Could Apple really come up with a replacement that could save my elderly mother more than $1,500? This is the promise of adding truth to the company’s newly announced initiative Hearing aid functionality for AirPods Pro – and why, with all due respect iPhone 16 and its elegant Camera Control button was its most promising section Monday’s keynote speechto my eyes
The news could not have come at a better time for me. My 80-year-old mother finally admitted that she was hard of hearing. And he just asked me to make an appointment at the Miracle Ear clinic down the street (“They’re having a fall sale!”). But before going down that road, I decided to do some research.
The frustrating world of hearing aids
I knew there was a growing market hearing aids Since the US government opened the field Over-the-counter competition in 2022. But a little searching confirmed that these models, even those with familiar names like Jabra, Sony, and Sennheiser, start at $300 and go north from there, sometimes exceeding $2,000. And while that’s certainly a lot, the crazy thing is that it’s completely inexpensive compared to clinical hearing aids. These often start at $1,000 and can go up to $5,000 or more. Yes, indeed.
Some health insurance costs can be deferred, however Medicare does not. While retired military personnel Get hearing aids through the VAI remember my father going this route meant that his hearing aids arrived months after his initial hearing test.
Here’s a tie-in: Many older people hate hearing aids, and for good reason: They’re generally tedious and unintuitive to use, sometimes with a microscopic knob to control the volume. Do you want to turn them off? To start, open the battery cover. (And many hearing aids still use disposable micro-batteries.) Case in point: My mom got one of these two expensive hearing aids years ago, but we found that the hassle of fitting and maintaining them wasn’t worth the audio improvement they offered. . They are still active, but no longer working effectively – and the reason for our current hearing aid search as they are out of warranty.
Competition from the OTC market has helped in this regard, as the Jabras and Sennheisers of the world are pushing traditional hearing aid providers to become a little more tech-savvy. Some avoid it behind-the-ear battery pack and go simplicity in headphone style. Bluetooth connectivity for calls and apps for sound adjustments are finally becoming more common as older people get used to using their phones and tablets.
But why miss out on AirPods at all when you can get the real thing for a fraction of the price? (And — strangely enough, in an age where everything goes the subscription route — it’s free of any kind of recurring monthly fees.)
Anticipating software updates and managing expectations
So when will the hearing aid features be available? What seemed far away for weeks may now be closer. FDA regulatory signing (in the US) is a done deal, coming days after the initial announcement. That leaves the necessary software update. You need a compatible device running iOS 18 or AirPods Pro bundled with the equivalent OS updates for iPad or Mac 2024. On the iPhone side, it’s almost too much Every model sold after the 2018 model year (iPhone XS/XR and later). While these initial software updates will happen on September 16th, it’s not known if the hearing aid functionality will arrive then or sometime later – perhaps with the first Apple Intelligence coming in October. (Apple website it simply says “this fall will come”.)
In the meantime, I started selling to my mother. I showed him the relevant part of Apple’s video presentation and had him test the AirPods Pro just to gauge the fit and comfort. The initial response was not enthusiastic. While he liked that it didn’t “fall out of my ears” like the AirPods 2, he was turned off by the penetration of the ear tips into the ear canal. Countless other headphone fans agree, and so does the design of the new one AirPods 4 is more open. But Apple hasn’t suggested that hearing aid functionality is coming to these headphones anytime soon.
Let’s be honest: It’s not meant to be a miracle cure. Apple specifically states that this feature is “intended for people with mild to moderate hearing loss.” I wouldn’t be surprised if my mom ends up needing professional grade hearing aid at this point, over the counter or otherwise. So we can choose one of them Jabra Enhance modelsIt offers a 100-day hassle-free return policy.
But now we have the AirPods Pro as an alternative that can be tested. Anyone in the market for future hearing aids can start their journey with AirPods Pro and its accompanying free audio test. If you like the results, you’re done – or at least you have a break-in solution. If not, you can compare and contrast them with more expensive OTC or clinical options in terms of comfort, battery life, ease of use, and of course, the relative effectiveness of their actual hearing aid. Apple’s presence in the hearing aid conversation with a $200 option feels like a win.
