Nowadays, earphones are no longer the tangled mess of cables that you plug into your phone's aux port - everything's gone wireless.
If you're the owner of Apple AirPods, you might be familiar with a bit of an issue: one AirPod always seems to be dead, whilst the other is fully charged.
Well, there could be a couple of reasons behind it, according to an Apple Explained video.
The most common reason behind the uneven battery status could be down to contact issues inside the charging case.
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'When placing your AirPods inside, it’s possible that one may not make full contact with the charging pins,' the video explained.
This means the battery of the AirPod slowly drains instead of charging.
However, there's an easy fix for this. By using a cotton swab, simply clean inside the case around the metal pins - even if there's no visible dirt - along with the stem of the AirPod.
Another reason could be the different functions of each AirPod affecting their batteries.
Depending on which pod you choose, one is usually used as the microphone for Siri or calls, whilst the other is for 'Noise Control.' You can even out their battery usage by switching these roles in your iPhone settings.
Apple users should also pay attention to which AirPod they take out if say someone is talking to them. It might sound innocent, but over time, there can be 'uneven degradation.'
When the AirPod is no longer in your ear, it goes into a power-saving mode, while the one in your ear continues to play sound.
This can lead to one AirPod needing more charge cycles than the other, with different charging capacities.
Considering the cost of AirPods, the video recommends the best way to fix the issue is to send them to Apple for replacement, which usually costs around $50, depending on the model.
Viewers had mixed reactions.
Some were glad to have found a reason behind their common problem, as one commented: 'This.. is actually something I’ve been wondering for a while.'
Another comment read: 'Thank you, brother. Super helpful. I never thought to clean the stems with a q-tip which is what I normally do inside the case when it’s time to clean them again.'
Others came to express frustration with their AirPod experience, like: 'the amount of times i put my airpods in to figure out one is dead always gets me mad.'
Meanwhile, other Apple users pointed out that they always carry a backup, writing: 'This is why I always keep my wired earphones with me.'