Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Releases New Beta Firmware for AirPods, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max With Improvements to Automatic Switching
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
It is the AirPods max. She uses it as well. The point here is the fact that between my Mac and my phone it doesn't switch, but to her phone where we don't want it so switch, it works perfectly. It switches also if I have my AirPods Pro and I am on a call and she puts on the max, the call goes to the max, because obviously I could be putting AirPods max on top of the pro. LOL
But then if I put on a video on my Mac the AirPods stay connected to the iPhone even if on standby.
It is just all illogic and not working.
You are describing a rather awkward scenario. Sharing a device like this is obviously not an intended scenario for the automatic switching. Sounds like you should just go into all your devices and disable automatic switching. You can do this on iOS, iPadOS, macOS and tvOS. If you just disable automatic switching on all your devices your issues would no longer be present.
It's quite obvious for your phone to switch from AirPods Pro to the AirPods Max when you have automatic switching on. As the AirPods Max was connecting after the AirPods Pro there is no real sensible reason for your phone to expect it should be still using the AirPods Pro. Why would you pick up your AirPods Max if you weren't going to use them? This isn't really illogical at all. The only reason this becomes illogical is because you share the AirPods Max with your wife, making it into a scenario where you on your device suddenly have two different AirPod devices that suddenly can be active both at the same time, which obviously makes things more confusing. If it wasn't for the fact that your wife is trying to use the AirPods Max, while you are using the AirPods Pro at the same time, having both linked to the same device and Apple-ID this would be the most logical behaviour. When sharing devices like this it sounds like you should just disable automatic switching on all devices and pair manually.
But I do agree, automatic switching, especially between iOS/iPadOS and macOS tends to be spotty. But I rarely want it to automatically switch to my Mac so I simply disabled automatic switching to my Mac.
It's quite obvious for your phone to switch from AirPods Pro to the AirPods Max when you have automatic switching on. As the AirPods Max was connecting after the AirPods Pro there is no real sensible reason for your phone to expect it should be still using the AirPods Pro. Why would you pick up your AirPods Max if you weren't going to use them? This isn't really illogical at all. The only reason this becomes illogical is because you share the AirPods Max with your wife, making it into a scenario where you on your device suddenly have two different AirPod devices that suddenly can be active both at the same time, which obviously makes things more confusing. If it wasn't for the fact that your wife is trying to use the AirPods Max, while you are using the AirPods Pro at the same time, having both linked to the same device and Apple-ID this would be the most logical behaviour. When sharing devices like this it sounds like you should just disable automatic switching on all devices and pair manually.
But I do agree, automatic switching, especially between iOS/iPadOS and macOS tends to be spotty. But I rarely want it to automatically switch to my Mac so I simply disabled automatic switching to my Mac.
It's not really that difficult. In order to obtain developer beta firmware on your AirPods, you'll need a iOS 16 device with developer mode enabled. If you are not running iOS 16 BETA, or have developer mode enabled in the first place there is no real reason for you to enable the beta firmware on your AirPods to begin with. So all you really have to do is open up Settings, go to Developer and enable the Pre-Release BETA Firmware on your AirPod devices. All the other steps should have been done already if your are running the iOS 16 developer beta.
Always worked nicely here on both Pros and Fit Pros. Sometimes with a bit of lag, though.
😂
Well, the way I see it is that I have two ears and if I have the AirPods Pro in while on a phone call, I can’t understand why the AirPods max needs to connect to my phone if the AirPods are still in my ear.
It would be rather a simple solution in my opinion:
Have one main iCloud account as a “owner” and let a second user to connect manually at any time, without using that device which has a different iCloud account as a main account as well.
Anyway, I did disable the automatic switching yes, long ago.
After every update I try to enable it and it’s just confusion. It is a misleading advertisement in my opinion because it has never worked.
Even if I just have my iPhone and my Mac in front of me, without my partner around with her phone, I put on the AirPods, it connects to my iPhone which is on standby not in use, I play a song on the mac and it doesn’t connect automatically.
It just doesn’t work.
The slogan used to be it just works!
Further clarification from Apple to make the update process more simpler and intuitive than initially announced:
Wait until it grows dark outside, because it is better to perform a firmware update ritual at night than during the day. Make sure that you place incense around the ritual area and the WiFi router. You should also choose five candles of the same color.
Next, draw a pentagram on the flooring beneath you. To do that, create a large circle with a star in the middle. Make sure your lines are all perfectly straight by using a rope, a ruler, or anything else that can help guide you.
Place the five candles that you have collected onto the five points of the pentagram. Light each of them to represent the different elements of Apple being used in this firmware update — iPhone , Watch, iPad, iMac and AirPods. To summon the firmware, you should be able to close your eyes and visualize it while reciting the Apple prayer out loud:
“Lord Tim, by your grace, grant me, I pray thee the power to conceive in my mind and to execute this new firmware update into thy AirPods that which I desire to do, the end which I would attain by thy help, O Mighty Tim, who livest and reignest forever and ever.”
Your AirPods will then be updated with the new firmware.
Wait until it grows dark outside, because it is better to perform a firmware update ritual at night than during the day. Make sure that you place incense around the ritual area and the WiFi router. You should also choose five candles of the same color.
Next, draw a pentagram on the flooring beneath you. To do that, create a large circle with a star in the middle. Make sure your lines are all perfectly straight by using a rope, a ruler, or anything else that can help guide you.
Place the five candles that you have collected onto the five points of the pentagram. Light each of them to represent the different elements of Apple being used in this firmware update — iPhone , Watch, iPad, iMac and AirPods. To summon the firmware, you should be able to close your eyes and visualize it while reciting the Apple prayer out loud:
“Lord Tim, by your grace, grant me, I pray thee the power to conceive in my mind and to execute this new firmware update into thy AirPods that which I desire to do, the end which I would attain by thy help, O Mighty Tim, who livest and reignest forever and ever.”
Your AirPods will then be updated with the new firmware.
I thought auto-switching was great...until it screwed up the mundane...like wanting to answer my phone with my AirPods.
Now, I just want my AirPods to work with my iPhone -- that's it. Instead, it takes forever to connect because it seems to checking with my iPad, two Macs, and several Apple TVs...even though they are all set to not auto-switch. Meanwhile, the person who called me is saying "hello, hello".
Twice, I tried just telling my Macs to "forget" my AirPods, thinking that would solve it. Instead, it actually makes every device forget my AirPods, including my iPhone....who in the heck designed this process!?!
I know...first world problems. But I almost want Apple to stop adding features. The notion that "it is Apple, it just works" seems so outdated now. I feel like I'm becoming one of those old men who says "in my day, appliances didn't have screens and wi-fi connections...and they just worked"
Can someone please explain me why anyone would bother installing this beta software?
Why not enjoy your AirPods and when they update they update. What is the problem you’re trying to solve? Are they broken? Are you a developer creating the next one more thing for AirPods? Are you FBI and want to hack them?
There’s a reason Apple doesn’t make this more user friendly. Because you’re not supposed to do it unless you have a very good reason.
Auto switching FROM Mac to iPhone - good.
Auto switching FROM iPhone to Mac - never has worked ever since day 1.
Auto switching FROM iPhone to Mac - never has worked ever since day 1.
The PDF with instructions is on the download page.
This is not a public beta, and is not meant for mass consumption by the general public. People moaning about how difficult it is to install - This update is not for you.
This is the same for me. Works pretty perfectly when it’s my phone that needs them. Always have to manually connect them to my Mac.
Totally agree with above posters that auto switching is a mess, and I do hope these fixes make life better. I love my latest-gen (3? 17? I forget) Airpods and use them a good portion of the day, primarily on my phone listening to music and on my work PC for MS Teams meetings. With the PC, I have to keep the Bluetooth settings window open on my desktop and connect/disconnect whenever I need to join a meeting or take a call. Once I disconnect, the Airpods auto-switch back to my phone, which is great. But every once in a while I will wake up my (nonwork) Macbook that sits on my desk, and it will "steal" the Airpods, even though I turned off auto-switching on there. Drives me nuts. And just yesterday I was listening to music from my phone, walked into my daughter's room, and the Airpods auto-switched over to her laptop in the middle of a song. All because she borrowed my Airpods a month ago.
And here's a fun scenario that should work but is just a complete mess. Phone playing music to an old Airport Express that pumps music out to the deck. I receive a call. Notification of the call appears on my watch. I throw my Airpods on and attempt to answer the call by tapping the watch and selecting the Airpods. At that point, I am pretty sure all my Apple devices conspire to just set my house on fire. I'm not really even sure WHAT happens.
And here's a fun scenario that should work but is just a complete mess. Phone playing music to an old Airport Express that pumps music out to the deck. I receive a call. Notification of the call appears on my watch. I throw my Airpods on and attempt to answer the call by tapping the watch and selecting the Airpods. At that point, I am pretty sure all my Apple devices conspire to just set my house on fire. I'm not really even sure WHAT happens.
Installing beta on AirPods is definitely looking complicated!! Also seems like only minor improvements.
Yeah, and also AirTags and MagSafe chargers as well - rather than waiting days for them to automatically update.
The option is there for personalized spatial audio in tvOS 16 Beta 1.
Do you have some interference or something wrong with either device?
I use my APM with one of our ATV4K's every single night for a couple hours and haven't heard static or crackling...ever..
That would be unacceptable to me also
Maybe a hardware issue with either device?
I was struggling trying to figure this out. I didn't realize they meant open settings on your iPhone, not open settings in Xcode 😂
They could've made that more clear.
Edit: Actually, the instructions on Apple's support document do make that clear. I was following the instructions on this article.
They could've made that more clear.
Edit: Actually, the instructions on Apple's support document do make that clear. I was following the instructions on this article.
When auto-switching works, it’s magical and exactly the sort of experience I expect from Apple. The only trouble are the bizarre decisions it seems to make about which device to connect to. I can take a bud out of my ear to listen to someone and when I put it back in, the AirPods will have switched to my other device that I wasn’t actually listening to before. Why? 🤯
I’ve turned off the auto-connection to my MacBook, so they’re only meant to switch between my iPhone and iPad, but even with just that they randomly decide to connect to the other device I wasn’t using. 😩
Auto-switching was perfect in the first release of iOS 14 but one of the updates after that screwed it up and Apple have never properly fixed it.
I’ve turned off the auto-connection to my MacBook, so they’re only meant to switch between my iPhone and iPad, but even with just that they randomly decide to connect to the other device I wasn’t using. 😩
Auto-switching was perfect in the first release of iOS 14 but one of the updates after that screwed it up and Apple have never properly fixed it.