How to Connect AirPods to Windows PC?
I’m going to cheat a little for Tech 911 Q&A this week on Lifehacker. I don’t get this question emailed the way it usually is, but a friend asked me since the AirPods Pro are the talk of the city this week thanks to Apple’s big iOS 14 / iPadOS 14 update.
I’ll paraphrase a friend of mine who essentially asked a simple question that probably crossed some people’s minds: How the hell would I use AirPods with Windows?
Good news: it’s simple. This is unconventional – or at least it might seem, as AirPods tend to be the easiest to set up and use in the Apple ecosystem. While this is possible, just don’t tell Tim that you are trying them on a different platform.
First, make sure your AirPods are in the charging case. On a Windows PC, click the “Start” menu and open the application “Settings”. Click Devices and make sure Bluetooth is turned on on your Windows desktop or laptop.
Then tap “Add Bluetooth or Other Device” and select “Bluetooth” from the screen that appears. While your Windows PC searches for new Bluetooth devices, grab the AirPods Charging Case, open it, and hold the button on the back under the hinge until you see a white light flashing. (Once you’ve done that, let go.)
You will soon see the specified AirPods appear in the list of available devices. When they do, click on them.
They should connect almost immediately:
Click Finish to close the window, then slide your AirPods into your ears and twirl them. After you are done swinging and if you want to use them again with your iPad, iPhone or Mac, you will need to go to the Bluetooth menu of that device to reconnect.
(If you have iOS 14, iPadOS 14, or macOS Big Sur and the latest AirPods Pro firmware , you can “quickly switch” between Apple devices if you use the same Apple ID on each device.)
To reconnect AirPods to your Windows PC, open the Bluetooth menu in the taskbar, click Show Bluetooth Devices, select your AirPods again, and click Connect.
Any settings you enable on your AirPods via Apple devices (such as noise canceling, transparency mode, or spatial audio) should be preserved when AirPods are connected to a Windows PC. You will not be able to change these settings as there is no way for you to do this in Windows, so you will have to reconnect them on your Apple device in order to make any changes.
That’s all! Yes, your AirPods are cross-platform and they are very convenient to use with Windows if you, well, already use them for everything Apple-related.