airpods won't connect with my laptop

Reboot the laptop and try again. Assuming a windows laptop you could try the Hardware and Devices troubleshooter:

1. Type “Troubleshooting” in the Search bar and press Enter.
2. Click on “View All” in the top left corner.
3. Click on Hardware and Devices from the list and follow the steps in the troubleshooter. 

tt2

You could try identifying and removing the relevant device driver once more so that it can be reinstalled. Or perhaps there is an option somewhere in Bluetooth settings that controls the quality of audio connections. Music wants something better than say phone quality audio for voice calls.

tt2

AirPods are designed to work well with Apple devices. Performance elsewhere might not be so good.

tt2