Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Xscapes

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 16, 2011
166
9
New York
Is there a way to turn-off AirPods manually when it's not in the charging case? I notice that battery in the continue to drain when not in use.
 

jcmeyer5

macrumors 6502
Sep 7, 2008
416
309
Don't you just take them out? Isnt that the whole point of the prox sensor in them?
 

576316

macrumors 601
May 19, 2011
4,056
2,556
They're not off when you take them out of your ears. I leave them on my desk for about an hour it drain about 10% battery.

You may have just highlighted a flaw...! Anyone got anything to add to this?
 

Mr.C

macrumors 603
Apr 3, 2011
5,537
1,544
London, UK.
Do they not go into sleep mode when not in use. Also can you not disconnect them when not in use. Wouldn't either of these save on battery charge.
 

iAdamator

macrumors 6502a
Sep 10, 2013
698
171
South San Francisco, CA
Mine do not turn off either when out of my ears. I left them on and out all night and they went from 93% to 60% in 8 hours.

You can trigger them off by toggling Bluetooth off and on, much like with  Pencil.
 

Xscapes

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 16, 2011
166
9
New York
I guess they need to be kept in their case when not in use so they are always charged.

I guess you're right. But then I'll need to carry the charging case everyday to work. I only listen about 3-4 hours of music a day, it will be great if I can turn it off to preserve battery so it can last a full day for me without having to carry the case.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jagooch

Brookzy

macrumors 601
May 30, 2010
4,985
5,577
UK
Like most Bluetooth audio devices, when they are not outputting sound - but are not turned off - they are in a low power state but are still drawing power to maintain a connection.

Otherwise, how would they be able to start playing music again, with no connection (without pressing an on button again)?

The proximity sensor could, and probably does, trigger low power mode when removed from your ear, but if they instead turned the AirPods off entirely when removed from your ear, then the proximity sensor would also be off, and hence playback would not resume when the AirPods is placed back in your ear.

In other words, the 33% power decline over 8 hours witnessed by @iAdamator could be the power used by AirPods in a low power, proximity sensor-only state.
 

Mr.C

macrumors 603
Apr 3, 2011
5,537
1,544
London, UK.
I guess you're right. But then I'll need to carry the charging case everyday to work. I only listen about 3-4 hours of music a day, it will be great if I can turn it off to preserve battery so it can last a full day for me without having to carry the case.

The case isn't exactly that big. I find it hard to believe you can't carry it with you. The whole idea of the case with built in charger concept is that you can charge them when ever needed and a 15 minute charge gives you 3 hours.

I understand in your use case this may not be necessary but for most people it will definitely come in handy and I'm sure it will even for you on some occasions. Just think of the convenience of charging them anywhere and anytime without the need of a wall socket or regular portable charger.
 

480951

Cancelled
Aug 14, 2010
639
914
I wish Apple had made it so the button on the back was to turn on/off the power to charge the AirPods when they're in the case. Regardless of whether you're using them or not, the battery is always being drained in the AirPods and case. Makes me feel like their battery cycles won't last long.
 

tekchic

macrumors 68020
Apr 19, 2010
2,056
1,763
Phoenix, AZ
I have an Apple Watch so I can't. Ive never heard of a device (besides the smart battery case) that is always on and can't be turned off

Apple Pencil is never "off" -- it has quite the battery drain when not in use, it always seems dead when I go to use it, because it travels with me in my bag daily. I think it has a low power "sleep" mode supposedly, but I can lose 10-15% a day with Apple Pencil not even in use. I wish after charging it had a little "off" switch so I could just flip it on to auto-connect when I'm actually ready to draw.

I have an Apple Watch too, so I always have my phone Bluetooth on, unless I'm toggling Bluetooth on/off because of a finicky earbud pairing (non AirPods).
 
  • Like
Reactions: 480951

Itsedstech

macrumors 68000
Jul 24, 2011
1,592
1,897
Kansas
The only way to turn them off from what i know is by going into settings and changing "double-tap" for siri to "double-tap" to turn off.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sharkey311

vmdc

macrumors regular
Jun 17, 2011
105
6
I have an Apple Watch so I can't. Ive never heard of a device (besides the smart battery case) that is always on and can't be turned off

What about disconnecting from them in Settings --> Bluetooth --> AirPods?
 
  • Like
Reactions: eagleglen

iAdamator

macrumors 6502a
Sep 10, 2013
698
171
South San Francisco, CA
Apple Pencil is never "off" -- it has quite the battery drain when not in use, it always seems dead when I go to use it, because it travels with me in my bag daily. I think it has a low power "sleep" mode supposedly, but I can lose 10-15% a day with Apple Pencil not even in use. I wish after charging it had a little "off" switch so I could just flip it on to auto-connect when I'm actually ready to draw.

I have an Apple Watch too, so I always have my phone Bluetooth on, unless I'm toggling Bluetooth on/off because of a finicky earbud pairing (non AirPods).


Just a small correction that you can turn the pencil off using the method I use. Swipe up control panel on iPad, toggle bluetooth off for a second and then back on. This severs connection with the pencil and its truly OFF. The only downside is, you have to plug it back in to the iPad for a moment to reactivate it.
 

tekchic

macrumors 68020
Apr 19, 2010
2,056
1,763
Phoenix, AZ
Just a small correction that you can turn the pencil off using the method I use. Swipe up control panel on iPad, toggle bluetooth off for a second and then back on. This severs connection with the pencil and its truly OFF. The only downside is, you have to plug it back in to the iPad for a moment to reactivate it.

Ooh - nice tip, thank you! The only bluetooth device I pair with on iPads is Pencil, so that'll come in handy. Maybe stop the big time battery drain I've been seeing.
 

iAdamator

macrumors 6502a
Sep 10, 2013
698
171
South San Francisco, CA
I thought you could turn them off by toggling Bluetooth of and back on but this just doesn't work. These things are resilient and will reconnect within moments of Bluetooth being back on. They don't ever power off. They are just...ever present.

I was doing some tests with them on but not being used and in the meantime I was using my old Bluetooth headphones. For no reason what so ever, the signal switched to my AirPods even though I was listening with my BT Headphones.

They seem to ONLY turn off when they are in the case. I'm not thrilled about this. I hoped to use them fully on each charge to maximize battery life. I use them at work mostly and some days are busier than others, so they may or may not sit idle for long periods and it would be nice to turn them off during these times.
 

teidon

macrumors 6502
Dec 22, 2009
443
213
The AirPods doesn't have a power button so if they would turn off after taking them out of your ear or after certain time of inactivity there would be no way to turn them back on other than to put them in the case and taking them out. You might just as well keep them in the case when you don't use them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Night Spring

teidon

macrumors 6502
Dec 22, 2009
443
213
My concern with that is A: Wasting life cycles of the AirPod batteries. B: They are constantly charging/discharging in the case and slowing draining it. It's like you can win either way!
It's very much possible that the AirPods will be turned off when you put them in the case. But when they are outside the case they must remain on as there is no way to turn them on without the case.
 

iAdamator

macrumors 6502a
Sep 10, 2013
698
171
South San Francisco, CA
They are off in the case, but they seem to slowly drain and when they do, the case charges them back up. I've done some rough tests but am stilling seeing what does and doesn't work. But inside the case is the only time they are actually off. They just don't hold a charge all that well it seems.
 

480951

Cancelled
Aug 14, 2010
639
914
They are off in the case, but they seem to slowly drain and when they do, the case charges them back up. I've done some rough tests but am stilling seeing what does and doesn't work. But inside the case is the only time they are actually off. They just don't hold a charge all that well it seems.

This also puts more cycles on the charge case. There's really no winning, unless Apple had designed the case with a button that allowed users the option of charging on/off. I don't think the batteries are going to last more than a year or two with this kind of design.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.