Apple AirPods can deliver extraordinary audio experiences. If you can connect them to your Oculus Quest 2, it would be a truly immersive experience. But the question is — can you connect AirPods to Oculus Quest 2? While Oculus Quest 2 does support Bluetooth headphones, it’s not officially announced.
The Quest 2 has built-in audio, and you can shut it somehow because nobody wants to know what you are doing on your VR. Well, a simple option is connecting your VR to headphones like AirPods.
If you haven’t done it before, in this guide, we will share all the details you need to know to get it done, so continue reading until the end.
Can You Connect AirPods to Oculus Quest 2?
To connect AirPods to your Oculus Quest 2, turn your Quest 2 on, go to the Settings menu, and select Experimental Features. Next, switch on your AirPods, put them into pairing mode, and then go back to your Quest 2 to look for the Bluetooth Pairing option and press the pairing button. This is the easiest way to connect your Oculus 2 using Bluetooth under the Experimental Features in Settings, but make sure both devices are charged and can access the universal menu of your VR set.
Why Connect Your AirPods to Quest 2?
There are multiple reasons why connecting your AirPods to your Quest 2 for the audio output makes sense. We have listed them here:
- AirPods are wireless and fully portable.
- AirPods are user-friendly and extremely lightweight.
- They have excellent battery life.
- You can conveniently move around your hands and arms as there are no cables.
How to Connect AirPods to an Oculus Quest 2
No official statements are available on whether you can connect your AirPods with your Quest 2. But Quest 2 does come with a hidden aspect that we are going to tell you all about.
You might not get any automatic support for your AirPods from Quest 2, but you can connect these two devices. This is the magic of the Experimental Features of Quest 2.
So yes — you can use your Quest 2 VR headset with your AirPods. Read our detailed guide on how to get it done.
Step 1 – Switch on the Quest 2
You must begin the process of connecting your AirPods to your Quest 2 VR headset by first turning the headset on. You will have to find the power button and press it once.
Step 2 – Go to the Settings Menu of the Quest 2
The next step is to go to the Settings menu of your VR headset. You can do that by pressing the button on your right-hand touch controller. It will bring up the Universal menu. From there, you can point right at the clock on the left-hand side of the menu, which will show you the Settings menu.
Step 3 – Select the “Experimental Features” Option
The next step is to choose Experimental Features from the Settings menu. This option will be available at the end of the main menu.
Step 4 – Turn your AirPods on
Once you have reached the Experimental Features option on your Quest 2, it’s time to turn your AirPods on and put them into pairing mode immediately. So, you will be using Bluetooth technology to connect your Quest 2 with your AirPods.
Step 5 – Return to your VR Headset
After turning on your AirPods and putting them into pairing mode, it’s time to return to your VR headset. Now look for an option labeled Bluetooth Pairing. Select it as soon as you find it, and then press that Pair button. But by doing so, you will begin the pairing process for both devices.
Step 6 – Connect the Two Devices
In the final step, you must choose the “Pair new device” option after pressing the pair button. As soon as you do this, both your devices will be connected.
If you prefer a video guide, you can refer to this video:
How Stable Will the Connection Be?
So, you have found a way to connect your AirPods with your Quest 2 VR headset. As the support between these two devices is not officially available, your next question is probably about the stability of this connection.
It’s not just AirPods you can connect this way; you can also connect your Galaxy Buds 2 and various other Bluetooth headphones with your Quest 2. However, before you run off and start the connection process, you need to keep a few things in mind.
You can use the Experimental Features to establish a connection between your Bluetooth devices, but support for it is not officially available. So, you might question the quality of your connection between these two devices.
A few online reports mentioned that although both devices can pair up, the overall connection experience is not entirely seamless.
Many users have reported lags and the audio seems out of sync. Now the problem is that there aren’t any solutions available anywhere, official or not. Nevertheless, on a positive note, if you use Netflix or any other application, the audio experience will be much better than online games.
How to Resolve Connection Issues?
Once you have established a connection between these two devices, there might be a few latency issues. To resolve such issues, you can use an external Bluetooth transmitter.
Here are the steps that you need to follow to set it all up:
- Plug in the 3.5mm jack of the transmitter and link it with your AirPods. You don’t need to connect the transmitter to your Quest 2 VR headset.
- The VR headset will process the audio to the Bluetooth transmitter via the headphone port.
- There won’t be zero latency with the introduction of Bluetooth transmitters. However, you can expect a 40-millisecond lag (approximate) during gaming, which is decent.
- Your Bluetooth transmitter has to be above average, and it should at least support Bluetooth 4.2 with a 10-meter range.
- You must connect your Bluetooth transmitter to your AirPods once it’s properly plugged into the 3.5mm jack. Most people mistakenly connect the AirPods to the Quest 2 when the transmitter is plugged in. If you do this, you won’t notice any latency improvements because you aren’t using your Bluetooth transmitter at all.
However, if you want that immersive audio experience, you must use your wired headphones with your Quest 2 headset. This is the only way to experience uncompressed and true zero-latency audio.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Quest 2 Offer Support for Apple AirPods?
If you look at the official support page of Oculus Quest 2, the website says that Quest 2 supports USB-C and 3.5 mm headphones, but Apple AirPods aren’t explicitly included. The website doesn’t mention wireless headphones in particular, but you can connect your AirPods to the Oculus Quest 2.
Is Quest 3 Coming Out?
Meta has confirmed that Oculus Quest 3 is coming out in 2023. So, we can expect some good features to be added to the new model. The new model may be compatible with these Bluetooth wireless headphones.
Will the Quest 3 have Bluetooth?
At this point, we can only speculate whether or not the Quest 3 will have Bluetooth. We do expect that there are going to be new features along with technological improvements.
But the Quest 3 won’t feature Bluetooth connectivity. To be sure, we have to wait for the launch date and see what tech the new models offer.
What Headphones can I use with Oculus Quest 2?
Oculus Quest 2 supports both USB Type C and 3.5 mm jack headphones. You can use its Bluetooth features to connect your Bluetooth wireless headphones.
You can try using an external Bluetooth transmitter to resolve any issues pertaining to connectivity, and you should be good to go. The connectivity problems will be more noticeable when you play online games, but this might not be an issue when streaming movies.
Conclusion
So, can you connect AirPods to Oculus Quest 2? Officially, the support page of Oculus Quest 2 doesn’t mention that the VR headset is compatible with any Bluetooth wireless headphones. But you can connect your AirPods with your Quest using a Bluetooth transmitter.
The Experimental Features aspect of your Quest 2 will come in handy. Use these features to link your AirPods with your VR headset. Additionally, you can use this same feature to connect any other Bluetooth headphones.
The next model of the VR headset is coming out in 2023, and you can expect some positive changes, especially in the connectivity department. For now, we will have to wait until the new rumors start making their rounds.
