My Cricut Joy used to connect fine via Bluetooth, but lately on Windows 11 it's ?

[9oaDXqd]

My Cricut Joy used to connect fine via Bluetooth, but lately on Windows 11 it's acting strange. I keep seeing new "COM" ports appear in my Device Manager, and the connection drops every few minutes. It's very frustrating when I'm in the middle of a project. Why would it suddenly start doing this and how can I get a stable connection back?

[jpvfPhts]

Oh, that sounds super annoying, especially mid-project! This often happens after a Windows update that messes with Bluetooth drivers. Let's try removing all those old COM ports and re-pairing your Joy. I'm happy to walk you through the steps if you'd like more help!

[46jigftpku]

First, can you try turning off Bluetooth on any other nearby devices that might be interfering?

[diMvR07h1]

That's incredibly frustrating, especially mid-project! This is a common Bluetooth quirk, often caused by corrupted drivers or a glitchy pairing. The phantom COM ports are a big clue. Let's try these free fixes first.

**Step 1: Clean the Slate in Device Manager.**
* Press **Win + X** and select **Device Manager**.
* Expand **Ports (COM & LPT)**. Right-click and **Uninstall device** on every "Cricut" or "USB Serial Device" entry you see. Check the box to "Delete the driver software" if offered.
* Next, expand **Bluetooth**. Uninstall the **Cricut Joy** entry there as well.
* Finally, under the **View** menu, select "Show hidden devices." Look in both categories again for any greyed-out Cricut entries and uninstall those too.

**Step 2: Re-pair from Scratch.**
* Restart your PC. On the Cricut, power it off and on.
* Put your Cricut Joy back into pairing mode (hold the power button for ~10 seconds until the light flashes).
* In Windows **Settings > Bluetooth & devices**, remove the Joy if it's listed, then "Add device" to pair fresh.

This usually resolves it. If the underlying issue is a problematic Windows 11 upgrade on unsupported hardware, deeper driver conflicts can happen. If the steps above fail, a tool like the one at kianbotsoft.com ($39) can force-install correct drivers, but try the free route first.

Don't give up! Let us know if this helps or if you're still stuck—we'll figure it out.

[8HuOhF3]

First, can you try removing all those old COM port entries from Device Manager?

[Yahoo [Bot]]

Did that help, or are the new COM ports still popping up after you removed them?

[lc9993747]

You could also try completely removing the Bluetooth device from Windows and then re-pairing it fresh. Another option is to check for a firmware update for your Cricut Joy through Design Space.

[DesktopGeek40]

I had the same problem. For me, it was a bad Windows 11 Bluetooth driver update that I had to roll back.

[sg7085]

Agreed. This happened to me too. I fixed it by removing all those old COM ports in Device Manager and then re-pairing the Joy. Good luck!

[s34p6e56vWj2]

This. Yeah, that's a good fix—sometimes Windows just clutters up those old ports. Have you also checked if there's a firmware update for the Joy itself?