How to connect AirPods to your iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch and more - Engadget

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One of the astir convenient things astir Apple’s AirPods is their quality brace rapidly with different Apple devices. But sometimes things don't ever spell arsenic planned — Bluetooth connections get interrupted, a snafu occurs and you whitethorn find yourself scratching your caput a spot earlier you tin perceive to your favourite playlist. To assistance successful those situations, we’ve enactment unneurotic a usher to getting your AirPods to brace up with your iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch. We’ve besides included proposal connected however to link your buds to non-Apple devices, arsenic good arsenic however to reset your AirPods if you ever request to commencement from scratch.

How to link AirPods to an iPhone oregon iPad

If you’re trying to brace your AirPods to a caller iPhone oregon iPad, and your buds are already connected to an older model, the transportation should automatically transportation to your caller device, provided you usage the aforesaid Apple ID connected your caller device.

New AirPods, connected the different hand, should automatically brace with your iPhone oregon iPad simply by holding the AirPods lawsuit adjacent your instrumentality with the lid open. When an representation of your caller AirPods appears astatine the bottommost of the surface pat the Connect button.

But that doesn’t ever happen. If your AirPods don’t automatically connect, travel these steps:

1. Swipe down from the precocious close country of your iPhone oregon iPad’s surface to unfastened the Control Center.

How to link your AirPods to your iPhone, Mac, Apple Watch and more

2. Long property the Bluetooth icon to grow the connections window. (Don’t tap, arsenic this toggles Bluetooth connected and off.)

3. Long property the Bluetooth icon again.

4. With your AirPods successful the lawsuit and the lawsuit lid open, bring them adjacent your iPhone. If your AirPods amusement up successful the database of Bluetooth devices, pat their name. If they don’t amusement up, pat Bluetooth Settings astatine the bottommost of the window.

5. With your AirPods successful the lawsuit and the lawsuit lid open, property and clasp the fastener astatine the backmost of the lawsuit until the airy astatine the beforehand of the lawsuit flashes white. When you spot AirPods successful the database of devices, pat their sanction to connect.

6. If your AirPods inactive don’t connect, spell backmost to your location surface (swipe up from the bottommost borderline of your screen), adjacent the lid connected the AirPods, hold 15 seconds, past effort the steps again. Make definite some your telephone and AirPods are charged and you’re moving the astir caller mentation of iOS, which you tin cheque by going to the Settings app, scrolling down to General and tapping connected Software Update.

How to link AirPods to a Mac

Unlike iPads and iPhones, Macs don’t automatically link to AirPods. To link them manually, travel these steps:

1. Click the Apple icon successful the precocious near country of your screen, prime System Preferences, past click the Bluetooth icon.

2. With your AirPods successful the lawsuit and the lawsuit open, bring them adjacent your Mac and property and clasp the fastener connected the backmost of the lawsuit until the tiny airy connected the beforehand of the lawsuit flashes white.

3. Your AirPods should amusement up successful the Bluetooth model connected your Mac. Click the Connect fastener to brace your AirPods.

4. If your AirPods don’t amusement up successful the Bluetooth dialog box, unopen the AirPods lawsuit and hold 15 seconds, past unfastened the lawsuit and property the backmost fastener again. You whitethorn person to effort the pairing process a fewer times earlier your AirPods amusement up connected the list. If you inactive person trouble, marque definite the AirPods are afloat charged and you person the latest OS version installed connected your Mac. Restarting your machine tin besides help.

How to link AirPods to an Apple Watch

Like connections with iPhones and iPads, pairing your AirPods to your Apple Watch typically happens automatically. If you request to manually nexus them, travel these steps:

1. Depress the crown to bring up your Home Screen, aka the surface that shows each your apps. If you person grid presumption turned on, resistance the grid astir until you find Settings. If you have list presumption enabled, scroll oregon crook the crown to find the Settings icon. (Apps look successful alphabetical order.)

2. In Settings, scroll down to Bluetooth and pat connected it. You should spot a database of disposable adjacent Bluetooth devices, careless of whether they’re connected.

3. With your AirPods successful the lawsuit and the lawsuit lid open, bring your AirPods adjacent your watch. Tap the sanction of your AirPods successful the database of Bluetooth devices. They should automatically connect.

4. If they don’t automatically connect, marque definite some your AirPods and Apple Watch are charged. Check that your Apple Watch is updated to the latest bundle version, which, again, you tin bash by navigating to Settings, tapping General and past Software Update. Finally, marque definite Bluetooth is turned on, which is simply a toggle power astatine the bottommost of the Bluetooth menu.

Other Bluetooth devices

Your AirPods and AirPods Pro volition link to galore Bluetooth-enabled, non-Apple devices. You won’t beryllium capable to usage Siri, but you tin perceive and talk, and the press-to-pause fastener connected the stem typically inactive works. While immoderate devices volition vary, the process for astir devices is arsenic follows:

Open the Bluetooth paper connected your device. For Chromebook, this is successful the Quick Settings panel. For Windows, it’s successful the Settings conception of your Start menu. On Android phones, swipe down from the apical of the surface and agelong property the Bluetooth icon.
With your AirPods successful the lawsuit and the lid open, bring your AirPods adjacent your device.
When your AirPods amusement up successful the database of Bluetooth devices, pat their name.
If the AirPods don’t amusement up, support the lid unfastened and property the fastener astatine the backmost of the lawsuit until the airy astatine the beforehand flashes white.
When your AirPods look successful the list, pat their name. If they don’t appear, marque definite your earbuds and instrumentality are charged. Shut the lid for 30 seconds and effort again. Restarting your instrumentality and repeating the process tin besides help.

How to power AirPods betwixt devices

As of iOS 14, AirPods and AirPods Pro automatically power betwixt your iPhone and iPad, depending connected which instrumentality is playing audio. For example, if you’re watching a amusement connected your iPad and you get a telephone connected your iPhone, the AirPods volition power implicit to your telephone to reply the call.

If you privation to manually power your AirPods from instrumentality to another, travel these steps. Of course, these instructions lone use if you’ve already connected your AirPods to the device. If you haven’t done that, travel the steps above.

On an iPhone oregon iPad:

To marque your AirPods power to your iPhone oregon iPad, travel the aforesaid steps 1 done 3 successful the pairing instructions above, with a antithetic measurement four:

Swipe down from the precocious close country of your iPhone oregon iPad’s surface to unfastened the power center.
Long property the Bluetooth icon to grow the connections window. (Don’t tap, arsenic this toggles Bluetooth connected and off.)
Long property the Bluetooth icon again.
In the database of devices that appears, prime your AirPods.

On a Mac:

Switching your AirPods to your Mac is easiest to bash done the Control Center by pursuing these steps:

1. Click connected the Control Center icon successful your paper barroom successful the precocious near corner.

2. Click connected the substance that says “Bluetooth” (not the Bluetooth icon, which toggles Bluetooth connected and off).

3. Select your AirPods from the database of disposable devices.

On an Apple Watch:

To link your AirPods to your Apple Watch, travel the aforesaid steps 1 done 2 successful the pairing instructions above, with a antithetic measurement three:

Press the crown to bring up your location surface and pat connected Settings.
Scroll down to Bluetooth and pat connected it.
Select your AirPods from the database of devices.

How to reset your AirPods

If your AirPods won’t charge, won’t pair, oregon if you’re giving your buds to a caller owner, you whitethorn privation to bash a mill reset. Here’s how:

Put your AirPods successful the case, unopen the lid, hold 30 seconds, past unfastened the lid.
Open the Settings app connected your iPhone oregon iPad and pat connected Bluetooth.
Tap the blue, circled “i” adjacent to your AirPods.
Tap Forget This Device astatine the bottommost of the AirPods’ details screen.
Tap the reddish Forget Device fastener that appears astatine the bottommost of the screen.
Confirm you privation to region your AirPods successful the popular up window.

7. To reconnect your AirPods, don’t navigate distant from the Bluetooth screen.

8. Open the lid and bring the lawsuit (with your AirPods inside) adjacent your iPhone oregon iPad.

9. Press and clasp the fastener astatine the backmost of the lawsuit until the airy connected the beforehand flashes white.

10. Your AirPods volition either amusement up successful the database of Bluetooth devices, oregon you’ll spot a popular up model with an representation of the AirPods and a Connect button. Tap your AirPods sanction oregon the Connect button.

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