Product test
Are they really twice as good? Audio geeks measure the ANC of AirPods Pro
by Livia Gamper
I tried out the new AirPods Pro with Android
28.9.2022
Translation: Eva Francis
Like all Bluetooth headphones, Apple’s new AirPods Pro can be paired with an Android phone. Read on to find out how well it works and which features are lost.
The first comment under my review of Apple’s second-generation AirPods Pro read: «What about Airpods for Android users?» and was posted by user hoshinator.
For the Digitec Community, I’ll try what Tim Cook didn’t do: testing the new AirPods Pro with Android. More precisely with the Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro.
The start: works, but could be better
I start with pairing the two devices. What’s a bit complicated is that you need to leave the AirPods in the case and press and hold the button on the back of the case until the light on the front flashes white before the AirPods Pro appear in the Bluetooth list and can be selected. There’s no «Fast Pairing».
If you take the AirPods out of the case, they’ll refuse to connect to your phone.
Once paired, you shouldn’t forget to change your phone’s Bluetooth codec to AAC or you’ll be listening with the standard codec SBC, which has slightly poorer transmission. My phone made the switch almost automatically. I got a warning that there might be no sound – but there was.
If your phone doesn’t switch automatically, you can change this in the developer settings of your device.
These features are missing
Once the connection is established, the AirPods Pro can be used as intended. However, it quickly becomes apparent that some features aren’t available. This was already the case with the first generation of AirPods, which I also tested with Android when they were launched. While using the AirPods Pro with an iPhone gives you the full range of features, you’ll be missing these four when you use them with Android:
1. Battery level indication
On iOS, the battery level of the AirPods is displayed after each connection and can be seen in the volume drop-down field. With Android, this isn’t the case. You can’t see the battery level anywhere.
The solution? There are Playstore apps that can display the battery level. However, many of these apps aren’t free of charge and their bad ratings don’t make them an appealing option.
2. Automatic ear detection
Ear detection doesn’t work with Android. This means the music just keeps on playing when you take an AirPod out of your ear. Connected to an iPhone, the music automatically stops playing when you remove the AirPod from your ear.
3. 3D audio
Connected to an iPhone, the AirPods Pro deliver 3D audio – music from all sides as if you were at a concert. You can't get that with Android. Not even if you install Apple Music. Head tracking isn’t available either.
4. Locating lost AirPods
In Apple’s Find-My-App, you can locate any lost or misplaced iOS devices and play a sound to find them. There’s no way to locate lost AirPods Pro on Android.
Some other features don’t work either, as for example
audio sharing, Siri, automatic switching between devices, ear scan and fit, control customisation and adaptive transparency mode.
Updating the earphones isn’t possible with Android either. It only works when they’re connected to an iOS device.
These features work well
Basically, listening to music from an Android device with the AirPods Pro is possible. These features work without any problems:
1. Controls
The control features on the AirPods work just as accurately as with an iPhone: volume up and down, skip forward, skip back, play and pause audio and ambient sound adjustment.
However, on the iPhone, the controls can be easily adjusted. Voice control is activated if you press and hold the stem of the AiPods Pro. This doesn’t work with Android.
2. Using just one AirPod
What doesn’t work with some true wireless headphones works with AirPods and Android. You can leave a single AirPod in the case and use only one earpiece – the left or the right one.
3. Active Noise Cancelling
Active Noise Cancelling, keeping ambient noise away from your ear, works well with Android. In my opinion, just as well as when they’re paired with an iPhone.
A small drawback, however, is the sound. Paired with an Android phone, the sound isn’t as balanced and full as with an iOS connection. However, the volume level is the same. This wasn’t the case with the first generation of AirPods Pro, where the sound was much quieter with Android.
Verdict: works, but...
The AirPods Pro work well with Android, but there’s no app to adjust details or additional features. There are a few apps in the Playstore that try to imitate an iOS app, but none of them convinced me.
The most annoying thing is that the battery level of the AirPods isn’t displayed and I can’t update the firmware without an iOS device. Anyone who has used the AirPods with an iPhone before knows how smoothly everything works within the Apple ecosystem – which isn’t the case with Android.
Testing devices and gadgets is my thing. Some experiments lead to interesting insights, others to demolished phones. I’m hooked on series and can’t imagine life without Netflix. In summer, you’ll find me soaking up the sun by the lake or at a music festival.
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