Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Gurman: AirPods to Gain Hearing Health Features Over the Next Two Years
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Really liking this rumor, if it were to come true. Think of this in the same angle as Apple Watch Ultra vs dive computers.
Before the OTC FDA decision, a quality pair of hearing aids can go for a thousand or two. Boiling down hearing aids to be good enough for the masses into AirPods could be good financially for Apple, fits into the health narrative, and gives a much more affordable option for those looking for an alternative to bespoke hearing solutions.
Before the OTC FDA decision, a quality pair of hearing aids can go for a thousand or two. Boiling down hearing aids to be good enough for the masses into AirPods could be good financially for Apple, fits into the health narrative, and gives a much more affordable option for those looking for an alternative to bespoke hearing solutions.
Any news on whrn Apple will fix the problem of NOT being heard while talking on the street when ANC is on?. The ANC cuts my voice when there is noise and the other persons cant hear what I say. PATHETIC!. I wish Tim uses his products all his life!.
It would be interesting to see how this works out if Apple did go this route. I know Samsung's did something similar about five years ago with their Gear IconX buds. They had integrated health features such as heart rate monitor, pedometer, GPS and included onboard music storage so you could save a Spotify playlist and leave everything else at home when working out. Apparently not enough people used the earbuds by themselves to justify having the extra functionality. I personally almost never leave my phone at home during a run and if I do it's because I have my connected watch.
Have to say that I’ve been underwhelmed by conversation boost.
I’ve had AP1 for 2y, and for the last few months AP2, and the noise cancellation improvements both for me, and what ambient sound gets piped out are very good vs AP1, but I have problems with hey Siri and others hearing me now.
I’ve had AP1 for 2y, and for the last few months AP2, and the noise cancellation improvements both for me, and what ambient sound gets piped out are very good vs AP1, but I have problems with hey Siri and others hearing me now.
Last edited:
My beats tell me it's too loud at really low volumes. On top of that, when Siri speaks with music on, I hear faint mumbling in the background and I have no idea what she said.
I have profound hearing loss, I'm completely deaf in my right ear and more than half deaf in my left (nearly completely deaf when I don't wear hearing aids). I've worn hearing aids all my life and currently use a BiCros hearing aid in my non-hearing ear, which transmits sound to the aid in my hearing ear. The AirPods are not powerful enough for my needs, but I'm glad they are an option for those that have mild-moderate hearing loss. Good hearing aids are expensive, lol
I'm deaf on one side. It'd be really great if Apple set up Live Listen so the AirPod on my deaf side could be used as the source instead of an iPhone. Seems like it'd be an easy addition to that feature but it'd help a LOT.
Apple's AirPods could gain more prominent hearing health features in the next year or two, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
Apple's Conversation Boost feature on the AirPods Pro.
In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that he believes Apple will "upgrade the AirPods to become a health tool in the next year or two," adding "the ability to get hearing data of some sort."
Apple has already added several hearing-focused features to the AirPods in recent years such as Live Listen and Conversation Boost, but Gurman noted that such features are not yet FDA approved or designed to serve as a hearing aid replacement. Given Apple's health objectives, he expects AirPods to take on these sorts of functions "more officially" in the near future.
Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has previously highlighted the company's intention to add biometric health monitoring capabilities to future AirPods models. Apple patent filings have described an earbud-based fitness monitoring system that integrates an advanced biometric sensor to detect physiological metrics including temperature, heart rate, perspiration levels and more, through skin contact and via built-in motion sensors. Apple's vice president of technology, Kevin Lynch, has also hinted that AirPods could be a source of additional health data in the future.
New hearing health capabilities would not necessarily be contingent on new AirPods being released, since current models already contain speakers and microphones to support such features, and they could be pushed to existing devices via a firmware update.
Article Link: Gurman: AirPods to Gain Hearing Health Features Over the Next Two Years
I'm completely deaf in my right ear too -- normal hearing in my left. I just left a comment suggesting that extending Live Listen to use the right AirPod as a source would be awesome. It probably can't beat a good hearing aid as you suggest, but I'd love the option. Solidarity!
My Boss: Take off your AirPods. We're in a managers' meeting. I told you that those are inappropriate and unprofessional.
Me: I'm not listening to music. These are my hearing aids!
My Boss: Yeahhhh right. I said take them off.
I love the conversation boost in APP2. With the noise canceling and conversation boost in a noisy environment, like the bar where we play trivia once a week, it means I can actually hear the other people! I’m able to carry on a normal conversation for the first time in many years in that kind of environment. My only complaint is that the conversation boosting features are buried so deep into the menus that it’s confusing and difficult to get setup. I wish there was an easy top level way to get it setup!
That boss is in “get a federal civil suit for handicap discrimination” territory.
Settings > Control Center > add hearing control (it looks like an ear.)
Then you can activate CV direct from control center instead of drilling down them rough settings.
Good luck!
I am aware of that. My issue is that my worst hearing impairment is in my left ear, and that's where the mic failed/is failing. What's dumb is that if you use the setting you specify, iOS/AirPods will ALWAYS use that mic… even if that AirPod is in the case, and not in your ear. So… that's a non-starter.
As to how they could detect it, they could make a Troubleshooter available from the Settings > AirPods where it would have you read several lines, with both mics active; since both mics are equi-distant from your mouth, the amplitude of the incoming signal should be the same; if they don't match, there is a problem. Also, could have you hold the iPhone up to your nose and have it play a test sound and do the same. It knows what's going out, and can compare against what's coming back in. Likewise, they could play several audio clips and have the user report whether they sound correct, to test the speakers. In the AV world there are a multitude of ways to do this, hence my point that Apple is being super lazy by not even trying. It is quite simple: they don't want users to know, plausible deniability and then they don't have to do the repair. And if you call Apple Support and ask about troubleshooting, they can (and will) give you a run-around. The "fixes" are so simple, that they're not doing any of it, nothing, pretty much tells the tale.
(For comparison: the iPhone can be used to baseline audio sync with Apple TV. So Apple knows how to do this.)
I'd be amazed if Apple actually spent the extra fifty cents and put real microphones in Airpods. I might even get a pair, since I could then make intelligible phone calls with them.
Better frequency adjustments, that is, A FREAKING GRAPHIC EQ like every halfway decent sound system had in the FREAKING 1970s, FREAKING 1980s, and FREAKING 1990s, would be better for EVERYONE, including tinnitus sufferers. But Mommy Apple says no. We're not old enough.
Tinnitus is a neurologic issue. You can't just noise blank it like external sound waves. If it is ever solved, it will be medically. Sleep better (thousands of web pages about how to do this), drink lots of water, cut down on (ideally eliminate) stimulants and depressants (alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, meth, etc). Those are the only things proven to help. Then accept it and go on with life. It is the only proven way currently. Eventually your brain will just ignore it 99% of the time. There is one weird treatment out there, something about playing the exact frequency of your personal tinnitus, slightly louder, several hours a day, supposedly makes your brain shut it off internally when the external sound is turned off. I guess you could argue that is a medical treatment utilizing electronics... I don't know if it actually works.
This is good news. Hearing aids are crazy expensive and my parents don't like the budget options the hearing centre sold them. I think they are also embarrassed to wear them, but wearing AirPods like all the cool kids might suit them. Maybe.