Apple AirPods are the pinnacle of Apple engineering. They are, without a doubt, the most successful product since the iPhone.
They do, however, have their quirks. One of them is the AirPod case that does not charge from the laptop.
If your AirPods case is not charging from a Windows laptop, the issue is that your Windows OS is not recognizing your AirPods case. To resolve the problem, follow these steps:
- Connect Airpods case to your laptop
- Go to control panel
- View Devices & Printers
- Under ‘Unspecified’ you’ll find AirPods Case, double click it
- Go to Hardware tab
- Click on Properties
- Click Change settings
- Go to Driver tab
- Click Disable Device
- Unplug, then reconnect your case
After that, your Windows laptop will recognise your AirPods case and begin charging (more detailed version of this method with pictures below)
This isn’t the only reason your AirPods case won’t charge from your Windows laptop or PC.
Here are 6 different troubleshooting methods to get your airpd case charging from your windows laptop.
AirPod Case Not Charging From Laptop- Troubleshooting
In this article, we are going through 6 different troubleshooting methods to solve the issue of your Airpods case not charging from laptop that is running windows OS.
Start from the top and perform the most common fixes first before you move your way to the least likely issues.
Uninstall/Re-install USB device
As discussed in the start of the article, most people end up with a non-charging case because their windows OS don’t recognize the Airpods case correctly.
Your laptop is like “I don’t know you, so no charging for you”
Fortunately, fixing this is quite easy. All you have to do is uninstall the device and replug it so that windows can correctly install the drivers again and recognize it.
STEP-1: Plug in your Airpods case into the USB port and go to Control Panel
STEP-2: In the Control Panel, click on “View devices and printers” under the Hardware and Sound.
STEP-3: You will see your Airpods case under “Unspecified” category with a yellow warning triagle. Double click on it.
STEP-4: On the new opened window, go to Hardware tab on top and click on Properties. A new windows will open up.
STEP-5: In the new window, click on Change settings button at the bottom. Another new window will open.
STEP-6: On the top, click on Driver tab and then click on Disable to uninstall the hardware (your Airpods case)
STEP-7: Now, close all the windows, unplug your USB from the port, wait for a few seconds and plug in the USB again.
The computer will reinstall the drivers for your Airpods case and when this completes correctly, the case will start charging.
Change the USB port
Sometimes, your Airpods case end up not charging because of a malfunctioning USB port. To charge the Airpods case correctly, the USB port should be able to provide 5 volts.
Often times, a USB port fails to provide the required voltage or current to charge the case. To test if your USB port is functioning, try charging your iPhone or any other device with the same port.
If the other device is charging correctly, that means the port is functioning correctly. Otherwise, change the port and try charging your Airpods case again.
Check your lightening cable
Lightening cables are notorious for breaking down frequently. I personally think these cables are the weak link in the entire Apple’s ecosystem.
If you have been using your lightning cable for a while, chances are that its beginning to break down and that is causing your Airpods case to not charge.
Apple uses a smart charging handshake where the entire charging line up (the current source, cable etc) is verified before the system allows the battery to start charging. In case of a faulty cable, this handshake will not happen.
To check and make sure your lightning cable is not the cause of the problem, get a 2nd cable from someone to quickly test your case with the same laptop.
If the 2nd cable works fine, know that its your cable that is faulty. It’s time to get a new cable and this time, get one that doesn’t break down easily.
My recommendation is to go with a Nylon covered cable like this one.
Reset your AirPods case
Sometimes, electronic devices get into a software glitch that will cause a malfunction.
Resetting your Airpods resolves any software-related glitches that might cause the charging case to misbehave.
To reset your Airpods case, follow the following instructions:
- Put your AirPods in the charging case, close the lid and wait 30 seconds.
- Open the lid of your charging case.
- On your iPhone go to Settings > Bluetooth and tap the
icon next to your AirPods. - Tap Forget This Device and confirm.
- Open the charging case lid and press & hold the setup button on the back of the case for about 15 seconds.
- Wait for the status LED on front to flash amber, then white.
- Place your Airpods in the case close to your iPhone to re-pair them with your phone.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to connect the Airpods again.
Now you have reset and reconneted your Airpods to your phone. This should also refresh any firmware or software glitches that might be causing the charging problem.
Clean the charging port
Airpods case can pick up dust and dirt over time inside the charging port. It is small and hard to clean.
When enough dirt accumulates inside the port, it prevents the lightening connector from making a good connection between the terminal. Result? the case won’t charge at times.
However, if this is the reason for your Airpods case not charging then it will not charge on any source and not just on your laptop.
You can easily clean the charging port using a cotton swab buds and some rubbing alcohol.
Flatten the end of the cotton bud to a shape of the charging port, dip it in rubbing alcohol and carefully clean the charging port.
Repeat the process several times till all the dirt and dust particles are out of the charging port and its clean as new.
Update AirPods firmware
An out of date firmware can cause various problems with your Airpods case. If your Airpods case is not charging, you should check if you have a new firmware update available.
To check updates to your Airpods firmware, follow the below steps:
- Put your Airpods inside the case and open the lid and bring your Airpods near your phone.
- Once your Airpods are detected by your iPhone, go to Settings > General > About
- Scroll down till you see your Airpods name. Tap on it.
- If there is an update available for your Airpods, you will see a prompt on your screen for update.
- Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the update.
- If you don’t see any prompt for software update, that means your Airpods are already on the latest firmware version.
Visit The Apple Store
If you tried all the above troubleshooting methods and your Airpods case is still refusing to charge from the laptop, then chances are that it has a hardware problem.
It’s probably time to visit a Genius bar and talk to them about your problem. If your Airpods are under warranty, it shouldn’t be a problem to get them fixed.
Conclusion
Your Airpods are pretty reliable piece of tech and will seldom malfunction through out their life.
But at times, due to software and drivers compatibility issues like AirPod case not charging from laptop.
The fix is pretty easy and all you have to do is uninstall the device in the control panel and replug it.
There might be other reasons for your case to not charge and if you follow the troubleshooting steps in this guide, you will be able to get your Airpods charging in no time.