itself.

[billjive]

I was waiting to comment to have my keyboard operate for a couple weeks with the original firmware. I can say it's definitely working better. At this point I'm using the firmware and settings reset suggested above in this thread.

So by working better, what I mean is that more consistently I can come back to my computer after it sleeps, wake it up, and the keyboard will pair and be fine. What I notice however consistently is if I undock my computer from my monitor and travel around with it, then come back, the keyboard never pairs. I have to do the usual forget-keyboard dance and repair it from scratch. (basically what @arogulin is doing).. so @arogulin my keyboard is working better but I'm seeing the same behavior as you...

[arogulin]

@billjive I will give it a try then, thank you for replying so quickly. I just flashed the settings-reset.uf2 on both sides and then flashed my own firmware fork with all the updates from the upstream (as of 2023-03-06). Not sure if I needed to flash the stock firmware before my own. I will report here about the results once I have them.

[arogulin]

Just experienced the issue again after taking the laptop to another room for about 30 minutes, so can confirm that the settings-reset.uf2 workaround does not help with that issue, unfortunately.

[KinesisCorporation]

Thanks for the additional information. We apologize for the inconvenience. Our team is aware of these issues and we are working on a solution but we don't have any specific time table.

[ReFil]

Someone has reported a workaround that might help get the connections to the succeed on the latest Ventura.

• Open up Keychain Access
• Removing "passwords" related to the MAC address of the keyboard
• Rebooting and re-pairing

I haven't been able to replicate this issue on the Mac I have access to so haven't been able to test this workaround but if someone could try it and let me know that would be much appreciated

[arogulin]

@ReFil I just had the issue again this morning. I will try this workaround, though my guess is that it won't make a difference. I checked the Keychain Access and I have exactly 1 "password" for my keyboard's MAC address and it has "last modified" date of this morning when I re-paired the keyboard. If I delete that record, then reboot, then re-pair the keyboard, it will probably create exact same record with new encryption key, so the end result will be the same as before the workaround. Not sure how that may help, but any workaround is worth a try.

[ReFil]

Ok thanks, if you have a fork of the config repository there's also some items you can enter into the left _defconfig file that might help, if this doesn't work I'll give you those params too to try

[kelvinlauKL]

After I deleted the keyboard from the Studio for the first time, it couldn't be connected again. My keyboard can be found by the Studio, but when I click on the "Connect" button, a loading icon briefly appears, then the "Disconnect" button is displayed, which immediately changes back to the "Connect" button. No matter how many times I repeat this process, it doesn't work.

I'm having the exact same issue!

[ReFil]

After I deleted the keyboard from the Studio for the first time, it couldn't be connected again. My keyboard can be found by the Studio, but when I click on the "Connect" button, a loading icon briefly appears, then the "Disconnect" button is displayed, which immediately changes back to the "Connect" button. No matter how many times I repeat this process, it doesn't work.

I'm having the exact same issue!

Have you tried the keychain access workaround?

[kelvinlauKL]

I'm not sure how to find the MAC address of the keyboard. Google / ChatGPT mentioned it could be in the bluetooth settings, but I'm unable to see it.

[kelvinlauKL]

After days of using wired connection, I managed to reconnect to my laptop. Some things I noticed:

1. Happened when I took my laptop outside (disconnected due to out-of-range)
2. I managed to do a fresh pair after removing all the bluetooth devices in my second MacBook - I needed to do this for the two times I lost connection

Given point 2, I suspect it has something to do with bluetooth interference. That being said, I don't use many bluetooth devices - (keyboard, mouse, trackpad, AirPods Pro, AirPods Max).

[ReFil]

Interesting, it's unlikely to be interference on its own but it's possible that resets something in the Bluetooth stack on the Mac

[ReFil]

After investigating with the Apple Accessory Design guidelines, a potential fix has been found

Can someone encountering this issue please add these lines to the bottom of adv360_left_defconfig

CONFIG_BT_PERIPHERAL_PREF_TIMEOUT=600
CONFIG_BT_PERIPHERAL_PREF_MIN_INT=12
CONFIG_BT_PERIPHERAL_PREF_MAX_INT=24
CONFIG_BT_PERIPHERAL_PREF_LATENCY=30

Then remove the line for NKRO (Line 53)

CONFIG_ZMK_HID_REPORT_TYPE_NKRO=y

and rebuild firmware. In my testing on an M1 MBP it was able to repeatedly connect successfully

[pgeadas]

Annnnd once again.

I just spend a couple of hours to get everything updated and try out the last updates on branch V3, and the same old happens.
Keys are not registered, right side always dropping and blinking red. At this point I give up. I just wish I never bought this keyboard. For the price, it is ridiculous that it just does not work. Neither on Mac or my Windows machine, so I dont know what else to do. I guess I will just send it to RMA?

[ReFil]

Hi Pedro, I'm sorry you're still having issues with your keyboard, your experience definitely seems abnormal. The latest firmware has not exhibited the issues you are reporting in any testing we have performed. If you're having hardware issues I suggest you open a ticket here: https://kinesis-ergo.com/support/kb360pro/#ticket

[nshi]

Next I'll try the changes mentioned in #262 (comment).

I'm sad to report that after upgrading to the version mentioned in the comment above, the same issue occurred twice in a roll in 24 hours. Both times I took the laptop away for a few hours and came back, but the keyboard couldn't connect (blinking profile LED). I had to repair the keyboard to get it to work.

[ReFil]

@nshi these changes are known to sometimes require a re-pairing, now it's reconnected please try them for a while and report back. Many thanks

[ReFil]

Please note for new users discovering this issue, the changes mentioned in #262 are now the default settings as of last week

[nshi]

@nshi these changes are known to sometimes require a re-pairing, now it's reconnected please try them for a while and report back. Many thanks

@ReFil Unfortunately, I've had three disconnects to the same laptop in the last 48 hours.

[ReFil]

Ah I see, could you try adding CONFIG_BT_CTLR_PHY_2M=n to your adv360_left_defconfig and see how that works for you? It has been reported that this change may cause a regression on split connectivity

[KinesisCorporation]

Annnnd once again.

I just spend a couple of hours to get everything updated and try out the last updates on branch V3, and the same old happens. Keys are not registered, right side always dropping and blinking red. At this point I give up. I just wish I never bought this keyboard. For the price, it is ridiculous that it just does not work. Neither on Mac or my Windows machine, so I dont know what else to do. I guess I will just send it to RMA?

Hi Pedro, Your experience is definitely not typical. We can do an exchange for a new Pro board which would resolve a potential hardware issue or we can swap you into the USB model. Please submit a ticket and let us know how you would like to proceed. And provide a link to this thread to document your troubleshooting efforts.

[pgeadas]

Hi @KinesisCorporation.

I prefer to keep the wireless version, one of the reasons I bought it was to effortlessly change between working stations and do not worry about cables.

Now about the issue, it is weird that it still works on branch V2. But V3 I can't get it to work, no matter how many updates it receives, the result is always the same. However, even in branch V2, sporadically it stops working (not that often but it does... happened 2 or 3 times since I bought it <6 months ago) and I need to re-flash the board in order to solve the issue. Nevertheless, for the price of the board, I think this is too much.

Am I missing too much about being on V2 rather than on V3? Does V2 receive the same updates? Is it going to be deprecated in the near future?

Thanks for your support in trying to solve the issue though, I appreciate it.

[KinesisCorporation]

Hi @pgeadas

We don't have any good explanation for why the V2 branch seems to work for you but not V3. The V3 branch should be superior in everyway and yes, eventually V2 will be deprecated.

Why don't we do an RMA and get you a new keyboard so we can rule out a hardware defect. Please submit a trouble ticket and provide a link back to this thread for expedited escalation.

https://kinesis-ergo.com/support/contact-a-technician/

[nshi]

After taking my laptop (MBP M1) on a long trip, the keyboard no longer connects. Same issue as before, slow blinking profile LED and left/right losing sync. I tried the procedure mentioned in this comment with no luck. This is extremely frustrating. Because the two sides aren't syncing, I cannot reset the BT profile using the right side to repair with the laptop. I tried plugging in the left side and just use it as a wired keyboard, but the right side is still unusable. At this point, I am giving on the expensive keyboard and going back to the reliable Advantage2. Is there anything I can do to make the 360 usable again? Thanks

[ReFil]

@nshi we've worked on a new beta firmware which should improve the issues you're having

Please find the link here: #259 (comment)

[nshi]

@nshi we've worked on a new beta firmware which should improve the issues you're having

Please find the link here: #259 (comment)

Thanks for the quick response, @ReFil. I will give this a try.

[saito-sv]

damn, am having the same issues to a point where I can no longer connect(linux fedora 39)

[saito-sv]

damn, am having the same issues to a point where I can no longer connect(linux fedora 39)

After trying the suggested beta version by @ReFil I can confirm that I am able to connect right away(previously I didnt even get to a success connection). So maybe you want to give it a try @nshi

[nshi]

Thanks, @saito-sv and @ReFil. Using the beta firmware did fix the connection issue. I'll continue to use it and see if the issue reoccur.

@ReFil Any way I can use my own keymap with the beta firmware? Thanks

[pgeadas]

Hi @pgeadas

We don't have any good explanation for why the V2 branch seems to work for you but not V3. The V3 branch should be superior in everyway and yes, eventually V2 will be deprecated.

Why don't we do an RMA and get you a new keyboard so we can rule out a hardware defect. Please submit a trouble ticket and provide a link back to this thread for expedited escalation.

https://kinesis-ergo.com/support/contact-a-technician/

Everything appeared to be going well until I stopped having any updates/answers from you guys regarding this, one week ago...

[nshi]

I upgraded to the latest V3.0 branch (hash 0737d53) yesterday. So far no connection issue after laptop wakes up from sleep. However, there were several occasions that it lost connections to the laptop mid-sentence or lagged behind typing noticeably. It usually recovers after a few seconds. I didn't have this issue before.

[saito-sv]

I upgraded to the latest V3.0 branch (hash 0737d53) yesterday. So far no connection issue after laptop wakes up from sleep. However, there were several occasions that it lost connections to the laptop mid-sentence or lagged behind typing noticeably. It usually recovers after a few seconds. I didn't have this issue before.

Ive been using this update for about a week now and I can confirm the same. 2 - 3 times ive lost connection. Everything else seems to be working fine.

[ReFil]

People affected by this can try changing CONFIG_ZMK_BLE_EXPERIMENTAL_FEATURES=y to CONFIG_ZMK_BLE_EXPERIMENTAL_FEATURES=n in adv360_left_defconfig and adv360_right_defconfig

[nshi]

People affected by this can try changing CONFIG_ZMK_BLE_EXPERIMENTAL_FEATURES=y to CONFIG_ZMK_BLE_EXPERIMENTAL_FEATURES=n in adv360_left_defconfig and adv360_right_defconfig

Thanks, @ReFil. I'll definitely try it. Will this change resurface the other connectivity issues (not being able to connect after computer wakes up or losing connection between the two halves) we've had in this thread earlier?

[nshi]

People affected by this can try changing CONFIG_ZMK_BLE_EXPERIMENTAL_FEATURES=y to CONFIG_ZMK_BLE_EXPERIMENTAL_FEATURES=n in adv360_left_defconfig and adv360_right_defconfig

Thanks, @ReFil. I'll definitely try it. Will this change resurface the other connectivity issues (not being able to connect after computer wakes up or losing connection between the two halves) we've had in this thread earlier?

I no longer see the two halves losing connections mid-sentence. But sadly the original issue of losing connection to laptop came back.

[KinesisCorporation]

Sorry to hear that!

Perhaps there is a hardware issue at play. If you would like to submit a trouble ticket to us we can get an RMA started.

https://kinesis-ergo.com/support/contact-a-technician/

[ReFil]

Since #426 has been merged all known MacOS connection issues have been solved so i'm going to close this issue out as solved now. Anyone encountering a new problem please open a new issue for it