Status of iOS 8.3 and External GPS Receivers
Greetings from the warm and muggy Sun 'n Fun air show in Lakeland, FL! We've enjoyed catching up with new and existing Bad Elf customers over the last 4 days. The first air show of the year is always special and motivates us going into the busy spring and summer flying seasons.
As of this morning, we still don't have any official updates re: the iOS 8.3 issue with external GPS receivers. As we've said before: please do not upgrade to iOS 8.3 if possible! We have heard rumors the issue has been fixed internally by Apple, but don't know when this fix will be released to the public. We're hoping for a 8.3.1 release, although it could also be released as part of the iOS 8.4 beta program.
As soon as we have any significant updates, we will quickly notify everyone via email, blog, Twitter, and Facebook. We are standing by to quickly test any iOS updates as soon as they are available.
If this issue is negatively impacting you, please contact us via email to support@bad-elf.com and we’ll see what we can do to help.
Update (28-April): Apple released an iOS 8.4 beta 2 update to developers and beta testers yesterday. Unfortunately, due to the confidentiality requirements of these programs, we’re not allowed to disclose any non-public information about this beta software — including how it affects the iOS 8.3 bug affecting external GPS receivers like ours.
Several sources including iLounge and MacRumors have posted articles about this release.
If you’d like to join Apple’s Beta Software Program, you can learn more and sign up on Apple’s site. Please make sure that you fully understand the risks associated with beta software before taking this path.
We still have our fingers crossed that this GPS issue will be fixed ASAP in a public (non-beta) iOS 8.3.1 update. We are also exploring multiple workaround options until this is resolved one way or another.
Like others, my Bad Elf Pro / iPad 2 combination stopped working when I updated the iPad to 8.3. I read that the Pro+ might work so I got one of those as a work around. No such luck. Then yesterday I read in another blog that the problem seemed to be associated with 30-pin iOS devices (the old, pre-lightning, connector. I also have a iPhone 6 Plus, a lightning connector device, so I did a little more experimenting. It turns out that, for me in limited testing, the Pro+ does work with the 6 Plus but not with the iPad 2 but the Pro does not work with either the iPad 2 or the 6 Plus. Go figure! I don’t have a lightning connector iPad but I’d sure like to try one.
I use Navionics with Bad Elf for fishing and boating and now can’t even roll back to iOS 8.2 ver on the IPad to get things working again, now have to wait for someone in Apple with some balls to fix this.
We are currently sailing in the San Juans – and the fact that Apple still has not fixed this issue is indeed vexing, to say the least. Perhaps iPads are becoming toys, especially since the main feature of the 8.3 update was to add additional “cute” emoticons…
Luckily for me, I still have one of the first gen IPads, and that works with software dating back to ver. 5.1
Apple had a beta testing program for iOS 8.3 for several months before releasing it to the public. As a company with products so dependent on bluetooth connectivity with Apple products why didn’t you have the foresight to try the beta versions and see if any problems were apparent? I’ve been without the use of my GPS Pro for a month now since I updated four phones and iPads immediately after release of 8.3. A couple of days later you advised of the problem. Are you testing iOS beta 8.4 or do we have to again just wait and see if it works?
Ed Russell — I understand your frustration. As of right now, we still do not have an update on the situation. We are hoping to have a resolution soon, however we do not have any visibility into Apple’s iOS update process.
Apple released an iOS 8.4 beta 3 update to developers and beta testers today. Unfortunately, (as mentioned above for the 8.3b3 update) due to the confidentiality requirements of these programs, we’re not allowed to disclose any non-public information about this beta software — including how it affects the iOS 8.3 bug affecting external GPS receivers like ours.