Sony A1 Sony A1 and RMT-P1BT not Connecting

[stevedb123]

I have a Sony A1 and purchased a Sony RMT-P1BT to trigger it remotely. On my first attempt to link the camera to the remote, the a1 was running firmware v1.10. I followed the instructions very carefully and tried to get them to pair but no success. I searched around and saw a post somewhere that I needed to update the camera's firmware.

I successfully updated from 1.10 to 1.35 to 2.01. Now I am running 2.01.


Things are worse. When I go to turn on the Bluetooth via Network > Bluetooth > Bluetooth Function > On I get the following error message:



The Wifi/Bluetooth unit has
malfunctioned.
Cannot use the wireless network
function.



What?

At least with firmware v1.10 I was able to turn Bluetooth on. Now I am completely dead in the water.

Just to confirm, I went to Network > Cnct./Remote Sht. > Smartphone Connection and I see the message:

Sets the camera "Bluetooth Function: to "On"
OK
Cancel

When I select OK, I get exactly the same message:

The Wifi/Bluetooth unit has
malfunctioned.
Cannot use the wireless network
function.

Does anyone have any experience with this issue? Do I have a hardware problem with the camera? Did the firmware upgrade somehow brick the Bluetooth functionality? Is there any other setting that might affect the Bluetooth/Wifi functionality?

Work Arounds?

are there any other ways to remotely trigger the a1 that don't rely on a Smart phone or the RMT-P1BT? I only need 10 ft of range.

Optical trigger?
Cam Ranger? (unfortunately my Cam Ranger is an older one and may not work with the A1)

A whole lot of hours have been eaten away at what should be a fairly straightforward setup.

 

[Phil Vetra]

I think you should go to the Sony A1 update page and update to version ver. 4.00 link here -

https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/e-mount-body-ilce-1-series/ilce-1/downloads

This may fix it.

 

[stevedb123]

I had hoped that going from 1.10 to 2.01 would fix the issue but if you think 4.00 might fix things I will give it a try today and report back. Question: Does Sony publish a list of fixes with each upgrade? I come from a software background and many of the software products I use provide a fairly detailed list of fixes and enhancements associated with each software update.

 

[Phil Vetra]

The update I find the focus is stickier and seems to get it faster and some more options....you'll like it. Sony is not so forth coming with all the changes in the updates. They say improves stability of the camera. What ever that means!

 

[stevedb123]

The update I find the focus is stickier and seems to get it faster and some more options....you'll like it. Sony is not so forth coming with all the changes in the updates. They say improves stability of the camera. What ever that means!

Just installed 4.00 successfully on the a1 body. When I go to NETWORK -> BLUETOOTH -> BLUETOOTH FUNCTION -> ON it now works! I have to leave for work now but I will try to pair the RMT-P1BT later in the day and send you an update. Thanks for your help.

 

[stevedb123]

OK, So after installing firmware v4.00 I was able for a short time to get the Bluetooth function to go to ON. HOWEVER, When I then went to Network -> Bluetooth -> Bluetooth Rmt Ctrl -> ON I immediately got an error screen again:

The Wifi/Bluetoth unit has
malfunctioned.
Cannot use the wireless network
function.

So apparently the upgrade from v2.01 to v4.00 has not been helpful and I am beginning to believe that the camera has a hardware fault. Also I immediately get this same error now when trying to turn Bluetooth Function to ON.

 

[iamdlewis]

One more test to do before you reach out to Sony and that is can you connect to the Creators' App? This isn't going to be super helpful for connecting to the flash but it will be something that Sony will ask so you might as well get ahead of that.

 

[stevedb123]

David,
Creator's app won't help because same problems with WiFi as with Bluetooth.

Having done some further research on reddit r/SonyAlpha this appears to be a common (or should I say not uncommon) problem with the a1 and not just due to firmware. Likely the Bluetooth/Wifi module is damaged or otherwise not working. Others reported than Sony was not helpful and repairing the module appears to cost more than $1000 out-of-warranty. When I got my a1 in middle of 2022 I never tested any of the connectivity functionality because I used it primarily for shooting performances of dance, theater and opera.

Recently I wanted to play around with some self portraits in my studio (inspired by @photobergllc on IG) so the first thing I though of was "well I got this remote for the a1 in case I ever needed it, so let's get it working." However I could never get it to pair. More research and I then started upgrading the firmware all the way to 4.00. However this hasn't helped.

So I am sadly concluding that my camera body simply has no Bluetooth or WiFi function at all and I'm certainly not sending it in to Sony to fix for $1000.

I do have a fall back which I'll be trying shortly - I have a CamRanger 2 which I haven't used for a few years but which may be able to talk to the Sony body (will need a special cable, no doubt). And if that doesn't work I'll hook the CamRanger to my Nikon D850 and do the self portraits with that.

All I can say is that many hours have been wasted and still no self portrait work.

 

[iamdlewis]

You can connect to the app via NFC so if you need to get a fix make sure you test all the connection types so you get them all fixed.

 

[Phil Vetra]

I find that it is a hit and miss kind of thing. and when your 30 ft. away you loose contact with the phone.