diff --git a/.github/spellcheck-wordlist.txt b/.github/spellcheck-wordlist.txt
index 3dab6c08f..c20297a9a 100644
--- a/.github/spellcheck-wordlist.txt
+++ b/.github/spellcheck-wordlist.txt
@@ -68,6 +68,7 @@ ATRAC
 BlueALSA
 BlueZ
 Fraunhofer
+iPhone
 IWYU
 LDAC
 LHDC
diff --git a/doc/bluealsa-aplay.1.rst b/doc/bluealsa-aplay.1.rst
index 44a94c910..9cc01f780 100644
--- a/doc/bluealsa-aplay.1.rst
+++ b/doc/bluealsa-aplay.1.rst
@@ -89,7 +89,7 @@ OPTIONS
 
 --pcm-buffer-time=INT
     Set the playback PCM buffer duration time to *INT* microseconds.
-    The default is 500000. It is recommended to choose a buffer time that is
+    The default is 200000. It is recommended to choose a buffer time that is
     an exact multiple of the period time to avoid potential issues with some
     ALSA plugins (see --pcm-period-time option below).
     ALSA may choose the nearest available alternative if the requested value is
@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ OPTIONS
 
 --pcm-period-time=INT
     Set the playback PCM period duration time to *INT* microseconds.
-    The default is 100000.
+    The default is 50000.
     ALSA may choose the nearest available alternative if the requested value is
     not supported.
 
@@ -232,12 +232,12 @@ Instead it will choose its own values, which can lead to rounding errors in the
 period size calculation when used with the ALSA `rate` plugin. To avoid this,
 it is recommended to explicitly define the hardware period size and buffer size
 for dmix in your ALSA configuration. For example, suppose we want a period time
-of 100000 µs and a buffer holding 5 periods with an Intel 'PCH' card:
+of 50000 µs and a buffer holding 4 periods with an Intel 'PCH' card:
 
 ::
 
-    defaults.dmix.PCH.period_time 100000
-    defaults.dmix.PCH.periods 5
+    defaults.dmix.PCH.period_time 50000
+    defaults.dmix.PCH.periods 4
 
 Alternatively we can define a PCM with the required setting:
 
@@ -250,8 +250,8 @@ Alternatively we can define a PCM with the required setting:
             ipc_key 12345
             slave {
                 pcm "hw:0,0"
-                period_time 100000
-                periods 5
+                period_time 50000
+                periods 4
             }
         }
     }
diff --git a/utils/aplay/alsa-pcm.c b/utils/aplay/alsa-pcm.c
index f47546839..48c41ac79 100644
--- a/utils/aplay/alsa-pcm.c
+++ b/utils/aplay/alsa-pcm.c
@@ -89,14 +89,16 @@ static int alsa_pcm_set_sw_params(snd_pcm_t *pcm, snd_pcm_uframes_t buffer_size,
 		goto fail;
 	}
 
-	/* start the transfer when the buffer is full (or almost full) */
-	snd_pcm_uframes_t threshold = (buffer_size / period_size) * period_size;
+	/* Start the transfer when the buffer is half full - this allows
+	 * spare capacity to accommodate bursts and short breaks in the
+	 * Bluetooth stream. */
+	snd_pcm_uframes_t threshold = buffer_size / 2;
 	if ((err = snd_pcm_sw_params_set_start_threshold(pcm, params, threshold)) != 0) {
 		snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "Set start threshold: %s: %lu", snd_strerror(err), threshold);
 		goto fail;
 	}
 
-	/* allow the transfer when at least period_size samples can be processed */
+	/* Allow the transfer when at least period_size samples can be processed. */
 	if ((err = snd_pcm_sw_params_set_avail_min(pcm, params, period_size)) != 0) {
 		snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "Set avail min: %s: %lu", snd_strerror(err), period_size);
 		goto fail;
diff --git a/utils/aplay/aplay.c b/utils/aplay/aplay.c
index 67fc5c7da..cdaf348d8 100644
--- a/utils/aplay/aplay.c
+++ b/utils/aplay/aplay.c
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@
 #include <string.h>
 #include <syslog.h>
 #include <sys/eventfd.h>
+#include <sys/ioctl.h>
 #include <sys/param.h>
 #include <sys/time.h>
 #include <unistd.h>
@@ -86,8 +87,11 @@ static bool ba_profile_a2dp = true;
 static bool ba_addr_any = false;
 static bdaddr_t *ba_addrs = NULL;
 static size_t ba_addrs_count = 0;
-static unsigned int pcm_buffer_time = 500000;
-static unsigned int pcm_period_time = 100000;
+/* Many devices cannot synchronize A/V with very high audio latency. To keep
+ * the overall latency below 400ms we choose ALSA parameters such that the
+ * ALSA latency is below 200ms. */
+static unsigned int pcm_buffer_time = 200000;
+static unsigned int pcm_period_time = 50000;
 
 /* local PCM muted state for software mute */
 static bool pcm_muted = false;
@@ -817,11 +821,19 @@ static void *io_worker_routine(struct io_worker *w) {
 		ffb_shift(&buffer, frames * w->ba_pcm.channels);
 
 		int ret;
-		if ((ret = snd_pcm_delay(w->snd_pcm,
-						&pcm_delay_frames[pcm_delay_frames_i++ % ARRAYSIZE(pcm_delay_frames)])) != 0)
+		snd_pcm_sframes_t delay_frames = 0;
+		if ((ret = snd_pcm_delay(w->snd_pcm, &delay_frames)) != 0)
 			warn("Couldn't get PCM delay: %s", snd_strerror(ret));
 		else {
 
+			unsigned int buffered = 0;
+			ioctl(w->ba_pcm_fd, FIONREAD, &buffered);
+			buffered += ffb_blen_out(&buffer);
+			delay_frames +=  buffered / (w->ba_pcm.channels * pcm_format_size);
+
+			pcm_delay_frames[pcm_delay_frames_i % ARRAYSIZE(pcm_delay_frames)] = delay_frames;
+			pcm_delay_frames_i++;
+
 			struct timespec ts_now;
 			/* Rate limit delay updates to 1 update per second. */
 			struct timespec ts_delay = { .tv_sec = 1 };