You 'can't' turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth from iOS 11 Control Center

It might seems like a bug, but this is exactly what Apple intended to do


Tech Desk September 21, 2017
iOS 11. PHOTO: NARENDAR KHATRI

What do you do when you're not using Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on your mobile? You turn them off as it saves your battery, and ends any vulnerabilities associated with the connection.

But if you are an iPhone user and have already upgraded to the latest operating system iOS 11, it isn't easy for you to turn these features off.

When you toggle Bluetooth and Wi-Fi off from the new Control Center, it doesn’t turn them off. Instead, it disconnects you from other Bluetooth devices and Wi-Fi networks.



This might seems like a bug, but this is exactly what Apple intended to do. As Motherboard pointed, Apple in its support document said: “In iOS 11 and later, when you toggle the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth buttons in Control Center, your device will immediately disconnect from Wi-Fi and Bluetooth accessories.”

Some apps will not work with the new iOS 11

Apparently, this is because the company wants both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to be available such that iPhone owners could continue using AirDrop, AirPlay, Apple Pencil, Apple Watch, Location Services, and other features.



Talking to Motherboard, Andrea Barisani, one of the first persons to notice this change, said the new user interface is not obvious at all and makes the user experience more "uncomfortable".

Barisani says turning off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi is a “good practice” as it reduces exposure to potential attacks to hardware, firmware and software.

So, if you really turn off your Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, do it from the Settings tab!

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