iPhone Bluetooth Pairing Guide for an Anki Remote

To pair a MODI Anki remote with an iPhone, use iOS Bluetooth settings and put the remote in Switch Mode by holding Y plus Home for one second. Select the MODI entry, then confirm the center LED becomes solid blue. For AnkiMobile, this pairing state matters because iOS must recognize the remote as a gamepad-style controller before AnkiMobile’s review controls can be assigned inside the app’s own settings rather than through a MODI desktop add-on or keyboard preset.

MODI is an independent Bluetooth accessory, not an official Anki or Apple product, so pairing problems should be narrowed down by state: the saved iPhone entry, the remote’s current mode, LED confirmation, and what AnkiMobile is configured to do after iOS connects. If you need broader button setup after Bluetooth succeeds, use the complete MODI setup tutorial. This guide stays on iPhone pairing, reconnection, and device switching rather than general study workflow advice or unrelated desktop customization steps in this pass.

Bluetooth-Settings

Start in the iPhone’s Bluetooth settings, not inside AnkiMobile. Open Settings, choose Bluetooth, and leave that screen visible while you wake the remote and start pairing. Keeping the system Bluetooth page open lets you see whether iOS is finding a new device, reconnecting to an old saved entry, or doing nothing. If Bluetooth is off, turn it on first, then wait a moment before starting the MODI button combination for the intended iPhone connection attempt from scratch again.

Do not judge pairing from AnkiMobile alone, because the app can only use inputs that iOS has already accepted. A remote can be charged and awake while still not being connected to the phone. The Bluetooth list is the source for that status on iPhone. If the MODI entry appears but will not connect, treat that as a saved-pairing issue first instead of immediately changing AnkiMobile review actions or assuming a button map has failed within the app.

Switch-Mode

For the standard iPhone setup, MODI should pair in Switch Mode. With the Bluetooth settings screen open, hold Y plus Home for one second, then look for the MODI connection in the available-device list. This mode exposes gamepad-style inputs, which is why it is the recommended path for AnkiMobile on iPhone and iPad. Keyboard Mode is a separate desktop workflow and should not be mixed into this pairing attempt when the goal is mobile review control on iOS.

If you previously paired in another mode, the iPhone may keep trying to reuse that older Bluetooth profile. That can make the remote appear connected while the expected AnkiMobile controls are unavailable. When the goal is iPhone use, set up the remote again in Switch Mode instead of relying on a remembered connection. The button combination is short, but it must be done while the phone is ready to discover devices and save the correct profile cleanly first.

Saved-Cleanup

When pairing fails, clean up saved device entries before repeating the process. In iPhone Bluetooth settings, open the information button for every saved MODI or Anki remote entry you can identify, then choose the option to forget that device. The same cleanup is important when changing modes, because iOS may otherwise reconnect to the last profile it stored. After forgetting the entries, start the Y plus Home Switch Mode pairing steps again from the open Bluetooth settings screen.

Do the cleanup on the device you are trying to use now, not only on the previous phone, tablet, or computer. A saved entry on the iPhone can remain stale even if MODI is no longer paired elsewhere. If the remote still seems attached to another host, remove its old Bluetooth listing there as well, then return to the iPhone. This gives the fresh pairing attempt fewer conflicting paths before iOS writes a new Switch Mode record again.

LED-Checks

After you select MODI in Bluetooth settings, use the center LED as the remote-side confirmation. A successful Switch Mode connection is shown by a solid blue center LED. That does not assign AnkiMobile actions by itself; it only confirms the Bluetooth mode and connection state described by MODI. If the center LED is not solid blue, finish Bluetooth troubleshooting before changing review control settings inside the app or reassigning buttons in a different configuration screen on iOS first.

A quickly flashing red LED means low battery, so charge the remote before treating the iPhone as the problem. During charging, the LED flashes green, and the charging LED turns off when charging is complete. Those signals are limited to the states the manual defines. They should not be read as exact battery percentages or as proof that AnkiMobile has received any specific command. Use them only to separate power status from Bluetooth pairing status during setup checks.

Home-Reconnect

Once the iPhone has a clean Switch Mode pairing, normal reconnection is simpler. Press Home to wake the remote and reconnect in the last-used mode. For an iPhone workflow, that last-used mode should be Switch Mode from the Y plus Home setup. If the remote wakes but the phone does not connect, return to Bluetooth settings and check whether the saved MODI entry still appears connected before opening AnkiMobile to test review controls in that same session again.

MODI also sleeps automatically after a short idle period, depending on connection and activity state. If it has slept, pressing Home is the expected wake-and-reconnect action. Holding Home for three seconds manually puts the remote to sleep or turns it off, so do not confuse that longer hold with a quick wake press. When diagnosing reconnection, keep the distinction clear: quick Home for wake, Y plus Home for fresh Switch Mode pairing from the iPhone’s Bluetooth list screen.

Device-Moves

When moving MODI from another phone, tablet, or computer to the iPhone, start as if the existing pairing cannot be trusted. Forget the saved remote entry on the old device when possible, forget any related entry on the iPhone, then pair again in Switch Mode. This avoids a common situation where the remote and iPhone each remember different states and neither gives you the behavior you expect during the next AnkiMobile control check on the review screen afterward.

If the iPhone shows MODI connected after a fresh pairing but AnkiMobile still does not respond, restart the iPhone and try again before escalating. Bluetooth state, saved pairings, battery state, app configuration, and host-device behavior can all affect the result. After the restart, confirm the solid blue LED, open AnkiMobile’s gamepad settings, and assign actions there. That separates a working Bluetooth link from AnkiMobile’s independent control mapping rather than blaming one component without a clean pairing test first.