AirPods are the go-to earbuds for Apple devices, but things get a bit tricky when it comes to using them with Android phones. While AirPods can be used with Android like normal Bluetooth earbuds, doing so also removes many of their best features.
When talking about Apple, it's hard not to discuss the company's infamous walled garden. Individual Apple products and services work perfectly fine on their own, but they become substantially better when paired with other Apple gadgets. Take the Mac, for example. On their own, Macs are great computers. They're fast, have access to a ton of apps, and are generally very secure. When used with an iPhone, however, the Mac experience is cranked up a notch. Users can copy/paste text seamlessly between a Mac and iPhone, open an app on one device and continue it on the other, instantly use an iPhone as a hotspot, and so on. The same is true of the Apple Watch. Someone could get a Wear OS or Fitbit smartwatch and use that with an iPhone, but the Apple Watch experience is so much better that there's no logical reason to do so. Apple products work better with each other than any other tech ecosystem, for better or worse.
In the case of AirPods, it may initially seem like they can be used with an Android phone just fine. Apple notes that AirPods connect to Android using Bluetooth like any other wireless earbuds, offer good audio quality with solid range, and have built-in microphones for taking quick phone calls. Android users can also take advantage of the playback controls for both AirPods and AirPods Pro. For regular AirPods, double-tap the stem to play or pause audio as needed. On AirPods Pro, all of the controls work as follows: press once to play/pause, double-press to skip forward, triple-press to skip backward, press-and-hold to control ANC or ambient listening.
AirPods Features That Do Not Work On Android
That all sounds pretty good on the surface, but those are all basic functions that would be expected of any earbuds. When it comes to the more specialized features that allow AirPods to stand out, none of them carry over to Android devices. users have no way to change how touch controls work. iPhone users can customize playback controls for both AirPods and AirPods Pro but, when used with Android, this option ceases to exist. Android users also miss out on the seamless pairing/connectivity experience that iPhone users benefit from. To pair AirPods with an iPhone, it's as easy as opening the AirPods case and tapping a couple of on-screen prompts. On Android, users need to manually trigger Bluetooth pairing on AirPods and then dive into the Bluetooth settings on their phone to get everything synced up. When AirPods are used with an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Mac, they can instantly switch back and forth between the devices based on which one is being used. This doesn't happen on Android.
Unfortunately, the differences don't end there. Using AirPods with an iPhone? Removing one earbud from the listener's ear will automatically pause the audio and, when the earbud is re-added, the audio resumes. Apple also allows one AirPod to be used at a time for mono playback. If someone has AirPods connected to Android, neither of these features are available. The 'Hey Siri' command also doesn't work. And, unlike other earbuds, there's no way to invoke Google Assistant, Alexa, or Bixby by tapping AirPods. Other missing features include the capability for seeing the remaining battery life of the AirPods, AirPods Pro users can't use the Ear Tip Fit Test to find the best fit for their ears, and there's no way to update the firmware of AirPods on Android.
When that's all added together, it's clear that using AirPods with Android is a pretty limiting experience. While they might technically work with Android, all of the features that make AirPods so appealing in the first place are nowhere to be seen. That's not to say AirPods should never be used with an Android phone, but definitely keep all of this in mind before going down that road.
Source: Apple