I’ve been having a frustrating experience with my AirPods lately, as they just can’t seem to detect my ears. I thought it was a problem with the AirPods, so I did some research and testing to see if I could solve the issue.
After some trial and error, I eventually found a solution that worked for me, and I wanted to share this experience with others so they can learn from my findings.
Likely reasons why your AirPods cannot detect your ears are that automatic ear detection is turned off, you are not using an Apple device, you need to reset and reconnect your AirPods, or that your AirPods are faulty.
| Topic | Tips |
|---|---|
| Automatic ear detection | An Apple feature that detects when your AirPods are in your ears or not. |
| Enabling ear detection | Make sure that “Automatic ear detection” is turned on in the settings of your iPhone or iPad. |
| Troubleshooting ear detection | Reset and reconnect your AirPods or use a third-party app if you are not using an Apple device. |
Why can’t my AirPods detect my ear?
When used with Apple products, AirPods have a feature called “Automatic ear detection” which detects when your AirPods are in your ears or not.
If you take one or both of the AirPods out of your ears, it will cause your audio to pause until you put them back in.
If your AirPods are not detecting your ears, it could be due to a number of reasons as mentioned below.
Automatic ear detection is turned off
It is possible to turn off automatic ear detection and it might be the case that you have somehow turned it off. To check that it is turned on do the following:
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad
- Click Bluetooth
- Click the “i” next to your AirPods
- Now you can click to turn on or off the automatic ear detection on your AirPods
If your AirPods are not working properly, it may be best to just turn the automatic ear detection off.
Read more: Why does Alexa make a crackling sound?
You are not using an Apple product
Automatic ear detection only works when you are using Apple products including iPhones, iPads, Macs and the Apple Watch.
If you are using an Android device or a PC, the automatic ear detection feature will not work unless you install a third-party app.
Read more: Why won’t my AirPods disconnect from my Mac?
It is also possible that your AirPods are broken.
This would be more likely if you are using an iPhone or iPad, the ear detection is definitely turned on and if it only seems to be one of the AirPods that are faulty or you can only get it to work in a certain position.
In this case, the best option would be to take them into an Apple store to see if you can get them fixed or replaced.
You need to reconnect them
It is also possible that you need to reset and reconnect your AirPods to your device.
You can do this by doing the following:
- Forget your AirPods from your device
- Put your AirPods in the case
- Open the lid
- Hold the button for 15 seconds until the light flashes orange then white
- Pair your AirPods with your device again
How to get my AirPods to detect my ear?
To get your AirPods to detect your ears, it would help to make sure that “Automatic ear detection” is turned on in the settings of your iPhone or iPad, to reset and reconnect your AirPods, or to see if there is a third-party app for the non-Apple device you are using that allows the ear detection feature to work.
If it seems likely that your AirPods are broken, you will likely need to take them into an Apple store to be fixed or replaced.
