Automatically Open Apps When Headphones Are Plugged In — No Root Required

If you listen to music on your Android phone, you’ll want this app. Headphones Connect allows you to open a specific app the instant you plug in your headphones to get your right into your music zone.

So how exactly does it work? Let’s take a look.

You’ll Need Headphones To Connect

First thing’s first: get some good headphones. You’ll be surprised at the range of quality headphones that can be found for under $200, and you should also keep in mind how to search for headphones for your budget. Don’t forget to avoid celebrity-endorsed headphones

 too — you’ll only end up paying more for the name.

If you’re planning to use these everyday for at least a couple of years, you’ll want to make sure you’ve picked out the right pair.

Disable The Notification

Got a solid pair of headphones? Great. Now it’s time to download the Headphones Connect app from the Google Play Store and open it up. Your first step in here will be to turn off the persistent notification which is nothing but annoying.

Go into the Settings in the upper right and and select General. Here you’ll find an option that says Hide Notification that will redirect you to your Android settings.

Here, you’ll want to uncheck the box that says Show Notifications.

Now, with the notification out of the way, you can get to adjusting the app to just how you want it.

Tweak The Settings

Back in the Headphones Connect settings menu, you’ll also find options for what to do when you connect your headphones, and what to do when you disconnect them. For connect settings, you can choose if you want it to do something when a Bluetooth headset is connected, if you want it to adjust the volume, and more. If there’s only one app you want to open when you plug in your headphones — rather than choosing from several — you can have it automatically open that app as well, removing a step from the process.

The blacklist feature is especially helpful. It allows you to blacklist certain apps so that if you’re using that app and plug in your headphones, the dialogue won’t pop up to have you switch apps. This makes sense if you were listening to something like a YouTube video outloud, but went to plug in your headphones in the middle of it. You wouldn’t want it to switch you out of the app.

The disconnect settings, however, aren’t available in the free version. You can buy the disconnect settings from within the app for $1.08, and you can also pay to remove the ads for the same amount, meaning that if you bought both, you’d spend $2.16.

Still, that’s cheap, and since you’ll rarely be in the app itself, you could just stick with paying for only the disconnect settings. It makes it easy to readjust the volume after you unplug your headphones.

Select Apps To Choose From

Now, back out of the settings and get back to the main screen. It will look pretty sad and empty until you add some apps, so tap the + sign in the upper right to add some.

It will take a second to compile a list of your apps, but you can then scroll or search through to find all the apps you want to choose from. Remember, you can set it so that choosing only one will auto-launch that app, but if you choose multiple, you’ll be presented with a menu of options when you plug in your headphones.

Once you have all your apps chosen, you can rearrange their order with the little grabber icon on the right side. They appear in a grid, so the list view is a little confusing, but once you get used to it, they’re easy to order. You can also swipe them to the right or left to remove them from the list.

Revel In Your Awesomeness

Below, you can see the blacklist as well as the menu that pops up when you plug in your headphones. I have six apps selected, but you can set however many you want, and the menu will appear over top of whatever app you’re in. If your phone is locked when you plug them in, the menu will be present as soon as you unlock it.

That’s it. You’re now all set, and you shouldn’t need to open the Headphones Connect app again unless you want to tweak the settings. As long as you have it set to launch on startup, it will simply hang out in the background and wait for a headphone connection.

Download: Headphones Connect (Free)

While this app is great for headphone connections, IFTTT and Tasker make a great automation duo for Android

 to handle your other tasks. And remember to keep your headphones in good shape. Proper headphone care is important to keep them from breaking

.