The US Food and Drug Administration on Thursday authorized the software Apple announced this week at its iPhone event, allowing the AirPods Pro 2 to start doubling this fall as hearing aids for adults with mild or moderate forms of hearing loss.
The FDA signed off on Apple's hearing aid feature as the "first over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aid software device," but the AirPods Pro 2 will join a growing class of other OTC devices which have only been available without a prescription since late 2022 when the FDA changed the way hearing aids may be sold. The availability of over-the-counter hearing aids have cut costs for devices that have had notoriously poor insurance coverage, and allowed consumer tech companies such as Apple and Sony to enter the hearing aid market.
Apple announced a slew of hearing health features this week at its iPhone event. In addition to the hearing aid feature, Apple also announced active Hearing Protection and a clinically validated Hearing Test.
While more factors like long-wear comfort and practicality will ultimately determine how AirPods will work as hearing aids, they're expected to give consumers a more approachable and more affordable choice to treating hearing loss. Here's everything we know about the major hearing health upgrades.
Read more: Apple Is Trying to Save Your Hearing Health From Its Own Product
First, you'll take the Hearing Test
For users with mild to moderate hearing loss, the AirPods Pro 2 will add an over-the-counter Hearing Aid capability. But first, you have to take Apple's Hearing Test, which is a clinical-grade hearing test based on pure-tone audiometry that takes about 5 minutes to complete with the AirPods Pro 2 and a compatible iPhone or iPad.
People have already been able to upload hearing tests to the Health app to help hack their AirPods into hearing enhancers, but Apple's inclusion of its own validated test may make it more likely people will use the hearing health features.
Upon completing the test, users will be presented with a summary of their hearing test results, which will provide an audiogram (a graph showing hearing test results) and a number corresponding to hearing loss in each ear, along with a classification and recommendations. This data will be securely stored in the Health app, where it can also be shared with your health care provider.
If you already have an audiogram available from a hearing health professional, Apple said that you can use that audiogram to program the Hearing Aid feature.
Next, set up your AirPods Pro 2 as hearing aids
You can use the results from the hearing test to turn the AirPods Pro 2 into a hearing aid. According to Apple, "After setup, the feature enables personalized dynamic adjustments so users have the sounds around them boosted in real time."
The hearing test findings will also be automatically applied to phone calls, music, movies and games across all of the user's devices without them needing to adjust the settings themselves. This is known as the Media Assist feature.
When will the Apple Hearing Aid feature be available?
We can expect both the hearing aid feature and hearing test to be available this fall.
Which devices will the Apple Hearing Aid work on?
The hearing aid and hearing test will be available on the AirPods Pro 2 through a firmware update. This will need to be paired with a compatible iPhone or iPad with iOS 18 or iPadOS 18 and later.
Apple also notes that certain features may not be available in all regions or all languages. However, more than 100 countries and regions -- including the US, Germany and Japan -- will have access.
Who is the Apple Hearing Aid for?
Both features are intended for people age 18 and older. The hearing aid, specifically, is designed for people with perceived mild to moderate hearing loss.
Hearing aids have been notoriously expensive, in part because they're not covered by many people's insurance. When hearing aids became available over-the-counter and without prescription in late 2022, many people praised the rule as it could help remove some of the barriers to getting a hearing aid, such as high cost and perceived stigma of wearing them. Uptake of hearing aids still pales in comparison, however, to the amount of people who need them.
The fact that people may use their AirPods as a hearing aid, instead of buying a completely new device, may help chip away barriers to daily communication for the estimated 1.5 billion people with hearing loss globally, the majority of which have milder symptoms.
What is Apple Hearing Protection?
In other hearing health news, Apple is adding Hearing Protection to AirPods Pro 2 on default across all listening modes. This feature will allow the ear tips to provide passive noise reduction, while the H2 chip actively reduces louder, more sporadic noise at 48,000 times per second.
The multiband high dynamic range algorithm is supposed to make sounds at live events like concerts remain natural and clear on the AirPods Pro 2.
Hearing Protection will also be available fall 2024 in the US and Canada with the AirPods Pro 2 and a compatible iPhone, iPad or Mac with the latest operating system.
Hearing health has been a health of interest of Apple's. Alongside heart health and reproductive health, Apple has been running its own hearing health study to help inform its product development and inform the public about the potential impacts of loud technology and everyday life.
Watch this: Apple AirPods Pro 2 Can Test Your Hearing
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