Soundcore Life A1 always connects to last device - can't switch

I’m having a really frustrating issue with my Soundcore Life A1 earbuds when trying to switch between devices.

If they’re already connected to one device (like my tablet), it’s nearly impossible to connect them to another (like my phone) without using one of these two inconvenient workarounds:

1. Physically go to the tablet and turn off its Bluetooth – Not ideal, especially when I’m in another room.

2. Walk far enough away from the tablet – So the earbuds lose connection and finally enter pairing mode on their own. Again, not practical.

According to the manual, there’s a way to manually force pairing mode:

Take the earbuds out of the case, press and hold the multifunction button on either earbud for 8 seconds to turn them off. Then, press and hold one earbud for 3 seconds until the LED starts flashing, then press the other earbud for 1 second. This should activate manual pairing mode.

But this does not work for me at all. The problem is that the earbuds immediately auto-connect to the tablet, even if I try the manual pairing steps. I’ve held the multifunction button for 3 seconds after turning them off, but they still never enter pairing mode — they just reconnect instantly to the last device.

Am I doing something wrong? Is this a common issue? Has anyone found a reliable way to manually force pairing mode without having to disable Bluetooth on the last connected device?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!