Windows 10 Gaining Improved Audio Support for AirPods in Future Update

The next major update for Windows 10 later this year will include improved support for Apple's line of AirPods and other Bluetooth headphones and earbud speakers.

windows 10
In a blog post, Microsoft says it is planning to add support for AAC, or Advanced Audio Coding for Bluetooth devices, which will offer improved audio quality for AirPods, iTunes, and Apple Music users. Windows currently only supports SBC codec and aptX for Bluetooth devices.

Enjoy premium audio streaming quality wirelessly on your Bluetooth headphones and speakers with AAC codec. Short for Advanced Audio Codec, AAC is a lossy codec that delivers high quality audio streaming in smaller files – great for listening to music online.

Alongside AAC support, the Windows 10 update will make it easier to select Bluetooth headphones, speakers, and earbuds from the Windows bar. As Microsoft describes:

No more clicking through multiple audio endpoints to make your Bluetooth headset's voice and mic work properly. We now only expose one audio endpoint in the UI and will switch to the correct one automatically for you for a seamless experience. Listening to Spotify and then have to hop onto a Teams call? You can also now directly control the volume of your headset

The new features, accompanied with bug fixes and improvements, will be available to all Windows 10 users later this year. However, members of the Windows Insider program can receive a beta with the new additions with the latest build.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Intel Inside iPhone Feature

Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone

Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 18 Pro Leak Adds New Evidence for Under-Display Face ID

Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker. According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
Johny Srouji

Apple Chip Chief Johny Srouji Could Be Next to Go as Exodus Continues

Sunday December 7, 2025 10:41 am PST by
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
iOS 26

Apple Seeds Second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to Developers and Public Beta Testers

Monday December 8, 2025 10:18 am PST by
Apple today seeded the second release candidate version of iOS 26.2 to developers and public beta testers, with the software coming one week after Apple seeded the first RC. The release candidate represents the final version iOS 26.2 that will be provided to the public if no further bugs are found. Registered developers and public beta testers can download the betas from the Settings app on...
top stories 2025 12 04a

Top Stories: iOS 26.2 Coming Soon, Apple Execs Depart, and More

Saturday December 6, 2025 6:00 am PST by
You'd expect things to be starting to wind down for the holidays by now, but that doesn't seem to be the case yet in the world of Apple news, with Apple just about ready to release iOS 26.2 and other operating system updates to the public. There was also a flurry of news this week about Apple executive departures, some expected and some not so expected, while we also learned that Apple and...
Johny Srouji

Apple's Chipmaking Chief Johny Srouji Responds to Report About Him Potentially Leaving

Monday December 8, 2025 9:23 am PST by
Apple's chipmaking chief Johny Srouji has reportedly indicated that he plans to continue working for the company for the foreseeable future. "I love my team, and I love my job at Apple, and I don't plan on leaving anytime soon," said Srouji, in a memo obtained by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Here is Srouji's full memo, as shared by Bloomberg:I know you've been reading all kind of rumors and...
ive and altman

Jony Ive's OpenAI Device Barred From Using 'io' Name

Friday December 5, 2025 6:22 am PST by
A U.S. appeals court has upheld a temporary restraining order that prevents OpenAI and Jony Ive's new hardware venture from using the name "io" for products similar to those planned by AI audio startup iyO, Bloomberg Law reports. iyO sued OpenAI earlier this year after the latter announced its partnership with Ive's new firm, arguing that OpenAI's planned "io" branding was too close to its...

Top Rated Comments

TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
60 months ago
looks like a solid update to me
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Enrico Avatar
60 months ago
Hopefully one day they will add Teams compatibility as well.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
acorntoy Avatar
60 months ago
And people say Apple is late to add functionality.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
btrach144 Avatar
60 months ago

Hopefully they fix their security holes in that OS too... Oh wait, there's an entire industry built by the fact that Microsoft software is insecure...
How is this on topic?

you realize that same industry has products for macOS too, right?

security issues are being found with Apple devices at an alarming rate.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Imory Avatar
60 months ago
That's great! Unfortunately, both MacOS and Windows 10 suffers from the limitations of SBC where if you're on a Teams call or Zoom, having the audio output and mic output to your headphones/AirPods will result in 1950s phone call quality since it can't do both. Something the BT consortium really needs to fix. Fortunately, Zoom has gotten pretty clever with this and will connect the audio output to your AirPods and use the mic of your Macbook in order to maintain the highest quality possible.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AndyMacAndMic Avatar
60 months ago

Hopefully they fix their security holes in that OS too... Oh wait, there's an entire industry built by the fact that Microsoft software is insecure...
First of all, that is wildly off topic.
Secondly, if you want to go down the path of security holes, one can 'shoot holes' in every OS in existence.

Here is a recent example on macOS:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/macos-11-3-patches-security-vulnerability-that-bypassed-built-in-malware-protections.2293352/?post=29838898#post-29838898

Pot and kettle?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)