7 Steps To Connect Your AirPods To Your Dell Laptop
When you are using your Dell laptop and want to listen to the audio through your AirPods, there is an easy, step-by-step way to make this happen. Whether it’s for work or play, our laptops have become an extension of us, and we want to make the time that we are using them enjoyable as well as efficient. Being able to use our AirPods while working on a report, paying bills, or watching a movie is a great bonus, but pairing our Dell laptop with our AirPods isn’t always as obvious as we’d like it to be. But these steps are going to help make the process significantly easier.
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How do you connect AirPods to a Dell laptop?
You can connect your AirPods to your Dell laptop by following these steps:
- Open the Action Center
- Find the Bluetooth icon
- Turn on your Bluetooth
- Add your device (your AirPods)
- Put your AirPods into pairing mode
- Choose your AirPods from the menu on your laptop
- Adjust the volume on your Dell laptop
It’s frustrating to waste precious time trying to figure out how to get our electronic devices to work, especially if we don’t consider ourselves super tech-savvy. Connecting AirPods to a non-Apple device like a Dell laptop is not completely obvious at first glance, but if you follow the steps that I’ve laid out for you, the process is much simpler than you might think.
Though I love my AirPods, I also like using a windows-based laptop, like the ones made by Dell. Some people may think that AirPods can only be used with other Apple products, but I’m going to show you how that is not at all the case.
How Can I Connect My AirPods to a Dell Laptop?
As I mentioned above, it would be totally understandable if you are under the impression that a pair of Apple AirPods can’t be connected to a Dell laptop since they are not made by the same company and the Dell laptop is based on a completely different set up than laptops that are made by Apple.
Apple produces laptops that are referred to as MacBooks. When Apple first created its line of laptops in 2006 and really changed the way many people interacted with their computers. MacBooks since they were vastly different from other laptops that were on the market.
Though there are significant differences between a MacBook and a Windows laptop (and plenty of debate over which type is better) the biggest difference between the two is that a Windows laptop has a completely different operating system than a MacBook does.
Because of that, it would stand to reason that it might be difficult, if not impossible to use Apple products (such as AirPods) with non-Apple computers (such as a Dell laptop).
But I am going to show you the steps to take so that you can use both at the same time.
1. Open the Action Center
On your Dell laptop, you should see a taskbar running across the bottom of your computer screen.
The taskbar allows you to start programs that are already installed on your laptop. If you aren’t familiar with this bar, you should spend some time navigating around it, as it can be super helpful in creating shortcuts in your work.
Once you locate the taskbar, find the Action Center button.
If you can’t find the Action Center icon, you can also press WIN + A on your laptop to open it up.
2. Find the Bluetooth Icon
Once you have opened the Action Center, find the icon for your Bluetooth capability. Right-click on this button.
You will be given two options: “Go To Settings” or “Edit Quick Settings”.
Click the “Go To Settings” option.
Once open, you will have a variety of options on this screen.
3. Turn on Your Bluetooth
Once you have opened your Settings options, you want to find the one that says “Bluetooth.” (This is usually at the top of your Settings options.)
Go ahead and slide the bar so that the Bluetooth capability on your laptop is now turned on.
Once your Bluetooth is turned on, you will be given an option to “Add a Device” under the Bluetooth icon.
If you are struggling to turn on your Bluetooth setting, your computer may be out of date or need a software update. If this is the case, you can try restarting your Dell computer, or running a diagnostic test on it to determine why the Bluetooth icon is not appearing on your screen.
4. Add Your Device (Your AirPods)
At this point, your Dell laptop recognizes that you want to pair another device with it, using Bluetooth as the way to do it.
Once you click on “Add a Device”, you will be given a variety of what kind of devices you’d like to add.
Options include things like: adding a mouse, another monitor, a gaming console, and audio devices.
There are plenty more options of what you could connect to your Dell laptop at this point, but you will want to use the option, “Add Bluetooth – Audio Device.”
5. Put Your AirPods Into Pairing Mode
Now that your Dell laptop is turned on and the Bluetooth is engaged, it’s time to get your AirPods ready as well.
The first thing you will want to do is locate the button on the back of your AirPod case. It is the only button on the case and not hard to miss.
Once you find the button, open the AirPod case. While the case is open, push the button and hold it down.
It may take a few seconds, but you will see the LED light begin to flash inside the button.
When the button begins flashing white, you can release it. Now you know your AirPods are ready to be paired with your Dell laptop.
6. Choose Your AirPods from the Menu on Your Laptop
At this point, both your Dell laptop and your AirPods should be ready to be paired together.
Look back at your laptop screen and check to make sure your AirPods are showing up on the screen, under “Add a Device.” There may be more than one device listed there, if you have other gadgets in your home that are also Bluetooth-enabled.
Click on the name of your AirPods and then select the button “Done.”
Pairing won’t begin until you select “Done” from the screen. Once you do, the pairing between your devices should be complete, and you can now enjoy using your AirPods with your laptop, even your non-Apple laptops, like your Dell one.
7. Adjust the Volume on Your Dell Laptop
Once you have paired your Dell laptop and your AirPods, you can go ahead and use your AirPods with your laptop. If the volume is not where you want it to be, adjust it on your computer’s keyboard.
The volume adjustment on most Dell laptops is located on the top keyboard bar.
There is usually a button to increase the volume, to decrease the volume, and to mute the sound altogether.
If at any point your AirPods quit working, you may need to go back through these steps and troubleshoot where the problem is coming from.