Lightning headphones that are built for Apple products have an in-built DAC to convert the digital signal from the iPad, and iPhones to a high-quality audio signal.
These headphones come with a port connector technology for use in Apple products. But, the major problem is that they are not compatible with other laptops and PCs.
Also, as you guys know, Apple has brought a technical change in its design of using an 8-pin lightning connector instead of a 30-pin dock connector.
This means lightning headphones cannot be directly connected to older Apple devices or other computing devices such as laptops, tablets, and even other smartphones. So, what’s the solution? Don’t worry; we are here to provide two simple ways how to connect lightning headphones to the laptop.
Why do you need lightning headphones?
Lightning headphones help to transfer the data from an iPhone and iPad to a computer. Walking around with adapters and extra cables isn’t the most practical thing for Apple users, especially when on the move.
So the easiest option is to get headphones with their own Lightning connector. They range from simple in-ear headphones to high-end hi-fi models.
Lightning headphones have the advantage of switching from a traditional 16-bit audio format (CD quality) to a high-resolution 24-bit format, comparable to original recordings produced in the studio.
Why it is difficult to use lightning headphones on laptops?
Lightning connectors have many advantages over the traditional 1/8-inch headphone jack. However, the introduction of this new lightning connector (8-pin) has posed a dilemma.
As said earlier, all the new iPhone models no longer come with a traditional 3.5 mm female audio jack. This means that all the electronic accessories that were designed for older models are now entirely incompatible with the newer iPhone models. So, the users with the older model have to use a lightning adapter.
This unique adapter has one end compatible with the lightning connector of Apple devices and the other compatible with the standard 3.5 mm audio plugs. It converts the digital audio output of the iPhone into an analog signal which is delivered to the headphones that are connected to the port.
The second problem is that these lightning headphones can not be used directly with any other device except iPhones starting with iPhone 5, iPads of the 4th generation, and iPod Touch of the 5th, 6th, and 7th generations.
Types of USB Ports
Before choosing any adapters for your laptop, first, you need to check the ports. Laptops usually have two types of USB ports.
1. USB-A &
2. USB-C
The most commonly used laptop ports are the USB-A ports which are much bigger than the USB-C port. Using this adapter, you can plug into your flash players, hard disks, charging cables, etc. Nowadays, new laptop models and Apple products are coming with a USB-C port.
But lightning earbuds aren’t compatible with some devices. Well, if you are looking for how to use lightning headphones on laptops. Go ahead and read the steps below to connect lightning headphones to a PC/laptop.!
How to connect Apple Lightning headphones to a laptop?
Lightning headphones are connected to Apple laptops using the standard USB-C ports provided. Though these lightning headphones cannot be directly used with other laptop models, you can connect them using a lightning to USB adapter cable.
But laptops have different kinds of USB ports some have USB-A, and some have USB-type C ports. It differs according to each model. So you need to choose the adapter cable as per the port connectivity of your laptops.
This is not the only way to achieve this connection. You can use an audio jack converter but using a USB adapter cable is way better. Now, I’ll tell you how to achieve the connection between your laptops and lightning headphones using these adapters.
This adapter will take the digital output of your laptop and convert it into a form supported by the lightning headphones. The in-built DAC in your lightning headphones will now convert this digital input to a sound signal. This is how it works.
One thing to keep in mind while purchasing an adapter is to make sure it allows using a mic with your laptop to record sounds.
Conclusion
You have reached the end of this article. When compared to regular headphones, lightning headphones provide very high high-resolution audio quality. This is because of the DAC present inside, and not only that, they also offer a two-way connection. But a major problem is their connectivity with other devices.
But, now I hope you’ve understood how to use lightning headphones on laptops. Purchase any of these two USB adapter cables that suit your laptop and enjoy the music.
Hope to see you in my next article. Thank you for reading!
FAQ
1. Why won’t my Apple headphones work on my laptop?
Sometimes your PC or Laptop doesn’t recognize the headset or headphones. At that time, you need to reconfigure your audio settings to solve this problem.
You have to select the “Device properties” from the same menu under both the input and output device menus to adjust the headset or headphone settings further. Following this way, you can connect iPhone earphones to the laptop.
2. Can I use Apple headphones on my laptop?
Yes, you can connect Apple earphones to your laptop. If you have a suitable adapter, you can easily use your lightning headphones as a microphone. Make sure that your microphone has the option to connect to either MacOS or Windows.
3. how to connect Apple headphones to a laptop As A Mic?
Steps to use the Apple headphones as a mic on a laptop/PC –
- First “Open the Control Panel” and find the “Hardware and Sound option”.
- Then find the “Manage Audio Devices” section.
- Next, open the Recording tab.
- Now, you will see the list of connected microphones.
- Make it as default settings and apply the changes.
