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Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

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Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I used to be able to tell I was about to get a GSM text message by the way my (wired) computer speakers would make a distinct quiet staccato crackle sound.

I recently started playing GTA 4 and it has this noise when you're driving in a car with radio on and about to get an sms or call in the game. Made me feel nostalgic.

There was even a song that featured it. https://youtu.be/K20BS-1BPjk

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#232
Bluetooth is a mess anyway. When I connect my (generic chinese) mouse before the (Sony) headset, everything works fine. However, if I don't use the mouse for a while but the headset stays connected (listening to something), when the mouse reconnects it's choppy to the point of being unusable. Solution: turn off mouse and headset, turn on the mouse first, then the headset, and everything works fine again.

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#233

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No. The FCC definition of harmful is easily searchable but it is basically the same as the Canadian (Industry Canada) definition - the FCC definition is more specific about safety-related systems including radio navigation systems: "endangers the use or functioning of a safety-related radiocommunications system, or significantly degrades or obstructs, or repeatedly interrupts, the use or functioning of radio apparatu…

The whole reason that these systems (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and unifying) use 2.4GHz is because it’s unregulated. So if one Bluetooth device interferes with another, but not other bands, then it won’t be breaking any laws. But it might be breaking a contract about the use of the Bluetooth or Wi-Fi logos.

Important distinction: the 2.4 GHz spectrum is _unlicensed_, not unregulated. E.g. ETSI EN 300 328 regulates bandwidth usage, duty cycle, output power and so on in the EU. Products carrying the CE mark should adhere to these standards.

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#234
post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Get a ferrite ring for your cable, solves more of these issues than you'd imagine. Or a clip on, something like this : https://www.cablechick.com.au/cables/ferrite-core-rfi-and-em...

I had no idea these existed. This is going to moving make my tube amp so much less annoying. Thank you. https://resources.altium.com/p/how-do-ferrite-beads-work-and...

An isolation transformer might also help.

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#235
post #54
post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I dunno, if you haven't run into audio or video interference on a wired device, you're lucky or have quality cables. I've definitely picked up radio stations on headphones or had nearby electrical currents induce an annoying buzz in a microphone or distort a video signal.

> I've definitely picked up radio stations on headphones Not exactly the same, but makes me reminisce the days of the iPod nano. It offered FM radio using the headphone cables as an antenna. I haven’t seen that supported anywhere since, which is a shame because I’d really like to get local stations on my phone.

> It offered FM radio using the headphone cables as an antenna.

That was common on phones in general. Headphones acted as antenna.

If you open the FM radio app without connecting wired headphones, it'll ask you to connect it.

This was common in Android phones as well.

My current Android phone does not have headphone jack. And I can't use FM radio (although there are services that play radio over the internet, but that isn't really the same...).

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About phones which have the capability but which are disabled, I wonder if it's because of security implications.

Where I live, the allowed frequencies were from 87 MHz to 108 MHz or something. Consumer FM radios could only be tuned in this range.

That's because on frequencies outside this range, other transmissions — for example, police transmissions — might be taking place.

The aforementioned allowed range is different in different countries.

Also, in my country long long ago (like, ≈50 years ago) you needed to get the permission of the government (via a license or something) to get a radio. You couldn't just go to a store and buy one. That changed later, however.

Now that I think about it, it might have something to do with semi-secret transmissions happening on frequencies outside the allowed range.

A friend told me it's possible to take apart the radio and tune to non-standard frequencies because in most radios the "dial" to select the allowed range really works by physically jamming the dial with another block. If you remove that block, you could keep turning that dial. Haven't tried this myself, so take that with a pinch of salt.

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#236
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I've definitely picked up radio stations on headphones Not exactly the same, but makes me reminisce the days of the iPod nano. It offered FM radio using the headphone cables as an antenna. I haven’t seen that supported anywhere since, which is a shame because I’d really like to get local stations on my phone.

Here in the EU, it tends to be disabled in software even if the hardware has it. I blame the French. They introduced a law that forbids radio receivers that don't support DAB radio, as a way to make the newer DAB format take off. But globally, DAB never did so phone hardware don't have it. In the EU, distribution chains often cross borders and it would be too bothersome to have models with special firmware just for F…

My Xiamoi Redmi Note 8 Pro that I bought from Orange (french telephone provider) here in France in 2020 definitely is currently receiving FM Radio (uses the headphones for reception) and it is even documented on their site https://assistance.orange.fr/mobile-tablette/tous-les-mobile...

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#237
I like my MX mouse though I wish I could customize the buttons better without installing their software.

There’s something about their software that makes me feel like it is going to spy on me and use all my computers resources.

Their craft keyboard also looks super nice, although I can’t imagine the wheel being useful without their software running.

I like flat keyboards. I don’t game. Who else makes premium stuff in the pc office segment?

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> What's the problem of Logitech with Bluetooth? From what I've seen, Logitech devices seem to have the transmit power set very high. Like use-it-from-multiple-rooms-away high. I have no idea why they do this, but it tends to make my PCs take a bit longer to detect other Bluetooth devices in the area. But not to the point that they won't connect or function. This includes pretty janky stuff like my hand-built keyboar…

I see. But there is a maximum tx power that Bluetooth devices can transmit legally, is it just high tx power or something else? Regardless, my issue can be solved via software: it's not "always connecting because of high tx power". I have other Bluetooth devices paired and none of them try to connect to other peers when I forcibly disconnect them until I explicitly hit connect or do a power cycle. On the other hand,…

There's a maximum transmit power for the 2.4GHz band (without an operator license). If that maximum isn't exceeded, I don't necessarily see a problem here, unless Logitech is doing something really really sketchy on the EM spectrum. Implementing broken Bluetooth without calling it Bluetooth isn't forbidden as far as I know, for example, though it'd be quite a shitty thing to do.

If this notice is specially written for Airpods and not just any Bluetooth headset then it might as well be an Airpods problem.

I've never had issues with the dongles that come with Logitech on any of my devices. Bluetooth is terrible for high-frequency input and audio streaming anyway, so the in my experience the dongles are a much better solution.

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#239
post #161

I have frequently had to put the Logi dongle at the end of a USB extension cord to get it to work at all. So much so I don't bother to try without, anymore. Apparently their RF protocol is incompatible with having a USB 3 transceiver too close by, and it cannot be fixed. So, wondering if problems resolve with an extension. If so, it would be odd for Logi not to know about it. They were the source of the original sugg…

USB3 ports operating at high speeds can cause signal interference on the 2.4GHz band. This can be a problem for WiFi dongles, though Bluetooth dongles are often more sensitive to this.

It's just a side effect of the frequency some devices operate at. It's a physics problem that's difficult to solve. Theoretically you could limit the bandwidth if your USB ports to USB2 but that's probably not what you want either.

Random search result that seems to explain the problem with some sources: https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/jfnbbk/til_usb_30...

Re: Logitech MX Products are incompatible with AirPods

#240
post #116

Tangentially related: I’ve found that if I use a specific USB type C extension cable with my USB/DP dock, my MX Master 3 stops working reliably over BT or Logitech's Unified receiver - even on other computers. I think the extension cable throws off interference in the 2.4GHz range. Other 2.4 GHz devices seem to have some issues too when I do that, but the mouse in particular is unusable. Has anyone experienced someth…

USB3 operating at certain speeds causes 2.4GHz interference. If your cable isn't sufficiently shielded (or the shielding is sufficiently damaged) you may just turn it into an antenna for that inherent interference.

You're not alone in this: https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/jfnbbk/til_usb_30...

I've seen this problem cause people with WiFi dongles to lose 2.4GHz connectivity. The solution was often to use a USB 2.0 port, but these days you won't find as many of those.

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