Airpods are a fine piece of technology for casual audio needs. Like almost every other hardware piece coming out of Apple’s stables, these wireless earbuds fit very well into the company’s product ecosystem. However, no piece of tech is flawless, and Airpods come with their caveats — hardware and software.
One such issue plaguing Apple’s wireless earbud experience is the Airpods keep disconnecting issue, which thousands of device owners have reported.
Airpods disconnecting error could be caused due to a range of reasons, including issues with Bluetooth, audio settings, or the Airpods hardware. In this article, we’ve discussed 11 possible fixes for those facing the Airpods keep disconnecting issue.
Also read: How to customise your Airpods?
Check AirPods Battery
Low battery or a malfunctioning one could cause the Airpods to keep disconnecting from your iPhone or Mac.
Follow the steps mentioned below to check your Airpods battery on your iPhone or iPad
- Turn on the Bluetooth on your iPhone or iPad by swiping up from the bottom of your device’s screen and tap on the Bluetooth icon (refer to the screenshot above).
- Bring the Airpods case (with the earbuds inside it) near to the paired device and flip it open. A pop-up Airpods animation will appear at the bottom of the screen. This will show the battery life of your each Airpods and their case.
Alternatively, you can also check the battery of your Airpods using the Batteries widget on phones running iOS 14 or newer. If you don’t see the battery widget, follow the steps mentioned below to add a battery widget and view the battery of your Airpods.
- Swipe right on the home screen to get to the widgets page.
- Scroll down to the bottom and tap on Edit.
- Look for the Batteries widget and tap on the green ‘+’ sign followed by Done to add it to the widget page.
You’ll now be able to see the battery percentage of your iPhone and all the devices connected to it, including the Airpods.
You can also check the Airpods battery either using a Macbook. Check out our guide here to learn all the ways to check your Airpods battery.
Check Bluetooth connection
First, make sure your Bluetooth is turned on on your iPhone or iPad. The most common mistake people do turn off the Bluetooth button and start worrying about the Airpods not working.
Swipe up from the bottom or down from the upper right corner of the screen to open and check the control panel.
You can also check the Bluetooth from the Settings app. In case Bluetooth is off, switch them on by sliding the toggle to the right.
Also read: Why won’t my AirPods connect? 4 ways to fix the error
Check WiFi and Bluetooth interference
Interference with the Bluetooth connection can also cause Airpods to keep disconnecting. Make sure there isn’t any physical hindrance in between your Airpods and iPhone or Mac. WiFi interference can also result in the error as the playback would keep stopping.
Ensure that both the WiFi and Bluetooth connections are strong and unhindered.
Reset and reconnect your AirPods
If the ‘Airpods keep disconnecting’ issue continues to hamper your experience even after trying to charge the Airpods fully, you can try reconnecting them to your device and see if that fixes the issue.
Follow the steps mentioned below to reset and reconnect your Airpods (click here to check the guide to reconnect Airpods on Mac).
- Open your iPhone or iPad’s settings and tap on the Bluetooth option.
- On the next page, tap on the ‘i’ icon beside the name of your Airpods.
- Then tap on Forget This Device and confirm your action by selecting Forget Device from the prompt that pops-up at the bottom of the screen.
Now put your Airpods back in the case and close it for about 15 seconds. Then open the case, press and hold the setup button at the back until you see an orange light, followed by a white light, which indicates that the Airpods have been successfully reset.
Follow the steps mentioned below to reconnect your Airpods.
- To reconnect your Airpods, switch on the Bluetooth of your iPhone, and open the lid of the Airpods case with both the devices in close vicinity.
- You’ll see a setup animation pop-up.
- Tap on Connect and then on Done.
Also read: How to fix ‘AirPods Microphone Not Working’ issue?
Use a single Airpod
People often use only one of the Airpods to take calls and even listen to music, especially when in the office or working otherwise. So the earphone you’re using may be malfunctioning.
Try using the other to see if there’s a problem with only one of them or both because that will come in handy if and when you contact Apple Support.
You can use a single earphone of the Airpods by keeping the other one in the case.
Disable Automatic Ear Detection
Automatic ear detection is a boon as it pauses the music if you take off one of the Airpods and automatically resumes the playback once the Airpods are back in the ears. While the feature is quite useful, it can be a contributing factor to the Airpods keep disconnecting issue.
To disable automatic ear detection, follow the steps below.
- Go to the Settings app on your iOS device,
- Select Bluetooth and look for your Airpods.
- Tap the i button right next to your Airpods name.
- Scroll down to the Automatic Ear Detection option and slide the toggle to your right to enable the option. To disable the option, slide the toggle button to your left.
Also read: Why is my Logitech mouse not working?
Turn off WiFi on iPhone
Try disabling your WiFi connection for a few minutes to see if that fixes the Airpods disconnection error. A hardware or software bug could cause the WiFi connection to hinder the Airpods connection to the iPhone or Mac.
Clean the Airpods
If you haven’t done so for a while, cleaning your Airpods periodically is a good idea to keep them as good as new and avoid any playback issues, including the Airpods keep disconnecting error.
If nothing else has worked up till here, try cleaning your Airpods as the accumulation of dust or dirt might hinder the device’s wireless capabilities.
Also read: How to know if your AirPods are real?
Unpair Apple Watch and other Apple devices
Other Apple devices like the Apple Watch connected to your iPhone could be causing the Airpods to malfunction and disconnect. Unpair your Apple Watch and other devices to fix the Airpods keep disconnecting error.
The easiest and fastest way to unpair the Apple Watch is using the Watch app on the paired iPhone. Remember to keep your iPhone and Apple Watch close to each other as you unpair them. Launch the app and follow the steps mentioned below.
- Go to the My Watch tab, located at the bottom-left corner of the screen. Then tap on the All Watches option on the top.
- Tap on the info “i” button located next to the Apple Watch you want to unpair.
- Choose Unpair Apple Watch.
- Tap Unpair (name) Apple Watch to confirm the action. If you’re using a cellular plan, you can choose to keep or remove the plan. You’ll need to call the carrier to cancel the cellular plan.
- Disable Activation Lock by entering the Apple ID passcode then tapping Unpair.
Your Apple Watch will start making the latest backup on your iPhone. Once it finishes it, the watch will unpair itself from the currently paired iPhone, delete all active Bluetooth pairings and remove any active Apple Pay cards used by the watch.
You can also learn how to unpair your Apple Watch without the iPhone or around or using your iCloud account in our detailed guide to unpair Apple Watch.
Check audio settings
You can also check your iPhone’s audio settings using the control centre, which displays if your phone is connected to the Airpod if you’re actively playing back music.
You can also check the same on the lock screen. Ensure that the Airpods are the selected audio device for the app.
Restart your iPhone or Mac
If nothing else has worked thus far in this list of fixes, apart from contacting Apple support, you can give this one last try by restarting your iPhone or Mac and then trying to connect to the Airpods again.
While this may sound elementary, restarting your device generally would fix a lot of temporary issues, including bugs and glitches.
