Techniques for detecting presence of a remote device at Layer 2 in response to an indication of an attempt to use the device and without maintaining a Layer 3 connection to the device. The techniques allow reducing power consumption without compromising the device's availability. A device that pairs with a remote wireless device may establish a Layer 3 connection to the remote device to provide services to a user. The Layer 3 connection and underlying Layer 2 connection (e.g., WI-FI, WI-FI DIRECT™ or BLUETOOTH®) may be terminated when the Layer 3 connection is not actively used. Once use of the remote device is desired, its presence may be detected using a Layer 2 device discovery mechanism and the Layer 2 and Layer 3 connections to the device may be reestablished. Services provided at Layer 3, such as steaming data, may then be performed over the reestablished Layer 3 connection.