Since their initial launch in 2016, Apple has released nine iteration of the AirPods, from the now iconic white earbuds, to the upgraded AirPods Pro, to the the AirPods Max, Apple’s pricey take on over-the-ear headphones. Whatever the model, however, these things are meant to be simple: You open the case, tap a prompt on your iPhone, and presto, your AirPods are ready to go.
Despite their ease of use, however, AirPods are packed with features and settings you can adjust to your liking. Here are 10 hacks you should know if you own a pair Apple’s headphones, whether standard, Pro, or Max. (A note: Whenever I refer to “AirPods settings” in this article, I am generally referring to the options that appear in the first page of the Settings app on iOS and iPadOS, or the System Settings on macOS, when you’re wearing your AirPods.)
You should turn on “Off” mode on your AirPods
I’ve had a few AirPods in my day, and every time I set up a new pair, I turn on “Off” mode. That might read strange, but it’s a real thing. Depending on your AirPods model, you might have the option to use Noise Cancellation, which, of course, blocks outside noise; Transparency, which pumps in the sounds around you; or Off, which activates neither. This last choice ends up being great for times you want some noise blockage, but want to preserve the battery of your AirPods. Though I can’t speak to AirPods 4 With Noise Cancellation, the Pros and the Max do a good job with this without active noise cancellation.
While this option is always present when switching noise modes from Control Center, by default, Apple doesn’t include it from switching modes from the stem (or the noise control button on the AirPods Max). If you try to switch, you’ll only move between Noise Cancellation and Transparency. To include “Off” in this list, you’ll need to dig into your AirPods’ settings. Scroll down to “Press and Hold AirPods,” then choose either “Left” or “Right,” depending on which AirPods you want to adjust. Here, make sure “Off” is selected to add it to the noise control rotation.
You can use Find My to locate your lost AirPods
Like any other tiny tech, your AirPods will go missing eventually. Mine slip out of my pockets all the time, and usually end up on the floor or under couch cushions. In such cases, you can waste your time retracing your steps and calculating the physics of where your AirPods would have landed, or you could use Find My to find them much faster.
Find My has a few ways to locate your missing AirPods. The first is the most obvious: When you open the app and choose the “Devices” tab, you’ll see your AirPods last-known location on the map. If you left them behind at, say, someone’s house, you’ll likely see that here, and know to stop looking under your own furniture. But if you’re already in the location Find My says your AirPods are, you have two more tools to pinpoint their whereabouts.
First, you can use “Find” to get step-by-step instructions on where your AirPods are. If you have AirPods Pro 2 or 3, you’ll even have an arrow pointing you in their direction. If you still can’t find them, you can tap “Play Sound” to play a sound out of any loose AirPod. If you have AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation, AirPods Pro 2, or AirPods Pro 3, you can play a sound on the case itself.
You can pair your AirPods with non-Apple devices
AirPods work best with Apple devices, but that doesn’t mean they’re exclusive. You can connect your AirPods to any device that supports Bluetooth, which gives the headphones some added flexibility. I primarily use mine with my iPhone, Mac, and Apple TV, but I also connect them directly to the TV itself to use them with my PS5. (Sony’s console doesn’t support Bluetooth audio, for some reason.)
The thing is, there’s no obvious way to connect your AirPods to non-Apple devices. You’d only know if you looked up how to put your particular AirPods model into “pairing mode.” This bypasses Apple’s usual pairing system, and opens up your AirPods to any available Bluetooth source. Here’s how to kick your AirPods into pairing mode:
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AirPods 1, 2, or 3, or AirPods Pro 1 or 2: Place your AirPods in the case, open the lid, then press and hold the button on the back for five seconds, or until the light starts flashing white.
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AirPods 4 or AirPods Pro 3: Place your AirPods in their case, hold the case next to the Bluetooth device, then double-tap the front of the case. The light should start flashing white.
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AirPods Max; Press and hold the noise control button (the longer button) for about five seconds, until the light starts flashing white.
Set up your AirPods for Live Translation
It’s easy to be numb to the current state of technology, but the fact your AirPods can translate conversations on the fly is possibly the best encapsulation of “we’re living in the future” of any consumer product right now. AirPods aren’t the only earbuds that can do this, but if you have AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, or AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation, you have the power to have a full conversation with someone who doesn’t speak the same language you do.
You can’t just find yourself in a situation where you need Live Translation and use it right away, however. Before you can use the feature, you need to download the target language to your iPhone. To start, go to your AirPods’ settings, then scroll down to “Translation (Beta)” and choose “Languages.” Here, you can tap any of the available languages to download them to your iPhone, which currently include Chinese (Mandarin, Simplified), Chinese (Mandarin, Traditional), English (UK), English (US), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), and Spanish (Spain).
Now, when you need it, you can press the stems of your AirPods at once to launch Live Translate. Alternatively, you can open the Translate app, then choose “Live,” then choose the language of the other speaker, as well as your own language. As they speak, you’ll hear the translation in your AirPods, and see the text of the translation on your iPhone’s display.
You can use your AirPods as hearing aids
For well over a year now, AirPods have been cleared by the FDA as clinical-grade hearing aids. It might take other people some time to catch up to the look, but if you need them, the AirPods you already own can be as valid a choice as dedicated (and expensive) hearing aids—assuming your have AirPods Pro 2 or AirPods Pro 3.
In order to take advantage of this perk, you’ll either need to take a hearing test through your iPhone, or upload an audiogram you performed with an audiologist. You’ll find these options in your AirPods’ settings under “Hearing Assistance.”
You can customize your AirPods’ Adaptive Audio levels
Adaptive Audio is one of my favorite things about modern AirPods. If you have AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, or AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation, Adaptive Audio will either boost or cap external sounds, depending on how loud or soft those sounds are, while still letting you hear everything that’s going on around you.
But if you’ve been using Adaptive Mode, and don’t care for Apple’s default sound levels here, you can adjust them to either let in more or less sound. You’ll find the option in your AirPods settings under “Adaptive Audio.” Here, slide the slider left to block more sound, or right to let in more noise. After a moment, you’ll hear the changes take effect, so you can test which setting sounds best to you.
You can use your AirPods as a camera remote
Back in the day, when you actually had to buy a dedicated camera for photography or videography, that device usually came with a remote so you could snap a picture or start recording while the camera was set up on a tripod. While the selfie has largely killed that practice, there are still plenty of times when you’d benefit from a camera remote for your iPhone, especially if you’re trying to capture a group shot with no extra photographer, or you want to record a video without physically touching your phone.
If you have AirPods 4, AirPods Pro 2, or AirPods Pro 3, you can use your earbuds as remote for your iPhone’s camera. To set it up, open your AirPods’ settings, scroll down, then tap “Camera Remote.” You can either choose “Press Once” to have a quick press act as a remote button press, or “Press and Hold” to have a long-press achieve the same. Note that this will affect how your AirPods respond in other circumstances: If you choose “Press Once,” you can’t use the stem to control media playback; if you choose Press and Hold, you can’t use the stem to activate Siri.
You can stop your AirPods from automatically adjusting their volume
“Smart” tech tries to solve problems, but, often, only makes them worse. AirPods’ “Personalized Volume” is one such example. The problem: When your environment is too noisy, you can’t hear your music; and when things suddenly get quiet, your music might be too loud. So, this feature “intelligently” adjusts the volume based on how quiet or loud your surroundings are. In theory, that’s great; in execution, it’s a nightmare. Since I picked up a pair of AirPods Pro 3, I’ve wondered why my music suddenly gets quiet, or suddenly starts getting louder, without me doing anything to control the volume. If the feature works for you, you can keep it on, but if you’re like me, you’ll want this off.
To disable it, head to AirPods settings, scroll down to “Audio,” then turn off the toggle next to “Personalized Volume.”
Master your AirPods’ stem controls for calls
Your AirPods are basically fancy Bluetooth headsets. If you’re wearing them, and you get an incoming call, you don’t need to pull out your iPhone. Instead, you can answer that call by pressing an AirPod stem once. But you might not also know you have the ability to customize other stem controls while on the call. By default, pressing the stem once during a call acts as a mute and unmute switch, while pressing twice ends the call. But you can swap these controls if you want to. You’ll find them in your AirPods’ settings under “Call Controls.”
Enable head gestures to control your AirPods
You can use the stem of your AirPods to do things like accept incoming calls or dismiss notifications. However, if your hands are full, you can also use your head to do the same. AirPods 4, AirPods Pro 2, and AirPods Pro 3 support Head Gestures, which lets you nod your head or shake it from side to side to either accept or decline a call, or reply to (or dismiss) a text.
You’ll need to have Announce Calls and Announce Notifications enabled for this feature to work. You’ll find those settings in your iPhone’s “Siri” or “Apple Intelligence & Siri” setting pages. Once enabled, you can go to your AirPods’ settings, scroll down to “Head Gestures,” then enable the toggle to turn on the feature. From here, you can assign the “Accept, Reply” and “Decline, Dismiss” actions to either a head nod, or a head shake.