Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

AirPods Pro 2 Hearing Health Features Expand to More Countries

MacRumors

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
67,486
37,755


AirPods Pro 2 users in Australia, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Colombia, and Malaysia will soon have access to the hearing health feature set that Apple has been rolling out for the last several months.

airpods-pro-2-hearing-aids.jpg

In these countries, AirPods Pro 2 owners can take a Hearing Test to check for any hearing loss, and then turn on a clinical-grade Hearing Aid feature to enhance sound if there is indeed hearing loss detected. The Hearing Aid option adjusts voices and sounds around the user to improve hearing, and it can also tweak music, videos, and phone calls to optimal sound levels using a personalized hearing profile.

Loud Sound Reduction, another feature, can cut down on loud noise to protect hearing. The AirPods Pro 2 provide passive noise reduction, using the H2 chip inside to reduce loud noise at 48,000 times per second. Loud Sound Reduction is enabled automatically in Transparency and Adaptive Audio listening modes.

The Hearing Test can be accessed in the AirPods section of the Settings app when the AirPods Pro 2 are connected to an iPhone. Hearing Aid capabilities are only available to users with mild to moderate hearing loss.

Apple says that the Hearing Test and Hearing Aid features are coming to the new countries with the launch of iOS 18.4 and the latest firmware update.

Apple began rolling out the hearing health features with the launch of iOS 18.1. The Hearing Test and Hearing Aid features are available in more than 100 countries and regions.

Update: Apple has also added sleep apnea detection functionality in Malaysia.

Article Link: AirPods Pro 2 Hearing Health Features Expand to More Countries
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2025/03/25/airpods-pro-2-hearing-health-australia/
Last edited:
The article seems to suggest that the Hearing Protection feature, of which “Loud Sound Reduction” is the key component, is available anywhere the Transparency and Adaptive Audio modes are available.

Alas, this is not the case. Hearing Protection is only available in the US (including territories) and Canada.

I don’t understand why the restriction is there in the first place, and really hope that Apple gets regulatory approval (why should it be necessary!?) everywhere else.

b&
 
  • Like
Reactions: japanime
I use this feature and love it. With mild hearing loss it’s perfect for going out to restaurants. I can finally hear the person talking to me.
 
  • Like
Reactions: SFjohn
Even though Health Canada cleared the APP2 as hearing aid. Apple won't activate it in Canada because provinces have laws that prohibit the use of hearing aids without a prescription from an audiologist. In fact, you cannot buy OTC (over the counter) hearing aids in Canada. That's what I learnt after being happy about HC clearing the device. Yeah, s*cks
 
  • Like
  • Angry
  • Sad
Reactions: w_macintosh, lozion, wbeasley and 1 other person
"Hearing Protection' still limited to N.America though. Down to per country regs, no doubt.
 
It's not Apple dragging their heels... local/federal laws (which seem really designed to protect specialist hearing sales) are the issue.

Unlike Heart Rate monitoring which was also held up but eventually rolled out (let's face it, it's passive and informational only), the ability to boost audio COULD seriously affect someone's hearing if over amplified.

Apple probably just need to prove (the same way hearing aid companies would) that there are safe guards and limits in place in their boosting algorithms.

My partner has severe hearing loss (sudden onset over a three hour period which is more common than you imagine) and his hearing aids at times startle him with overboosted sudden loud sounds. What I perceive as loud, he gets as extremely loud. Yes, he's had three different techs look at the set up. It's complex software and with extreme hearing loss (70-80 dB reduced) getting the mix of volume and clarity is a huge challenge. But even in top end software it's still hard to stop extreme sounds getting through.

It's great Apple are doing this.
Those with mild or medium hearing loss are going to really benefit and rejoin conversation again as any hearing loss can be very isolating to the individual and the families trying to talk with them.
And all with hardware they own already or can buy cheaply.
 
It really is hard to overstate the potential value of the hearing aid features to folks who needed help with their hearing but couldn't previously afford it.

I brought a pair of AirPods to my mother-in-law, and from the comfort of her living room and at no additional cost she could do a full hearing test and in less 10 minutes be wearing a fully-functional pair of hearing aids that allow her to hear at least as well as--empirically, I'd say better than--the single professional one she paid ten times as much for, and that's setting aside the time and hassle to get tested for it.

Heck, the inductive charger for her professional hearing aid is failing, and I discovered it costs $400 for a new one--you could literally buy two sets of AirPods pro for that, which of course include the charging case.

And we're not talking about the occasional "sorry, I didn't catch that"--it's functionally impossible to have a conversation with her without hearing aids.
 
Last edited:
Makosuke said:
It really is hard to overstate the potential value of the hearing aid features to folks who needed help with their hearing but couldn't previously afford it.

I brought a pair of AirPods to my mother-in-law, and from the comfort of her living room and at no additional cost she could do a full hearing test and in less 10 minutes be wearing a pair fully-functional pair of hearing aids that allow her to hear at least as well as--empirically, I'd say better that--the single professional one she paid ten times as much for, and that's setting aside the time and hassle to get tested for it.

Heck, the inductive charger for her professional hearing aid is failing, and I discovered it costs $400 for a new one--you could literally buy two sets of AirPods pro for that, which of course include the charging case.

And we're not talking about the occasional "sorry, I didn't catch that"--it's functionally impossible to have a conversation with her without hearing aids.
Click to expand...
I need to figure a way to test my AP2 for my Mom. She has medium loss and her Unitron kit is getting old (not even BT). Is there a hack of some sort? Am In Canada..
 
Last edited:
lozion said:
I need to figure a way to test my AP2 for my Mom. She has medium loss and her Unitron kit is getting old (not even BT). Is there a hack of some sort? Am In Canada..
Click to expand...
The only good news is that, based on this, it may not be too long before it's finally available at Canada. On the negative side, there do not appear to be any hacks within the realm of reason to work around the test and hearing aid features not yet being available in Canada, so likely all you can do for now is wait.

Once it does get enabled it'll be really easy to test, though--you can do a hearing test with any iOS or iPadOS device that you pair the AirPods to, and once the hearing aid feature is enabled, the settings are remembered by the AirPods so you don't need to stay connected to the device or anything, so you could loan yours to her (for example) to see if they're a good choice before buying a dedicated set.
 
Good to see the expansion of these health features. Getting required approvals in different countries might be causing the delay.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mganu
Makosuke said:
The only good news is that, based on this, it may not be too long before it's finally available at Canada. On the negative side, there do not appear to be any hacks within the realm of reason to work around the test and hearing aid features not yet being available in Canada, so likely all you can do for now is wait.

Once it does get enabled it'll be really easy to test, though--you can do a hearing test with any iOS or iPadOS device that you pair the AirPods to, and once the hearing aid feature is enabled, the settings are remembered by the AirPods so you don't need to stay connected to the device or anything, so you could loan yours to her (for example) to see if they're a good choice before buying a dedicated set.
Click to expand...
well there is this, but..

hackaday.com

Bypassing Airpods Hearing Aid Georestriction With A Faraday Cage

When Apple recently announced the hearing aid feature on their new AirPods Pro 2, it got the attention of quite a few people. Among these were [Rithwik Jayasimha] and friends, with [Rithwik] gettin…
hackaday.com hackaday.com
 
BenGoren said:
The article seems to suggest that the Hearing Protection feature, of which “Loud Sound Reduction” is the key component, is available anywhere the Transparency and Adaptive Audio modes are available.

Alas, this is not the case. Hearing Protection is only available in the US (including territories) and Canada.

I don’t understand why the restriction is there in the first place, and really hope that Apple gets regulatory approval (why should it be necessary!?) everywhere else.

b&
Click to expand...
It’s approved in Canada but still not available.
 
  • Like
Reactions: katbel
Well there is always Mimi-Hearing test, free and available in every country 😝
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back