How to Reboot Xiaomi Air Wireless Headphones: The Complete Guide

Xiaomi Air’s wireless headphones (including the Air 2/2S/2 Pro/3/3 Pro models) sometimes require a forced reboot — whether it’s a connection failure, sound problems or preparing for sale. However, many users confuse the concepts of “soft reset” and “hard reset”, which leads to unnecessary loss of settings. In this article, we will discuss all the official and hidden ways to restart the headphones, and explain when to use.

Important: the reboot procedure for Xiaomi Air is different from the classic AirDots or Redmi Buds – it uses a combination of buttons and touch panels. If your headphones do not respond to standard actions, most likely, the problem lies in a discharged battery or damaged firmware (for this, in a separate section).

What is the difference between resetting and resetting settings

Before we start the manipulation, let’s understand the terms:

• 🔄 Soft reset: temporarily powering the headphones without removing the associated devices and settings, similar to restarting the smartphone.
• 🧹 Hard reset – complete deletion of all data, including connection history and equalizer settings. Re-pairing required.
• 🔧 Update firmware – install a new version of the software through the Mi Home or Xiaomi Earbuds app (not to be confused with a reboot!).

In 80% of cases, users are satisfied with a soft reset - it solves problems with freezing, sound breaks or incorrect operation of sensors. Hard reset is used before selling the device or if the headphones "do not see" each other after updating the firmware.

⚠️ After resetting to factory settings headphones Xiaomi Air 3 Pro may temporarily lose support LC3 (codec for high-quality sound before reconnecting to the smartphone.

Method 1: Standard reboot through a button

The most versatile method that works on all Xiaomi Air models (except Air 2 Lite):

1. Place both headphones in the charging case and close the lid.
2. Press and hold the touchpad on both headphones simultaneously for 10-15 seconds.
3. The indicators on the headphones will start flashing red and white – this is a signal of a successful reboot.
4. Wait for the automatic shutdown (the indicators will go out) and remove the headphones from the case.

On Air 3/3 Pro models, instead of touch panels, a physical button is used on the back of the headphone case - it must be held for 8-10 seconds until a double beep is used.

Put the headphones in the case.

Close the case lid.

Make sure the case is charged (indicator is on fire)

Turn off Bluetooth headphones on your smartphone-->

If the indicators do not flash, check:

• 🔋 Case Charge (Plug to Charge for 5 Minutes).
• 🧲 Clean contact headphones and case (wipe with an alcohol napkin).
• 📱 Lack of active Bluetooth connection (turn off headphones in phone settings).

Method 2: Forced Case Discharge (for Air 2S/3)

This method is useful if the headphones do not respond to the touch panels or one of them fell off the pair.

1. Place both headphones in the case and leave the lid open.
2. Press and hold the button on the back of the case (near the USB-C port) for 20 seconds.
3. The indicator on the case will start flashing orange, then go out - this is a reset signal.
4. Close the lid, wait 30 seconds and remove the headphones.

⚠️ Note: On Air 3 Pro models after such a reset may be lost calibration ANC (To recover, press the touch panel for 5 seconds after connecting to the phone.

Method 3: Reset via Mi Home (for firmware 2.0+)

If the headphones are connected to the smartphone, but work unstable, try a software reset:

1. Open the Mi Home app (or Xiaomi Earbuds for new models).
2. Go to the Profile section → My devices. → [Your headphones].
3. Select Settings → Additional → Resetting settings.
4. Confirm the action and wait for the process to be completed (it will take up to 1 minute).

This method has the advantage of maintaining firmware history and being able to roll back to the previous version of the software (if available). However, on Air 2 models with firmware older than 1.2.8, this option may not be available - in this case, use method 1 or 2.

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Before resetting through the app, check the firmware version in the About Headphones section. If the version is below 1.4.0, update the software first - this will solve the problem without completely resetting.

Method 4: Hardware reset for "dead" headphones

If the headphones don't turn on, charge, or respond to buttons, try hardware reset via contacts. This method works by force-discharge the capacitors:

1. Remove the headphones from the case.
2. Take a metal tweezer or paperclip and gently close the charging contacts on the right earpiece (see photo below).
3. Hold the closure for 3-5 seconds.
4. Place the headphones back in the case and close the lid for 10 minutes.

After this procedure, the headphones should start charging (the indicator will light up red). If not, there is a problem with the battery or power controller (repair is required).

⚠️ Attention: Do not use sharp objects to close contacts - this can damage the board.

Method 5: Reboot through ADB (for advanced users)

If you're familiar with Android Debug Bridge, you can reboot your headphones through the command line, a method that's useful when you freeze your firmware after you update:

1. Connect the headphones to the smartphone via Bluetooth.
2. Activate the developer mode on your phone and enable Bluetooth debugging.
3. Connect your phone to your PC and execute the commands: adb forward tcp:5555 tcp:5555 adb connect 127.0.0.1:5555 adb shell am broadcast -a android.bluetooth.device.action.ACL_DISCONNECT --es android.bluetooth.device.extra.DEVICE [MAC-Address: Adb shell am broadcast -a android.bluetooth.adapter.action.STATE_CHANGED --ei android.bluetooth.adapter.extra.STATE 10
4. Turn off and reconnect the headphones.

This method only works on Xiaomi smartphones with MIUI 12.5+ firmware and Air 3 Pro headphones (BES2300YP chip).

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Many users make common mistakes when rebooting, which leads to even bigger problems:

• ❌ Interrupting the process – if you release the button ahead of time, the headphones can “hang” in mode DFU (re-dumping).
• ❌ Use of an unoriginal case - cheap analogues do not transmit a reset signal to headphones.
• ❌ Resetting just one headphone is disrupting the pair’s synchronization and they will stop working together.
• ❌ Ignoring indicators – the color and frequency of blinking indicate where the process is at.

If the headphones are not connected to the phone after reset:

1. Remove them from the list of Bluetooth devices.
2. Reboot your smartphone.
3. Place the headphones in pairing mode (hold the touchpad for 3 seconds until blinking white).

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If the headphones are released when they are turned on, it's normal, double squeak signals a firmware error and requires updating through Mi Home.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions