How To Share Audio From Your Android Phone To Multiple Earbuds (and Why It's Genius)

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ZDNET cardinal takeaways

• Android tin stock audio pinch aggregate earbuds and headphones.
• Your devices must support LE Audio and Auracast.
• The characteristic is elemental to usage and disposable connected Pixel and Samsung devices.

How galore times person you wanted to fto a friend perceive a opus you were listening to and had to popular retired an earbud and fto them creation it retired pinch you? Of course, for those who thin not to want their earbuds inserted into personification else's ears, that's a woody breaker.

What if location was different option? What if you could let that personification to link their earbuds to your Android telephone truthful you tin some bask what's playing pinch your ain earbuds and successful stereo? Now we're talking.

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Well, Android tin do that pinch a characteristic called "Audio sharing." Before you get excited, location are immoderate caveats to this. 

First off, it only useful pinch up to 2 people, and not each telephone supports Audio share. Yes, Pixel phones do support this feature, arsenic do each Samsung phones starting pinch nan S23 and newer. As agelong arsenic your telephone supports Auracast, you're bully to go. Second, immoderate headphones aliases earbuds you usage must support Bluetooth LE and Auracast. Without those 2 features, Audio stock won't work. 

A sample listing of headphones and earbuds that support these features looks for illustration this:

• Sony WF-1000XM5 and LinkBuds S
• Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4
• Bose Ultra Open Earbuds
• LG TONE Free T90Q
• Nothing Ear (2) and Ear (Stick)
• Audio-Technica ATH-TWX9
• EarFun Air Pro 4
• Status Pro X

Make judge you hunt nan features of your earbuds to guarantee they support nan characteristic earlier trying this out; otherwise, you mightiness upwind up pinch a frustrating business connected your hands.

How to alteration 'Audio sharing'

First, make judge that LE Audio is enabled for your earbuds aliases headphones. How you do this will dangle connected nan make and exemplary of nan device. For example, connected my Status Pro X earbuds, I spell to Connected Devices > Pro X > cogwheel icon > LE Audio (enable).

Your earbuds and headphones must support LE (Low Energy) Audio for this to work.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

Once you've enabled LE Audio for your earbuds and headphones, nan adjacent point to do is alteration Audio share. Here's really that's done.

You don't request to fuss pinch nan Name and Password fields for Audio share.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

Or, you tin pat "Pair caller device" and find nan 2nd brace of earbuds aliases headphones to beryllium connected.

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When you're done sharing, you tin propulsion down nan notification shade, look for nan Audio sharing entry, and pat Stop Sharing.

Take heed of this warning.

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

The caveat

When testing this feature, I was nether nan belief that my Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 earbuds supported some LE Audio and Auracast. When attempting to alteration Audio sharing pinch my Pixel Buds, my Pixel telephone refused. I past went into nan Pixel Buds settings (from wrong Connected Devices) and recovered nary LE Audio action (which was antecedently there).

Also: I listened to Sony, Bose, and Apple's flagship headphones - and this pair's up of nan pack

My conjecture is that Google removed nan LE Audio action successful a caller update because nan earbuds weren't fresh to afloat support nan feature. I was, however, capable to get Audio sharing moving pinch my Status Pro X earbuds.

Audio stock is finicky because support for LE Audio and Auracast is still iffy connected a batch of devices. If, however, you do person a brace of earbuds aliases headphones pinch support, springiness Audio stock a effort and impressment your friends pinch your astonishing sensation successful music.