@Rob_Fellows. Just an FYI as you continue to troubleshoot your challenges with BT connectivity. About a week ago, I began using the Companion App to sync my devices (Kickr 2017, Stages Left Side power meter/cadence and my Viiiiva heart rate monitor) via BT. I have not experienced a single dropout at all over many rides. I’m hoping this holds. Just wanted to update you on my situation. I truly hope this gets resolved for you soon and I thank you for being a data-driven voice for this issue. Ride On!!
How can I verify it?
@Nicola_Lecchi - Use Elite’s Upgrado app.
As an example, I have firmware v108, hardware revision 4.
Would be good to know if your new board differs as it may help Zwift with BLE compatibility issues.
Firmware 153, hardware revision 003
Hey @Carl_D_ICC, I just checked my firmware/hardware… firmware 108, hardware rev 4. Exactly the same as you. The first thing that is consistent in this entire story!
Funny how @Nicola_Lecchi has a new board with a seemingly lower hardware revision. I guess somehow in Elite’s world 003 is newer than 4. 
OK, so I managed to get hold of another board for my Qubo Digital Smart B+. This one has firmware 153 on hardware revision 009.
Result - zero BLE drops. Period.
Conclusion - this is a version support issue on this trainer.
To provide a very graphical illustration…
Firmware 108 on hardware revision rev4
20 minutes, 26+ BLE drops
Firmware 153 on hardware revision 009
20 minutes, 0 BLE drops
I cannot personally say that my old board (firmware 108 on hardware revision rev4) ever worked with Zwift on BLE - I just don’t know. As previously documented, I had been using the trainer with Zwift on ANT+ until switching my set up to BLE for Apple TV earlier in the year. But there are others here who previously had older versions of this trainer working under BLE.
From my testing what I know to be true with the current version of Zwift on Apple TV (1.0.51339) and the Elite Qubo Digital Smart B+ trainer is:
- Firmware 108 on hardware revision rev4 - ANT+ not tested, assumed working. BLE not usable, multiple drops
- Firmware 153 on hardware revision 009 - ANT+ not tested, assumed working. BLE works great
Be warned, be aware! Unless Zwift can fix this (possibly they can’t, possibly it is out of their control) older versions of the Elite Qubo Digital Smart B+ only work properly under ANT+. I would consider BLE is not supported for older versions of this trainer at the time of writing.
I’m glad I found this post as I thought it was my setup.
Our setup: Kickr 2016 & 2018 (2 weeks old), Apple TV, Zwift companion app.
On the 2016 Kickr we use the companion app to connect the Kickr, wahoo HR and Cadence. While we notice frequent dropouts, we really notice them when doing workouts (erg mode). Zwift App will disconnect from the Zwift session and will return to the main screen and avatar will stop moving. WiFi icon shows it is still connected (this happened while in airplane mode so it wasn’t trying to connect to cellular). For the past couple of weeks we’ve dropped the cadence and connected directly to ATV and no issues.
No issues with the 2018 Kickr because I can connect directly to ATV and get my power and cadence from the Kickr. I have had the companion app running for texting and thumbs up and have had dropouts but due to being connected directly there’s been no issues. This morning I decided to do a workout and run the 2018 BT through the app vs ATV. As expected once the app lost connection to Zwift everything stopped working (again was in airplane mode to ensure no cellular interference). What I also experienced was that once I was reconnected, erg mode wouldn’t go below zone 2 even though erg was engaged. I powered the Kickr down during mid-workout and this would re-engage erg but it wouldn’t honor the zone 2 setting but would work fine once the workout switched to Z3
Any progress to report?
I realize this thread is a couple years old, but I have recently experienced this issue. I have done numerous tests with devices and apps, and the problem is ALWAYS between the trainer and Zwift, using BLE. It seems to work using ANT+ on my Mac just fine, and TrainerRoad works fine over BLE. It connects to my Garmin Edge just fine too. It drops constantly on an AppleTV, iPad, and iPhone, various models–iPhone 11, iPhone 12, iPad 9 and 10th gen, two different AppleTVs. The Elite Upgrado app says I’m up to date with firmware 152 and it won’t do any upgrades. I have reconfigured cords and other devices to eliminate interference (which seems dumb, BT connections can be near each other without conflicts, that’s the whole point).
Prior to a few months ago all these devices worked just fine, so I don’t know what has changed, but it seems to be on the Zwift side?
Thanks for the detailed breakdown — super helpful. I’m experiencing the exact same issue with the Elite Qubo Digital B+ and it’s driving me nuts. Constant Bluetooth dropouts every minute or so, always recovering after a second or two, but enough to ruin rides and skew power data.
I’ve got a similar setup (MacBook + iPhone) and also didn’t have these issues before the recent Zwift update (v1.0.48306 / 1.0.48093). I’ve gone through a lot of the same troubleshooting steps — disconnecting peripherals, re-pairing devices, clean reinstalls — nothing seems to fix it. What’s odd is that everything runs flawlessly on TrainerRoad and RGT, so it’s definitely Zwift-specific.
ERG mode weirdly works fine, but like you said, the power drops make free rides and races a pain — legs are going, but game thinks I’ve coasted to a stop. Really hoping Zwift takes a look at the BLE code in this release.
Let’s hope a hotfix is on the way soon. Appreciate any updates if you hear from Zwift support directly.
Cheers!
Have you already tried using a Bluetooth dongle on an extension cable? That is the most common and inexpensive solution that is within your control. In a Mac you can configure the OS to prefer the dongle but fall back to built-in Bluetooth when it’s not present. Instructions and shopping advice specific to macOS are in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5ANG75W24Y
I don’t think you should expect a speedy change from Zwift, especially since no problem has been acknowledged by them AFAIK.
Wow, this is a throwback. I found my notes from 5 years ago, and posting now so it can be of use to others. I no longer own the Qubo so can’t be of further assistance…
Elite kindly sent me a new control board.
- Hardware rev 9 / Firmware v153
- Using Dynastream D52MD2M8IA - based on nRF52832 SoC
The old one was:
- Hardware rev 4 / Firmware v108
- Using Dynastream N548M8CB - based on nRF51422 SoC
There were noticeable changes to the physical board with revisions around the BLE & ANT chip along with numerous other components.
The chipset change alone was a significant leap forwards from the original shipped part and may help diagnosing current or future incompatibility issues.
After testing, BLE worked as expected. So that was three of us who had replaced boards and seen stable BLE connections - Indicating a hardware implementation (Elite) or hardware support (Zwift) issue for the earlier board revision.
I functionally tested Zwift, RGT, FulGaz, Sufferfest and a Wahoo head unit with success.
One observation (I had) was the unit no longer going to sleep when not in use, with the power LED (now much brighter) staying on. Not a problem, just different behaviour.
If I recall, I emailed Elite and they sent me the new board during lockdown. I was very grateful to them for going above and beyond!