Is Apple incorporating a change that would save my elderly mother over $1,500? That’s the promise of the company’s newly announced plan to add true hearing aid functionality to AirPods Pro — and why, with all due respect to the iPhone 16 and its fancy Camera control button, it was the most promising part of Monday’s keynote, for me. the eyes.
This news could not have come at a better time for me. My 80 year old mother finally admitted that her hearing is, shall we say, subpar. And he just asked me to make an appointment for him at the Miracle Ear clinic down the street (“They’re having a fall sale!”). But before I went that route, I decided to do some research.
The frustrating world of hearing aids
I knew there was a growing market for hearing aids since the US government opened up the over-the-counter competition in 2022. But googling confirmed that those models – even those with familiar names, like Jabra, Sony and Sennheiser. — start at $300 and go north from there, sometimes going up to $2,000. And while that’s a lot, the crazy thing is that it’s really cheap compared to clinical hearing aids. Those usually start at $1,000, and can go up to $5,000 or more. Yes, indeed.
Some medical insurance may defray the costs, but Medicare does not. Although retired soldiers can get hearing aids through the VA, I remember my father’s trip going down that way meant his hearing aids arrived many months after the initial hearing test.
And here’s the bottom line: Many older people seem to hate their hearing aids, and with good reason: They’re often boring and inconvenient to use, sometimes with just one tiny little button to control the volume. Want to close them? Open the battery cover, to begin. (And many hearing aids still use disposable microbatteries.) Case in point: My mother got one of these expensive hearing aids years ago, but found the challenge of wearing it and maintaining it inadequate for the sound enhancement it provided. . They are still bright, but they don’t seem to be working as effectively – and because they are out of warranty, the reason for our search for a current hearing aid.
Competition from the OTC market has helped that, as the Jabras and Sennheisers of the world push traditional hearing aid providers to become more technologically advanced. Others eschew the behind-the-ear battery pack and go for the simplicity of an earbud style. Bluetooth connectivity for phones and audio editing apps is finally becoming more common, as older people get used to using their phones and tablets.
But why go for what are supposed to be knockoff AirPods when you can get the real thing for a fraction of the price? (Also – surprisingly, in an age where everything has gone subscription-based – free of any kind of monthly fees.)
Awaiting software updates – and expected management
So, when will the hearing aid features be available? What seemed like weeks away may be even closer. The FDA regulatory signing (in the US) is already a done deal, coming a few days after the initial announcement. That leaves some software development needed. You’ll need AirPods Pro paired with a compatible device running iOS 18, or the same 2024 OS updates for iPad or Mac. On the iPhone side, that’s pretty much all models sold after the 2018 model year (iPhone XS/XR and later). While those first software updates arrive on September 16, it’s unclear whether hearing aid functionality will arrive then, or some time later — perhaps alongside the first Apple Intelligence coming in October. (Apple’s site simply says “coming this fall.”)
At the moment, I have started selling to my mother. I showed him the relevant part of Apple’s video presentation, and had him try on my AirPods Pro, to test the fit and comfort. The initial response was not enthusiastic. While he liked that they “didn’t fall out of my ears” like the AirPods 2, he was bothered by the holes in his ear. A lot of other headphone fans agree, which is why the design of the new AirPods 4 is so open. But Apple hasn’t suggested that hearing aid functionality is coming to those headphones anytime soon — if at all.
And let’s be honest: This is not considered a miracle cure. Apple specifically says this feature is “designed for people with moderate to severe hearing loss.” I wouldn’t be surprised if my mom ended up needing a pro-level hearing aid at this point, over the counter or otherwise. So we can end up choosing one of those Jabra Enhance models, which offer a 100-day hassle-free policy.
But now we have AirPods Pro as an alternative to be tested. Going forward, anyone in the market for hearing aids can start their journey with AirPods Pro and its free audio trial companion. If you like the results, you’re done – or at least you have a stopgap solution. And 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 – yes – the performance of their original hearing aid. The very fact that Apple is in the conversation to help you hear about the $200-ish option sounds like a win.
Source link
