One AirPod connects to mac mini the other remains connected to phone.

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Level 2

403 points

One AirPod connects to mac mini the other remains connected to phone.

I only recently tried to use my 3rd generation AirPods with a late 2014 mac mini. When I use them with my iPhone SE, both headphones play. When I connected to them on the mac mini, only the left plays sounds from the mini while the right will play sounds from the phone. According to the user interfaces involved, they are connected to both devices (which is technically true).

If I then disconnect the AirPods from the phone, the mini sounds still play in the left. If I disconnect from and reconnect to the mini. Only the right pod works.

How is this supposed to work? Surely not the way it is working?

Mac mini, macOS 12.7

Posted on Oct 20, 2023 8:38 AM

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Answer 1

Grace2211

Community Specialist

Oct 21, 2023 10:26 AM in response to Chris Miner

Greetings Chris Miner,

At this time, we suggest resetting your AirPods. Completing this step may correct the behavior you're experiencing:

"Put your AirPods in their charging case, and close the lid.
Wait 30 seconds.
Open the lid of your charging case, and put your AirPods in your ears.
Go to Settings > Bluetooth. Or go to Settings > [your AirPods].

If your AirPods appear there as connected, tap the More Info button next to your AirPods, tap Forget This Device, then tap again to confirm.
If your AirPods don't appear there, continue to the next step.

5. Put your AirPods in their charging case, and keep the lid open.

6. Press and hold the setup button on the back of the case for about 15 seconds, until the status light on the front of the case flashes amber, then white.*

7. Reconnect your AirPods: With your AirPods in their charging case and the lid open, place your AirPods close to your iPhone or iPad. Follow the steps on your device's screen.

AirPods can be associated with one Apple ID. If you want to use AirPods (3rd generation) or AirPods Pro (1st or 2nd generation) that someone else has used, they first need to remove the AirPods from their Apple ID."

More details here: How to reset your AirPods and AirPods Pro

Best wishes.

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Answer 2

Oct 27, 2023 8:20 AM in response to Chris Miner

Chris Miner,

That's not expected when pairing with either device. For now, restart just the Mac mini before pairing your AirPods back them them since this also restarts the Bluetooth controller: Shut down or restart your Mac - Apple Support

As a test, also try unpairing them from the iPhone if you already paired them after resetting them: Unpair, restart, or reset your AirPods - Apple Support (IL)

* On iPhone or iPad: Go to Settings , tap the name of your AirPods near the top of the screen, then tap Forget This Device. This removes the AirPods from all the devices where you’re signed in with the same Apple ID.

If it is working, then try pairing them back to the iPhone again.

Take care.

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Answer 3

Chris Miner Author

Level 2

403 points

Oct 27, 2023 8:03 AM in response to Grace2211

Hi Grace2211,

Thanks for the suggestion about resetting. I tried resetting them before posting, because that seemed like an obvious thing to try. No luck. Also, tried having both the mini and the phone forget the AirPods. This also didn't shift the situation. At most I can get them to switch which side works.

I kinda figured it would just work automagically by connecting the mini to the AirPods, and they would get disconnected from the iPhone. Or disconnecting from the phone and connecting to the mini. I guess there are always wired headphones for the mini, but that's not really a satisfying outcome. Oh well.

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One AirPod connects to mac mini the other remains connected to phone.

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