The best AirPods features come to Android and Linux via a free app

Created by reverse engineering the AirPods’ own protocols, LibrePods work by making the wireless headphones think they’re connected to an Apple device so they share device status information that’s normally only accessible to Apple’s various operating systems. Other features that the LibrePods unlock include conversation awareness that will lower the volume while speaking, switching between noise control modes, accurate battery level information, and customizations like accessibility settings and renaming of headphones, hearing aid mode, and multi-device connectivity.

Defar says the LibrePods should work with all AirPods models and while you’ll get full functionality when used with AirPods Max and the latest versions of the AirPods Pro, Heart rate monitoring on AirPods Pro 3 Not supported.

However, getting LibrePods up and running on your Android phone isn’t as easy as just installing the app. Devar says that “due to a bug in the Android Bluetooth stack,” the LibrePods will currently only work on Android phones that have the Xpose framework installed. If you have a OnePlus or Oppo device running ColorOS or OxygenOS 16, you can install and use the LibrePods without rooting, but you won’t be able to access some features like customizing transparency mode until you do.