Bluetooth Multipoint and Audio Switching allow a pair of wireless headphones to connect to multiple devices, but the features work differently.

A feature that is becoming a standard on a lot of earbuds these days is Bluetooth Multipoint, but how does it differ from Audio Switching? The average person has more than one electronic device and back when the audio jack was a standard feature across devices, all a user had to do was to unplug their wired earphones from one device and plug into another device. However, that easy option was lost with the advent of wireless earphones.

These days, users now have to dig through various Bluetooth settings to connect one device or disconnect another. To make the process somewhat easier, new features such as Bluetooth Multipoint and Audio Switching have been added by manufacturers. The problem is, not all devices support these features.

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Bluetooth Multipoint allows users to connect their wireless headphones to two devices at the same time, regardless of the device, the operating system, or whether they are made by the same manufacturer. For example, the OnePlus Buds Pro can be connected to an Android smartphone and a Chromebook at the same time or even a handheld console like the Nintendo Switch. When a call comes in on the smartphone, audio will be routed through the earbuds. The same is also true when playing media, as the audio from either connected device will be routed to the earbuds.

Wireless earphones with Audio Switching can automatically switch between multiple audio sources (smartphone, laptop, TV, or smartwatch) that are connected to the same account. This can be a Google Account or an Apple account. Unlike Bluetooth Multipoint, Audio Switching is not limited to just two devices. For example, AirPods have support for Audio Switching and will automatically switch between Apple devices, including iPhones, iPads, MacBooks, and Apple Watches, as long as they are all linked to the same iCloud account.

Not all wireless earphones support Bluetooth Multipoint and Audio Switching. Furthermore, some don't support either while others sonly support Audio Switching. Cross-manufacturer support has never been one of Apple's strong suits, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that AirPods only support Audio Switching. In contrast, the OnePlus Buds Pro only support Bluetooth Multipoint, and the Pixel Buds Pro support both Bluetooth Multipoint and Audio Switching.

While the Pixel Buds Pro are the first pair of non-Apple earbuds to support Audio Switching, they won't be the last. Audio Switching on Android is built on top of Google Fast Pair which allows users to easily pair supported wireless Bluetooth headphones to an Android phone or tablet. When connected, the device is saved to the user's Google Account and immediately synced to all of the Android devices synced to that same account.

In the future, Audio Switching will be coming to other headphones, including earbuds from Sony and JBL. Google also plans to add support for more platforms as well. While Google hasn't specified which, ChromeOS is likely to be one of the supported Audio Switching platforms, helping to ensure users are not limited to just Android devices connected to the same Google account.

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Habeeb enjoys writing about the consumer technology space and has a keen interest in wearables, Android smartphones and tablets, and Chromebooks. When he's not writing, he's catching up on the latest TV shows and movies.