Intriguing iPhone/App behaviour

[SpringHeeledJack]

This is a generalised query, as unless others have the same app and OS the experience could well be different. So...I have a sports watch and it monitors my performance ;-) when partaking in various activities. It can link to an app on smartphones, in my case, an iPhone. Although the watch is 4 years old and there are newer models, it has worked well synching to the app. After the last OS update several weeks ago (13.3) the watch stopped syncing, well it managed 99% but would refuse to complete despite probably a hundred attempts in the last weeks. I had resigned myself to the fact that the developers hadn't bothered to write a few lines of code to allow for the OS 13.3 upgrade and was going to wait for the next upgrade/tinkering of the app in the new year.

However, 2 days ago, it decided to sync and since then has done so several times without issue. My question to the panel is, why would the successful congress suddenly take place after refusing to do so since the OS upgrade ? Nothing had/has changed. Might there have been some type of micro-update, although no main updates happen automatically in my settings ?

[SpringHeeledJack]

Anyone ? Someone must have experience this with some app before ?

[Jhieminga]

As you didn't include the brand/type of sports watch and the name of the app, it is difficult to determine if it is familiar or not. Different developers have different ways of dealing with software updates and as you already mentioned, a small update of the watch or the app may have solved it. Did you check the website for the watch brand to see what their advice is on using their product with iOS 13.3?

[SpringHeeledJack]

I didn't mention the specifics because I was after a more general answer (assuming that few would have my watch/app combo), it was more about how an app would suddenly stop working (after an OS update), then after loads of failed attempts over a few weeks suddenly start working again without any updates or other interventions. The watch/app are from Suunto and there has been nothing on the company's website or the developer's website about any issues. Up until this experience I've not had such a problem (1st World) before. I just wondered if anyone else had had such a weird experience. :-)

[Bull at a Gate]

Sounds like your iOS updated without you noticing.

[Thrust Augmentation]

As above an update that's gone on unnoticed or possibly power down & restart or hot boot.

[SpringHeeledJack]

My phone is set for manual updates, so it must have done it unnoticed! During the frustrating weeks of trying to sync, the phone was turned on and off several times and the app deleted and re-installed and the watch 'forgotten' and paired several times, ALL to now avail, until it did... :-)

[Jhieminga]

The only conclusion we can draw from that is that you finally found the right combination of actions, in the right order, at the right location and with the moon in the correct position relative to you to allow the process to complete. There are so many variables within just a telephone and a watch to make troubleshooting stuff like this a complete wild goose chase. You could have had problems because of another Bluetooth enabled device nearby, or a conflict with another app on the phone that did get updated in the interim, or something else entirely. We all know the quote 'Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.', sadly, in computing, we have to do exactly that at times...