AirPods are the most popular Apple accessory, and the company has sold over 100 million units worldwide. AirPods are wireless earbuds that use rechargeable batteries to power Bluetooth connectivity. After using your AirPods for some time, you might note that one of the AirPods batteries dies faster than the other.
So, why does one of my AirPods die faster? When one of the AirPods batteries end up dying faster than the other, it could be down to using it more than the other. If you program one of your AirPods to do more than the other, its battery will drain much faster than the other.
For example, if you use the left AirPod to talk to Siri, that feature will drain its battery faster. When you check the charge left on each AirPods, you will note that the one you use to talk to Siri has a lower charge than the other one.
Here are some possible other reasons:
- Battery health: Over time, the batteries in AirPods may degrade at different rates. If one of your AirPods is significantly older than the other or has been used more frequently, its battery may have a shorter lifespan.
- Sound balance: Check the audio balance settings on your device to ensure that it is not set to favor one AirPod over the other. If the audio balance is off, one AirPod may be playing at a higher volume than the other, causing it to die faster.
- Connection issues: If one AirPod is not connecting properly to your device or is experiencing connection issues, it may be using more power to try and maintain a connection.
- Environmental factors: If one AirPod is exposed to higher temperatures or more moisture than the other, it may cause the battery to degrade faster.
- Manufacturing defects: In rare cases, one of the AirPods may have a manufacturing defect that causes its battery to drain faster than the other.
If you have tried troubleshooting and the issue persists, it may be best to contact Apple Support for further assistance.
It is annoying when your AirPods battery dies when you are using them. It is even more annoying when only one of the AirPods batteries dies, leaving you with only one functioning AirPod.
When you are using your AirPods to listen to music, it is expected that both AirPod batteries drain power simultaneously. However, it can be frustrating when only one AirPods dies faster, leaving you with only one functioning AirPod. Here are some of the reasons one of your AirPods keeps dying faster than the other.
One of your AirPods keeps dying faster because you use it more than the other. Each AirPod uses a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, which degrades over time as you use them. If you use one AirPod more than the other, its battery will degrade faster and die faster when used together.
Some of the activities that can drain the battery of one AirPod include using one AirPod as a mic and using one AirPod to talk to Siri. Another reason why one AirPod is dying faster is defective hardware.
If you bought your AirPods and one of them comes with a weak battery or a defective charging port, it will die much faster than the other. Also, if you only place one AirPod in the charging case, the one in the charging case will have more power than the one outside the charging case.
When you buy AirPods, you can use both of them or only use one to listen to music, watch movies, or make calls. However, if you use only one AirPod for a long time, its battery will degrade much faster than the other one.
After some time, the AirPod that is in constant use will not be able to retain power like its counterpart. When you use them together, and the batteries are at 100%, the AirPod you have been using for a long time will die faster than the other one.
To avoid having one AirPod with a weaker battery, ensure that you use all AirPods equally. If you have been using the right AirPod to talk to Siri for a week, change the setting and start using the left AirPod to speak to Siri.
To charge your AirPods, you need to put them in the charging case. The AirPods will have a certain battery level depending on how much battery charge the charging case holds. If you forgot to place both AirPods in the charging case and only placed one when you used them, it will have a high battery charge.
When you are not using your AirPods, ensure that you place them in the charging case to ensure they get charged simultaneously. You should also ensure that your charging has enough charge or is connected to a power source using a USB to Lightning cable.
Sometimes one of your AirPods could be dying faster than its counterpart because of a hardware issue. You may have bought AirPods with a defective battery making one drain its battery faster when in use. If your AirPods are under warranty, you can send the AirPods to Apple for repair or replacement.
You will have to pay for the repairs or replacement if your AirPods are not under warranty. You should also ensure that you buy genuine AirPods from Apple to avoid getting defective AirPods that do not function properly.
Why Is One AirPod Lower Battery than the Other?
AirPods are amazing and useful accessories for iPad or iPhone users, but they have a very short battery life. Your AirPods can last up to five hours of listening time or three hours of talk time, but the battery life will gradually decrease as you continue to use the AirPods. AirPods batteries usually drain at the same rate; however, you might notice that one of your AirPod has a lower battery than the other, and you might be wondering why.
If you notice that one of your AirPods has a lower battery level than the other, there could be several reasons for this:
- You’re using one AirPod more frequently than the other, it may drain its battery faster.
- The batteries in AirPods may degrade at different rates over time, which can result in one AirPod having a shorter battery life than the other.
- If one AirPod is not charging properly or is not making good contact with the charging case, it may not be fully charged and will have a lower battery level.
- Check the audio balance settings on your device to ensure that it is not set to favor one AirPod over the other. If the audio balance is off, one AirPod may be playing at a higher volume than the other, causing its battery to drain faster.
- If one AirPod is exposed to higher temperatures or more moisture than the other, it may cause the battery to degrade faster.
When one AirPod has a lower battery than the other because you have selected the primary microphone or configured Siri to that AirPod or if one of your AirPods is doing more work than its counterpart, its battery will always be lower. It could also be a hardware problem causing one of your AirPods to have a lower battery.
You can fix this issue by changing the AirPods settings to ensure both AirPods have the same workload. If the problem continues, you should contact Apple support for help. If a defective AirPod causes the problem, Apple will repair or replace your AirPods.
When you use your AirPods to make or answer calls, only one AirPod will act as the microphone. The choice of which AirPod’s mic will be used during the phone call shall be determined by algorithms in your iPhone.
Essentially, your phone will automatically decide whether the right or left AirPod will be used as a microphone. However, some people can disable this feature and select a specific AirPod to be used as a microphone during a phone call.
For example, if you select the left AirPod’s mic to be used during a call, the battery will drain much faster compared to the right AirPod. If you have selected only one AirPod to work as a mic, change the settings to allow your phone to select which AirPods shall act as the mic. The random nature your phone selects the AirPod will ensure that all AirPods work the same job, keeping the battery charge the same throughout their use.
You can also use your AirPods to talk to Siri, an artificial intelligence feature that allows you to get answers, control apps on your Apple device, share information, and more. For example, if you want to add a meeting to your schedule on your iPhone while wearing your AirPods, say, “Hey Siri, set up a meeting tomorrow at 10” to add the event to your calendar.
If you have configured Siri to one AirPod only, the battery of that AirPod will drain quickly compared to the other AirPod without Siri. If one of your AirPod has a lower battery than the other because of using Siri, deactivate Siri, or you can interchange the AirPods, ensuring you use Siri on each AirPod equally.
If you have not assigned one of your AirPods to be used as a mic or talk to Siri, but it still has a lower battery charge than its counterpart, there could be a hardware issue. The AirPod might be damaged and does not charge correctly or retain charge for a long time.
If you have AppleCare or AppleCare+, you can send the defective AirPods to Apple for repair or replacement. If your AirPods are not covered by AppleCare, AppleCare+, or consumer law, you will have to pay for any repair or replacement. The price will vary depending on the work done or the service provider’s terms.
You can check the battery percentage of your AirPods using your iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or Mac. On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch, open the charging case and place it close to your device without removing the AirPods from the case. Wait for a few seconds, and the charge status will appear on your device’s screen.
If your AirPods are working properly, the right and left AirPod will show the same battery percentage. You can also use the Batteries widget on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch to check the battery percentage on your AirPods.
Why Do My AirPods Charge and Discharge at Different Rates?
When your AirPods are fully charged, the battery on both AirPods will be 100% and will drain at the same time as you use them. However, you might notice that your AirPods take different times to reach 100%, and also the power drains at different rates. Here are the reasons your AirPods charge and discharge at different rates.
The batteries in AirPods may degrade at different rates over time, which can result in one AirPod having a shorter battery life than the other. This can cause the AirPods to charge and discharge at different rates. If one AirPod is not charging properly or is not making good contact with the charging case, it may not be fully charged and will have a lower battery level.
This can cause the AirPods to charge and discharge at different rates. If you use one AirPod more frequently than the other, it may drain its battery faster, causing it to charge and discharge at different rates. Check the audio balance settings on your device to ensure that it is not set to favor one AirPod over the other.
If the audio balance is off, one AirPod may be playing at a higher volume than the other, causing it to discharge faster. If one AirPod is exposed to higher temperatures or more moisture than the other, it may cause the battery to degrade faster, which can cause the AirPods to charge and discharge at different rates.
Your AirPod is charging and discharging at different rates because you might be using one more than the other. If you use one AirPod more than the other, its battery will start to degrade, hence will charge and discharge at a faster rate.
Another reason could be a damaged charging case. If one side of the charging case is damaged, it could not charge one AirPod correctly, leading it to charge and discharge at a different rate than its counterpart. To fix this problem, you need to ensure that none of your AirPods is working more than the other and the charging case is working perfectly.
When using your AirPods, you need to ensure that both AirPods have the same workload. Do not assign one of the AirPods to carry out a function that quickly drains its power. You should also avoid using one AirPod at a time.
If one AirPod works more than the other, its battery will start to degrade at a faster rate. You should also charge your AirPods at the same time. Whenever you are not using the AirPods, ensure you keep them in the charging case.
If your AirPods are charging and discharging at a different rate, check if the charging case is working properly. First, try to reset your AirPods case since the improper charging could be a software issue. To reset your AirPods case, find the setup button, press, and hold it for fifteen seconds until the light flashes amber, then white.
The charging case will be restored to default, and you can try to charge the AirPods and check if they charge at the same rate. If resetting your charging case does not work, contact Apple Support for help. If there is an Apple Store near you, you can take it there and have an Apple Store genius fix it or replace it.
You also need to use and preserve your AirPods’ batteries to ensure that they last longer. The AirPods batteries can last up to five hours when you play music and two hours when you make or answer calls. If you do not take good care of your AirPods, the battery life could lower within a short time.
You need to keep your AirPods in the charging case at all times when you are not using them. Keeping the AirPods in the charging case will ensure they always have charge whenever you need them. You should also avoid playing with the charging case. If you are not using the AirPods, keep the charging case somewhere safe. Fiddling with the case too much can affect its charging capabilities.
Disabling certain features such as Siri, Automatic Ear Detection, Spatial Audio, and automatic device switching will improve your battery life. Some of these features improve your AirPods user experience, but they negatively affect your AirPods’ battery life.
For example, the Automatic Ear Detection feature stops audio from playing on your AirPods immediately after you remove them from your ears and will restart when you put them back. Even though this feature seems useful, it drains a lot of power, and if you continue using it for some time, it will lower your AirPods’ battery life. If you use your AirPods to make calls, use only one earbud at a time and turn the other earbud off. You should ensure that you alternate between the two.
Finally
Most people complain that one of their AirPods batteries keeps dying faster than its counterpart but finding the reason could be tricky. As discussed in this article, there are usually three reasons one of your AirPods batteries is lower than the other one.
These reasons are excessive use of one AirPod, settings such as microphone and Siri configurations, and hardware defects. If your AirPod has a lower battery charge than its counterpart, you can check if one of these reasons is the cause. If the solutions do not work, take your AirPods or send them to the nearest Apple Store or authorized dealer for repair or replacement.
