Since we posted our video not too long ago, where I finally admitted to failing and buying an AirPods Pro game, I’ve had quite a few questions regarding using these wireless headphones with a Chromebook. As many of you already know, I don’t have much Apple hardware. I have an iPad Mini that I have almost completely stopped using and I have the original AirPods from a few years ago and now the AirPods Pro. My main connections with these headphones are mainly with my OnePlus 8 and whatever Chromebook I am using at the moment.
As it stands now, I’ve been happily using them with the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 for the past few weeks while writing and doing other work-related tasks. As I have been using them, what I have found is I love the noise cancellation when I need it, the rock solid connection for when I get away from my desk and the ease of changing connections between devices. When it comes to audio and video playback, AirPods Pro works exactly as expected and sounds great doing it. They are also wickedly comfortable.
So obviously the answer is yes, they work quite well with a Chromebook. The play / pause controls work with a single click and the forward / reverse also works with a double or triple click. The only other thing AirPods Pro are designed to do is call Siri, which, unsurprisingly, doesn’t do without an Apple device. There are applications for your phone that you can use to activate the Google Assistant through a very slow double-click on the headphones, but I have never found the Assistant in my ear so necessary even with the Pixel Buds. I like the touch controls on the Pixel Buds a bit better, but I’ve found that noise cancellation and play / pause are the main things I need my headphones to be good at, and AirPods Pro does this well, regardless of what is connected.
As for the bounce between devices, I’ve found this to be the easiest set of headphones to use by far. To pair them, put them in their case, press and hold the button back until the white light on the front starts flashing, and then pair them with the device you want. After doing this once, you can simply open your Bluetooth settings on the device you want to switch to, click AirPods Pro and that device will take over. It works all the time. If I’m using them on my Chromebook and I want to go out for a quick walk, I can just grab my phone, download my quick settings and select AirPods Pro from the Bluetooth list and get out. It is simple and effective and I love it. And yes, I know that other Bluetooth headsets do this, but I’ve never used a set that can switch so confidently between devices and not have pairing issues.
There is a certain air about Apple products that emit the vibe that they are intended only for Apple hardware and Apple hardware. While this is very true on many of your devices, certainly not true for AirPods or AirPods Pro. What I find in these headphones is something I really wish Apple was more inclined to: openness and interoperability. Apple has made its fortune by locking its customers in its own ecosystem, and I don’t expect that to stop soon. It’s nice to be able to take advantage of a well-made premium product of theirs that doesn’t feel crippled due to the fact that I’m not connecting it to other Apple hardware. Using AirPods Pro with my Android phone and various Chromebooks has shown that Apple can make great accessories for everyone when they choose, and I am a user who is very happy that they did it. ->
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