no, it works like every other bluetooth device,
in my opinion Bose does this better with their multi connecting.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Airpods - new owners views, problems and questions
- Thread starter dave2010
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
no, it works like every other bluetooth device,
in my opinion Bose does this better with their multi connecting.
Oh so you have to manually pair to the iPad? I thought it would be a little more automated on iOS devices.
You use control centre on the device you want to switch to. In the music controller you switch to AirPods
The AirPod case needs to be open.g
Last edited:
Look through or search this thread for foam covers. Early in the thread I suggested standard old school covers but a little later suggested the doughnut style covers. Theses are great and would probably resolve this issue for you. It also creates a better seal that I think improves the sound.
[edit] post 521
I have two iPAD Pros 9.7 (256 wifi+cel and 128 wifi only). They both use the same Apple-ID.
I didn't have to press the button in the case to pair them, I believe they were recognized promptly in the bluetooth settings. Once paired, I only have to switch between them and the iPAD own speakers, when I want to use them again.
I find that both iPADs recognize the phones once they are nearby. And the same goes for the ATV (in this case I paired them by pressing the button, still one day later I find that I only need to visit the ATV internal settings and connect them again).
For the ATV, depending on the source material, we need to adjust to 70, 80 or more %. I wish there was an easier way to do this in ATV itself.
And I believe the volume level is the same for them and the Earpods, perhaps 10% less for the Airpods, but it's very close.
One thing I would like to add is that there are few apps out there that allow this sort of trick:
http://help.nplayer.tv/en/36-2/setting/setting-gesture/
Funny thing is that the lack of this option is what spoils most the experience of using the Airpods if you are also accostumed to adjust the volume level by touching the iPAD screen. I do this to skip to other moments of the file, too. nPlayer Plus has this option, other apps don't. One that seriously need this is ProTube. The name of the feature is CUSTOM GESTURES.
We can always go here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202769
But it's not the same.
As for the Airpods charging case, we need to be very careful when opening, If we don't do that gently this thing could break one day... it's not very sturdy.
I didn't have to press the button in the case to pair them, I believe they were recognized promptly in the bluetooth settings. Once paired, I only have to switch between them and the iPAD own speakers, when I want to use them again.
I find that both iPADs recognize the phones once they are nearby. And the same goes for the ATV (in this case I paired them by pressing the button, still one day later I find that I only need to visit the ATV internal settings and connect them again).
For the ATV, depending on the source material, we need to adjust to 70, 80 or more %. I wish there was an easier way to do this in ATV itself.
And I believe the volume level is the same for them and the Earpods, perhaps 10% less for the Airpods, but it's very close.
One thing I would like to add is that there are few apps out there that allow this sort of trick:
http://help.nplayer.tv/en/36-2/setting/setting-gesture/
Funny thing is that the lack of this option is what spoils most the experience of using the Airpods if you are also accostumed to adjust the volume level by touching the iPAD screen. I do this to skip to other moments of the file, too. nPlayer Plus has this option, other apps don't. One that seriously need this is ProTube. The name of the feature is CUSTOM GESTURES.
We can always go here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202769
But it's not the same.
As for the Airpods charging case, we need to be very careful when opening, If we don't do that gently this thing could break one day... it's not very sturdy.
They automatically repair to the last device they were paired to.
Thank you for the procedure to switch and the pictures.You use control centre on the device you want to switch to. In the music controller you switch to AirPods
The AirPod case needs to be open.g
Are the Airpods still draining the battery if I don't use them and put them in my drawer and close it? I let them outside the case when not in use. Once I remove from my ears, the iPAD switchs to their speakers, still I saw that the Apple Pencil drains the battery even if not being used (the same can be said about the iPADs).
And there's something else: as I explained before, I have two IPPs 9.7... and they both have Bluetooth enabled. During the day I may also use the Pencil in one of them.
Edit: it looks like I selected them inadvertently in the iPad settings, while not in use... will see how things go from now.
And there's something else: as I explained before, I have two IPPs 9.7... and they both have Bluetooth enabled. During the day I may also use the Pencil in one of them.
Edit: it looks like I selected them inadvertently in the iPad settings, while not in use... will see how things go from now.
Last edited:
Thank you for your suggestion, I'll definitely give them a try. However, as bizarre as it may sound, if I use the AirPods in reverse order, in other words use the left pod in the right ear and the right pod in the left ear, they stay perfectly in place, do not hurt my ears and I get a perfect seal as well.
I may have weird ears 
Once paired on an Apple device it is shared across all devices. No need to re-pair
OK, I think I experienced what was mentioned here:
http://www.imore.com/having-battery-drain-problems-your-airpods-try
I reseted the Airpods, and will see if the battery continues to be drained too quickly. Now it's 96%, and I am not using in either iPAD or the ATV 4. I will fully discharge them, too. And while not in use, the pods themselves are not inside the charger case. They are in my drawer.
The thing is: having two IPPs 9.7 with Bluetooth enabled is perhaps doing what one user suggested?
Temporary at best. What seems to be an issue is when you are in the proximity of multiple devices that you've connected to and aren't connected/currently using them with any of the devices.
I don't like how they are handling when you take the pods out of your ears and leave them for extended periods, they continue to stay connected in some cases.
Why all these Apple devices like to drain battery and never can be shut off?
I have the Pencil connected to one of my iPADs. I don't need to do this procedure everytime I want to use it, which is to plug into the iPAD itself. I put the Pencil inside its case and over time the battery is drained, but at a slower rate than what I saw from the Airpods, I believe 5-10% in a matter of hours. Do I need to unpair the Airpods or disable Bluetooth for good until next time I use them?
It appears so, because they are inside my drawer and can still broadcast the percentage of battery left. Even the Apple Pencil stops doing that after a while... perhaps the Airpods somehow can't get away from the device they are connected to?
Since both iPADs use the same Apple-ID, I only need to put the Airpods in my ears to start listening in the last device it was paired. But the fact that we don't need to plug it like the Pencil may be the reason the battery is drained at a faster rate than what we would want.
The IMORE link says reseting the Airpods will fix this, and also a full discharge:
If you're still having problems, you may want to try fully draining both your case and AirPods before recharging: Redditor depressedsports tried this method and went from 4% hourly battery drops (without use) to only 1% total in a day (without use). If, after both a reset and full drain/recharge, your battery issues aren't disappearing, we suggest contacting Apple Support.
***********
OK, here's what I found out:
- I think reseting didn't change anything. I'll see what happens after a full discharge. And I'll monitor how much it's wasted while not in use.
- Perhaps the reason the Airpods still broadcast how much battery is left even while in my closed drawer and the Pencil doesn't do the same (only when near the iPAD where it was paired) is because the signal HAS TO BE stronger in the Airpods. This is normal, but it can be a problem if the battery keeps draining while not in use.
******
More findings:
More or less the battery is wasting 5-6% every hour, while not in use. It was 91% at 7:58 PM and now, 9:50 PM, it's 81%.
So it should be totally wasted 2:00 PM, tomorrow. I mean, the phones only, not the case.
Apple also says:
Get longer battery life
- Your AirPods charge in the case and are ready for you to use as soon as you open the lid.
- To keep your AirPods charged, put them in the case when you're not using them.
Learn about battery life
Your AirPods can get up to 5 hours of listening time or 2 hours of talk time on a single charge.
With multiple charges in your case, you get more than 24 hours of listening time, or up to 11 hours of talk time.
If you charge your AirPods for 15 minutes in your case, you get up to 3 hours of listening time or over an hour of talk time.
When the AirPod battery charge is low, you hear a tone in one or both AirPods. You hear the tone one time when the battery charge is low, and a second time right before the AirPods turn off.
http://www.imore.com/having-battery-drain-problems-your-airpods-try
I reseted the Airpods, and will see if the battery continues to be drained too quickly. Now it's 96%, and I am not using in either iPAD or the ATV 4. I will fully discharge them, too. And while not in use, the pods themselves are not inside the charger case. They are in my drawer.
The thing is: having two IPPs 9.7 with Bluetooth enabled is perhaps doing what one user suggested?
Temporary at best. What seems to be an issue is when you are in the proximity of multiple devices that you've connected to and aren't connected/currently using them with any of the devices.
I don't like how they are handling when you take the pods out of your ears and leave them for extended periods, they continue to stay connected in some cases.
Why all these Apple devices like to drain battery and never can be shut off?
I have the Pencil connected to one of my iPADs. I don't need to do this procedure everytime I want to use it, which is to plug into the iPAD itself. I put the Pencil inside its case and over time the battery is drained, but at a slower rate than what I saw from the Airpods, I believe 5-10% in a matter of hours. Do I need to unpair the Airpods or disable Bluetooth for good until next time I use them?
It appears so, because they are inside my drawer and can still broadcast the percentage of battery left. Even the Apple Pencil stops doing that after a while... perhaps the Airpods somehow can't get away from the device they are connected to?
Since both iPADs use the same Apple-ID, I only need to put the Airpods in my ears to start listening in the last device it was paired. But the fact that we don't need to plug it like the Pencil may be the reason the battery is drained at a faster rate than what we would want.
The IMORE link says reseting the Airpods will fix this, and also a full discharge:
If you're still having problems, you may want to try fully draining both your case and AirPods before recharging: Redditor depressedsports tried this method and went from 4% hourly battery drops (without use) to only 1% total in a day (without use). If, after both a reset and full drain/recharge, your battery issues aren't disappearing, we suggest contacting Apple Support.
***********
OK, here's what I found out:
- I think reseting didn't change anything. I'll see what happens after a full discharge. And I'll monitor how much it's wasted while not in use.
- Perhaps the reason the Airpods still broadcast how much battery is left even while in my closed drawer and the Pencil doesn't do the same (only when near the iPAD where it was paired) is because the signal HAS TO BE stronger in the Airpods. This is normal, but it can be a problem if the battery keeps draining while not in use.
******
More findings:
More or less the battery is wasting 5-6% every hour, while not in use. It was 91% at 7:58 PM and now, 9:50 PM, it's 81%.
So it should be totally wasted 2:00 PM, tomorrow. I mean, the phones only, not the case.
Apple also says:
Get longer battery life
- Your AirPods charge in the case and are ready for you to use as soon as you open the lid.
- To keep your AirPods charged, put them in the case when you're not using them.
Learn about battery life
Your AirPods can get up to 5 hours of listening time or 2 hours of talk time on a single charge.
With multiple charges in your case, you get more than 24 hours of listening time, or up to 11 hours of talk time.
If you charge your AirPods for 15 minutes in your case, you get up to 3 hours of listening time or over an hour of talk time.
When the AirPod battery charge is low, you hear a tone in one or both AirPods. You hear the tone one time when the battery charge is low, and a second time right before the AirPods turn off.
Last edited:
I recall someone asking how the Airpods fare whilst mowing the lawn. Not sure if it was in this thread....anyway...
Had a bit of gardening to do today, including mowing, so decided to do it donning Airpods.
So, mowing the lawn, with the Airpods at full volume & for me, it was fine. I could hear the music clear enough, despite the roaring engine at my feet (mower engine sticker states noise level at "75db", but I think it was higher).
It's the first time I've needed to use the Airpods at full volume, but it's a pass imo.
Had a bit of gardening to do today, including mowing, so decided to do it donning Airpods.
So, mowing the lawn, with the Airpods at full volume & for me, it was fine. I could hear the music clear enough, despite the roaring engine at my feet (mower engine sticker states noise level at "75db", but I think it was higher).
It's the first time I've needed to use the Airpods at full volume, but it's a pass imo.
I think the ultimate lawn mowing setup would be using the AirPods inside the Bose QC15 headphones. Just use the QC15 for noise cancelling only and let the AirPods operate in virtual silence. Since you would not have to crank them to absurd levels in order to drown the noise of the lawnmower, you would be protecting your hearing in the long run. If you don't have NC headphones, regular industrial earmuffs would do as well.
So far the experience has been great and couldn't be happier with my purchase. I've had a pair since the beginning of February.
No problems until about two days ago. The left Airpod randomly went off in the morning while during regular playback. I initially thought it was dead so naturally I dropped it in the case and carried on listening with the right as I continued to get ready for work. Later on I pulled it back out at work, but that's when I realized something was wrong. I kept repairing and trying to forget the set of AirPods but every time the HUD for connecting a new set the left AirPod would always show a red exclamation point under it.
I went to the Apple Store and was seen in about 15min. Initially the rep said he hasn't had any luck fixing a pair in store for previous customers. I showed him the issue I was having and he went in the back to get a left AirPod. Dropped in the case and started the pairing process and what do you know, it worked like a charm. Odd. He said he didn't know why that's happened and hasn't seen that problem before which is why he was also surprised it worked.
Still a happy camper.
I have small ears and no matter what I do, I cannot wear the AirPods the way Apple recommends without them hurting my ears and sliding out after a while. Before resorting to Earskinz or similar silicone devices with their main disadvantage of not being able to fit into the charging case, I decided to find if a non-conventional way of wearing them would help or not.
After experimenting with countless ways of finding the best fit for sound and comfort, I found two solutions that works for me. 1) Exchange the left and right pods for my ears. 2) Wear them facing up (see the attached picture).
Alternative 2 is the most comfortable way. I cannot even feel that they are in my ears even if I wear them for hours. The sound quality is perfect, I get a perfect seal and they never slide out even during workouts. The only disadvantage is; since the microphone is facing up, the sound quality is not the best for making phone calls to the person on the other end.
Alternative 1 is nearly as comfortable as 2. The sound is slightly more bass heavy, which may be a pleasing thing for those who love more bass. The microphone faces down and slightly forward and works fine with phone calls. The only disadvantage is that the left and the right channels are reversed, however this is really not a critical thing.
It doesn't hurt to experiment even if you have no apparent fitting problems with the AirPods. You may discover that one of these may work better for you as well.
I don't care what other people may think when they see me wearing my AirPods in a funny way. My comfort and satisfaction comes first.
After experimenting with countless ways of finding the best fit for sound and comfort, I found two solutions that works for me. 1) Exchange the left and right pods for my ears. 2) Wear them facing up (see the attached picture).
Alternative 2 is the most comfortable way. I cannot even feel that they are in my ears even if I wear them for hours. The sound quality is perfect, I get a perfect seal and they never slide out even during workouts. The only disadvantage is; since the microphone is facing up, the sound quality is not the best for making phone calls to the person on the other end.
Alternative 1 is nearly as comfortable as 2. The sound is slightly more bass heavy, which may be a pleasing thing for those who love more bass. The microphone faces down and slightly forward and works fine with phone calls. The only disadvantage is that the left and the right channels are reversed, however this is really not a critical thing.
It doesn't hurt to experiment even if you have no apparent fitting problems with the AirPods. You may discover that one of these may work better for you as well.
I don't care what other people may think when they see me wearing my AirPods in a funny way. My comfort and satisfaction comes first.
Attachments
Yeah it happens. What I usually do is restart the iPhone and its back to 10 seconds
10 seconds is also far too long, though. Sometimes it's just a second or two after I put it in my ear that it makes the connection chime.
Other times it's 30 seconds.
Other times it makes the connection sound within a second or two, then disconnects, and then reconnects a second or two later with the connection chime again!
Are airpods interchangeable? For example, if I swapped my right airpod with a friends right airpod- would it still work? For example are the 2 airpods permanently linked to the charging case?
I would think as long as they are re-paired they would work. Apple support replaces only one, if one is broken rather than giving you a new set of two.
Your unit is certainly defective. It doesn't take too long, it should be right after you put them in your ears.
Have you tried these steps?
a) Resetting to factory settings;
http://www.cultofmac.com/460767/resetting-airpods-fix-battery-drain/
b) Checking firmware version (note: this can only be done using the iPhone - I wasn't able to do with my iPAD):
https://9to5mac.com/2017/02/06/how-to-view-airpods-hardware-details-check-and-update-firmware-video/
c) Doing a full discharge of both the case and the Airpods.
And of course updating your iOS (in the iPhone) to the last version. If that doesn't fix the problem, try replacing your unit by contacting Apple (if it's not out of warranty).
One thing I noticed is if I (using ProTube) skip to another moment of the video the audio (and this is very subtle, but it's there) crackles in the Airpods. There's a noise in the background that is introduced. I solve the problem by reloading the entire video, but it's definitely there. You don't notice any of this the first time you watch the video.
(edit: I confirmed this is not restricted to the Airpods, the issue happens with the app anyway. So please disregard that comment)
P.S. More tips:
http://appletoolbox.com/2016/12/airpods-disconnecting-calls-sound-issues/
Last edited:
I don't consider not immediately connecting a problem. Under normal conditions as soon as I put one AirPod in my ear it takes 2-3 seconds to connect. When it takes longer I find its because I connected to another device and disconnected. EX. listening to music on my Mac I choose them and connect. When done I disconnect from the Mac.
Strange. I needed to RE-connect the Airpods in the Apple-TV 4 settings today (the ATV is 23 ft/7 meters away, separated by a thick wall). But the iPAD Pro 9.7 that is in the same room the Airpods are still shows "Connected" at random moments for them. Even if it shows Not connected, once I stop using the Airpods, and put them in the drawer (not in the case), there's still the 4, 5% battery drain each hour.
They certainly need a new firmware or a new iOS version will fix something... And I am almost doing a full discharge for both the Airpods and the charger case. If that doesn't help, I'll see what can be done.
They certainly need a new firmware or a new iOS version will fix something... And I am almost doing a full discharge for both the Airpods and the charger case. If that doesn't help, I'll see what can be done.