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This Free App Unlocks AirPods Features on Android Devices

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Apr 12, 2001
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AirPods have always worked with Android phones, but with limited functionality and a less seamless listening experience. A new app called LibrePods is changing that.

librepods_android.jpeg

The free app unlocks features on Android that are typically reserved for Apple devices, including ear detection that pauses music when you remove an earbud, Head Gestures for answering calls, and Conversational Awareness that lowers volume while you're talking. It also enables switching between noise control modes, checking accurate battery levels, and customizing accessibility settings.

To make it all work, developer Kavish Devar reverse-engineered Apple's proprietary protocols to make AirPods identify a connected Android device as an iPhone or iPad, which tricks them into sharing device status information normally locked to Apple's ecosystem.

There are some caveats, though. LibrePods currently requires a rooted Android phone with the Xposed framework installed, thanks to what Devar calls "a bug in the Android Bluetooth stack." OnePlus and Oppo devices running ColorOS or OxygenOS 16 can use the app without rooting, however some features like Transparency mode customization still need root access.

The app supports all AirPods models, including AirPods Max, AirPods Pro 2, and AirPods Pro 3 (excluding heart rate monitoring), though not all features are unlocked on earlier AirPods. Interested Android owners can view more details about the project on its GitHub page or directly download the APK file.

(Via Android Authority.)

Article Link: This Free App Unlocks AirPods Features on Android Devices
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2025/11/21/librepods-unlocks-airpods-features-android/
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No point to buy Apple airpods now all the exclusivity already gone why not make beats company make something similar like Apple airpods for iOS and Android
 
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I use my AirPods on my windows PC, there’s a handy app on the store called Magicpods, makes them auto connect when you open the case, shows you battery % etc, lets you disable the hands free setting so the microphone doesn’t forcibly enable itself in a video game and make your audio quality drop.
 
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Dr McKay said:
I use my AirPods on my windows PC, there’s a handy app on the store called Magicpods, makes them auto connect when you open the case, shows you battery % etc, lets you disable the hands free setting so the microphone doesn’t forcibly enable itself in a video game and make your audio quality drop.
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I use my old AirPods Pro for teams calls on my work PC. Thanks for the app tip!
 
turbineseaplane said:
It'd be nice if Apple would just support this out of the box for Android users.

Don't they want to sell as many Airpods as possible?
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They don't for the same reasons they don't make iMessage fully interoperable with Android. "iMessage on Android would simply serve to remove [an] obstacle to iPhone families giving their kids Android phones" (Craig Federighi).
 
Do not root your device for this as it destroys all Android safety features guarding your encrypted data. With an unlocked bootloader the lock screen is no longer preventing access and as of 2025 there are tools out there that will copy off all the device data with an unlocked bootloader.
 
So Apple products working best with Apple products is an issue?
Do we want Apple products to work best with other brands products? Why should it?
Does Apple exist to create great products that works best with "other" companies stuff? Or should it work best with Apples stuff?

Apple has Beats, and that always worked with Android. Since it wasn't an Apple product to begin with. Why not purchase Beats headphones for your Android? If you're looking for the best product with the most interoperability and support across platforms. Why would you want to make the AirPods work with Android when there are other options that work without having to hack it?

Why do we insist that Apple be more open to "other" anythings? When it's pretty clear they don't want to have to support another companies product in every instance. When the other company can change something or Apple needs to change something. And that change will break or require more resources to fix on another platform they don't control.

Of course Apple wants to sell more Apple products. They are a company, that's their job and reason for existing. To sell stuff they make. It's not exactly a bad thing to want to focus on your own products. Practically every one does this.
 
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okkibs said:
Do not root your device for this as it destroys all Android safety features guarding your encrypted data. With an unlocked bootloader the lock screen is no longer preventing access and as of 2025 there are tools out there that will copy off all the device data with an unlocked bootloader.
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Bro been rooting since Kingroot and that was a real chinese spy malware none
 
I have used it with a Linux machine: the subset of supported features works quite well. However, I am afraid Apple can destroy the effort just with a firmware update, if they want.

With Android, instead, I would never root a phone which I use for essential daily activities, including banking.
I tried with an older OnePlus phone, but even for a tinkerer like me (as I like to think of myself) rooting it proved impossible.
 
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