When it comes to wireless earphones AirPods have revolutionised the market. They provide a variety of helpful features in addition to excellent sound quality and a smooth connection with Apple products.

But a lot of folks don't know all the things that can improve their wireless earbuds experience.

I have figured out how to get the most performance out of them. These useful hints can help you obtain greater convenience, better sound, and smarter features if you have an older model, AirPod Pro 2, or AirPod 4.

I personally utilise these ten must-know AirPods tips and techniques constantly.

10 Effective Strategies to Use AirPods in 2026

1. You can combine them with non-Apple devices.

Have you seen the tiny flush button on the charging case's back? When pairing AirPods with an Android handset or any other device that isn't compatible with Apple's W1 chip, you'll utilise that.

Put the wireless earbuds in your case, flip the lid up, then press and hold the little button on the bottom rear of the charging case until the small LED light begins to pulse white. This will initiate pairing with anything new.

After that, they should appear in any Bluetooth pairing settings on a PC TV, or Android phone. Detailed instructions are available here.

2. Keep one in and continue switching out the buds to conserve battery life.

Despite the fact that my AirPod has never run out of battery life in a single day. But they may run out if you are a heavy user who makes a lot of phone calls.

A single AirPod may function as a standalone Bluetooth headset. To charge, leave the other in the case, then switch as necessary. With ease, the other bud takes over.

3. Locate Your Misplaced AirPods

Don't worry if you lose one or both of your AirPods! To find them, you can utilise your iPhone Find My app. All you need to launch the application and choose your AirPods from the device list.

After that, you may place them in Lost Mode to stop someone else from using them, make a sound to help you find them or view their last known position on a map.

4. Utilise a single AirPod at a time.

It is simple to utilise one AirPod at a time if that is your preference. Just remove one AirPod from the case and replace it with the other.

The AirPods will automatically convert to mono audio after determining which one is being used.

If you need to be aware of your surroundings while having a call or listening to music, or if you want to save battery life, this function is fantastic.

5. Use Several Clever Methods to Check Battery Life

Now you must avoid waiting until the low-battery chime sounds. So you must Siri How is my AirPods battery? Or add the Batteries widget to your Home Screen.

You may also check Control Centre or open the case next to your iPhone to see the pop-up widget. My favourite is when you wear the Bluetooth earphones and say, "Hey Siri AirPods battery." This works well when your phone is in a different room.

6. Verify the Apple Watch's battery level.

Here's a neat technique if you have an Apple Watch Open Control Center on your watch and press the battery symbol while wearing AirPods. You will get statistics for your AirPods in addition to your watch's battery life.

7. Track Down Your Misplaced AirPods

Losing wireless earbuds is a continual worry because of their small size. Fortunately, Apple has made it possible to locate misplaced or stolen wireless earbuds using its popular (and quite useful) Find My feature.

8. Utilise Mac AirPods

If you wish to use AirPods to listen to all of the audio from your Mac you now need to choose them as an audio output device. To do that, select AirPods above Connect after clicking the Bluetooth icon in the menu bar.

As an alternative, you may stream music from your Mac to your ears by selecting Bluetooth earphones using the AirPlay icon in iTunes.

However, my experience using iTunes AirPlay to connect to true wireless stereo has been inconsistent, mainly poor.

9. Tailor a Mac's controls

I have no idea why I have never attempted to modify the AirPod settings on the Mac. I guess it is because my iPhone is the main device I use to access them.

To control music and use Siri however, you must first alter the AirPods settings, as explained in an article on 9to5Mac.

While your Mac is linked to your AirPods select System Preferences > Bluetooth.

Use the drop-down menu to customise the settings by selecting Options next to your Bluetooth earphones.

10. Customise Actions using Double Taps

In the final step, you may quickly play or stop music or take a call by double-clicking your AirPods 1 or 2.

But did you know that you could adjust the AirPods settings to have the double-tap accomplish many things?

Actually, you can program each AirPod to perform a distinct action upon double-tapping.

Select Settings > Bluetooth > i symbol next to your AirPod on your iPhone.

Locate the AirPod Double-touch area, pick Left or Right, and then select Siri, Play/Pause, Next Track, Previous Track, and Off (if you select this, nothing occurs when you double-tap the AirPod).

All in All

In the end, these useful hints and methods can enhance the utility and adaptability of your AirPods while also improving your experience with them.

You may share your music with a friend, adjust settings, and switch between devices to get the most out of your AirPods.