Over the last several days, I’ve been able to preview Apple’s hearing health features. At times, the experience has been emotionally intense. I’m someone who grew up with a Discman and iPod basically attached to my hip, and I’ve been to countless concerts over the decades. I also haven’t seen an audiologist since 2018 or so. That’s anything but unusual; Apple says 80 percent of adults in the US haven’t had their hearing checked in at least five years. Putting a test right on your iPhone is a great way to improve that trend.
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Did you know there are people who’ve already been replacing earplugs with the AirPods Pro at concerts? Until this fall, Apple had never endorsed such a use case or advertised its earbuds as hearing protection devices. The company knew people were doing it but kept quiet on the subject.
That’s now changed. With iOS 18.1 and the soon-to-be-released AirPods firmware update, the AirPods Pro 2 will offer hearing protection at all times across noise cancellation, transparency, and adaptive audio modes. There’s no “concert mode” or a specific setting to toggle. You can think of this as an expansion of the loud sound reduction option that was already in place. Hearing protection is on by default, and Apple says “an all-new multiband high dynamic range algorithm” helps to preserve the natural sound of concerts and other live events.
I've been using my AirPods Pro as fallback hearing protection for a couple of years now. I wear concert earplugs when I go to concerts of course, but sometimes you encounter an unexpectedly loud...
I've been using my AirPods Pro as fallback hearing protection for a couple of years now. I wear concert earplugs when I go to concerts of course, but sometimes you encounter an unexpectedly loud environment and...well, the best hearing protection is the one you have with you.
They pair nicely with the Apple Watch, which has a built in decibel meter, passive monitoring that will alert you of dangerous sound levels and will report trends over time and warnings of repeated exposure.
They feel like they attenuate quite a bit, not far off concert earbuds, though they might not be quite as consistent since they depend on generated antinoise instead of passive suppression. It sometimes sounds like I can hear a compressor/limiter engaging and stomping the signal, with a little bit of metallic/humming sounding distortion underneath. Curious about the improvements.
I love this idea of this, but as someone with weird-shaped ear canals, I wish they would bring this feature to their regular AirPods as well, since those are the only inner-ear shaped things I can...
I love this idea of this, but as someone with weird-shaped ear canals, I wish they would bring this feature to their regular AirPods as well, since those are the only inner-ear shaped things I can actually use comfortably.
Side question, is there an equally good android/non-apple alternative? I use pixel buds and they work great as headphones, especially since with their form factor they actually stay in my ears*,...
Side question, is there an equally good android/non-apple alternative? I use pixel buds and they work great as headphones, especially since with their form factor they actually stay in my ears*, but I'd like something with comparable features to airpods. Noise canceling, transparency, adaptive audio, and also something akin to basic hearing aids. I have some significant hearing loss but I'm broke as a joke and can't afford however many thousands of dollars to get tested, fitted for, and then buying actual hearing aids.
*I've never been able to successfully keep iPod style headphones in my ears, and need the ones that go into the ear canal.
I've found the Beats Fit Pro to fit much better in my ear compared to Airpods. I'm always nervous that Airpods are going to go flying out of my ear and they don't sit well.
I've found the Beats Fit Pro to fit much better in my ear compared to Airpods. I'm always nervous that Airpods are going to go flying out of my ear and they don't sit well.
I didn't see any mention of this in the article, but did Apple have to jump through any hoops to be able to officially announce/support this "medical" use case? I'd have expected players in the...
I didn't see any mention of this in the article, but did Apple have to jump through any hoops to be able to officially announce/support this "medical" use case? I'd have expected players in the existing hearing aid industry to push back against something like this. My understanding is that higher end hearing aid models can cost several thousand dollars per pair--I'm curious how Apple's pods would compare to something in that category.
The FDA did have to approve the feature afaik. Here's an article about it. Presumably it wouldn't have worked if the FDA hadn't ruled to allow OTC hearing aids in 2022.
The FDA did have to approve the feature afaik. Here's an article about it. Presumably it wouldn't have worked if the FDA hadn't ruled to allow OTC hearing aids in 2022.
A regulatory topic! The hearing aid software got granted a De Novo which is FDAs pathway for devices that create a new product type. It's mainly just an administrative difference from the normal...
A regulatory topic! The hearing aid software got granted a De Novo which is FDAs pathway for devices that create a new product type. It's mainly just an administrative difference from the normal way to clear a lower risk (Class 2) medical device which is a 510k submission. You can read a public summary of what they submitted here for technical and regulatory details.
I don't see mention of the protection feature but that may be a valid regulatory strategy. It's not like other noise cancelling devices are getting FDA clearance even if they're rated for concerts.
Looks like the FDA were involved but under ”a regulatory pathway for some low- to moderate-risk devices that are novel and for which there is no prior legally marketed device”. I’ve got no...
Looks like the FDA were involved but under ”a regulatory pathway for some low- to moderate-risk devices that are novel and for which there is no prior legally marketed device”. I’ve got no particular domain knowledge on this one, but at least on the surface it seems like a nice example of systems working as they should!
Congress passed a law in 2017 requiring the FDA to make over-the-counter hearing aids a thing, and the FDA published their rules in 2022. There are already other manufacturers of over-the-counter...
Congress passed a law in 2017 requiring the FDA to make over-the-counter hearing aids a thing, and the FDA published their rules in 2022. There are already other manufacturers of over-the-counter hearing aids, but Apple gets more attention.
I wear fancy hearing aids and I also use Airpods, which I swap in when listening to music or playing certain video games. I see them more as a supplement. Hearing aids are optimized for voice recognition, being able to wear them all day, and being unobtrusive in social situations. They often support bluetooth nowadays, which is great for phone calls, but they aren’t good for music. (No bass response.)
I expect that a lot of people will start out with just Airpods and then think about getting dedicated hearing aids.
I'd love to try getting hearing aids if they were more affordable. I see $K+ price tags and gag - I have a family of 5 to support and I'll suffer a bit of QOL for myself over putting them through...
I'd love to try getting hearing aids if they were more affordable. I see $K+ price tags and gag - I have a family of 5 to support and I'll suffer a bit of QOL for myself over putting them through financial hardship.
Question for those of you who have them, how good is the long term comfort factor on them? My ears have a tendency to feel bruised if I wear pods/headphones too long unless they fit really...
Question for those of you who have them, how good is the long term comfort factor on them? My ears have a tendency to feel bruised if I wear pods/headphones too long unless they fit really well/comfortable. I am absolutely sure I have hearing damage (took some online test with headsets and it said it was moderate).
But I am not sure my insurance covers hearing aids and I'm not willing to pay 1000's of dollars for one so I never bothered the doctor for a hearing test or to have a specialist look and I honestly don't really want to go through all that just for a hearing aid. I've always liked the sales pitch of earpods but 200 something dollars is more than I'm willing to pay for headphones/ear pods (I know, Apple Tax but that is one thing I'm not willing to pay Apple tax for especially as my husband a year or so back handed me down his set of Sony xm1002 I believe hte model is, really nice headsets, they feel as comfortable as the 1000 dollar Bose pilot headsets he has for the plane that are too bulky and expensive to use as everyday headsets <- Bose makes excellent pilot headsets). Admittedly though if they serve as a decent hearing aid I could get myself to justify it though.
Edit: Found some at costco, bought cause of return policy. Good thing Costco has a good return policy, as much as I really liked how they worked I could not get around that even less than an hour or wear they started hurting my ears. I have no idea how my ear size compares to others but I do suspect I have smallish ears and the big plastic part behind the ear tips would press on the edges around it and cause them to start hurting (meaning different ear tips would not help).
The fit is my main disappointment with my AirPods (Pro 2, the same ones they’ve just pushed this update for), but the ANC and audio processing in general are excellent, so I can fully believe the...
The fit is my main disappointment with my AirPods (Pro 2, the same ones they’ve just pushed this update for), but the ANC and audio processing in general are excellent, so I can fully believe the hearing aid feature itself is going to work well.
I used to have no problem wearing my cheap Soundmagic wired earbuds when I worked in a noisy office 8+ hours a day, but the shape of the plastic on the AirPods is much wider to accommodate the electronics and it pushes against my outer ear in a way that gets more and more uncomfortable as the day goes on. It’s much worse with the medium ear tips, which I think are a touch too small for me, but that means I’ve ended up using the large ones that are slightly too large and don’t tend to feel like they’re quite seated properly.
I’ve been thinking that aftermarket (foam?) ear tips might help, actually, so any recommendations anyone has there would be very helpful!
May well be that I’m just unlucky/unusual not to fit them well - I imagine if they were commonly uncomfortable it’d be more of a known issue on a product that sells so many units, but it seemed worth mentioning since you asked.
I've used Comply foam eartips - they're great. A tad pricey, and they do eventually need to be replaced, but if you're looking for an alternative i would recommend them.
I've used Comply foam eartips - they're great. A tad pricey, and they do eventually need to be replaced, but if you're looking for an alternative i would recommend them.
It might just be my earwax type, but I tried Comply tips for my previous pair of AirPods and while they work well, they're notably more difficult to clean than the standard silicone tips. My...
It might just be my earwax type, but I tried Comply tips for my previous pair of AirPods and while they work well, they're notably more difficult to clean than the standard silicone tips. My theory is that the foam is porous which allows the wax to soak in but I don't really know why. Thankfully the silicone tips on my newer pair work great.
To be honest, they're probably the most comfortable earphones I've ever used, but to be fair it is by a very narrow margin. I can use them long-term just fine except for that I get bothered by the...
To be honest, they're probably the most comfortable earphones I've ever used, but to be fair it is by a very narrow margin. I can use them long-term just fine except for that I get bothered by the buildup of wax in my ear, but that's something that's going to happen to just about any set of in-ear headsets regardless of type.
If you're in the US, they're frequently on sale in the $180-$200 range. I usually just set up an alert (something like "AirPods Pro 2" to weed out the other models) on SlickDeals and patiently...
If you're in the US, they're frequently on sale in the $180-$200 range. I usually just set up an alert (something like "AirPods Pro 2" to weed out the other models) on SlickDeals and patiently wait for it to hit that range.
If you do decide to get AirPods, please be careful that Amazon has a track record of sending out counterfeits. I got burned 1 out of 3 times. I would wait for a sale from Best Buy or price match to Best Buy since they seem a little better there.
From the article:
...
I've been using my AirPods Pro as fallback hearing protection for a couple of years now. I wear concert earplugs when I go to concerts of course, but sometimes you encounter an unexpectedly loud environment and...well, the best hearing protection is the one you have with you.
They pair nicely with the Apple Watch, which has a built in decibel meter, passive monitoring that will alert you of dangerous sound levels and will report trends over time and warnings of repeated exposure.
They feel like they attenuate quite a bit, not far off concert earbuds, though they might not be quite as consistent since they depend on generated antinoise instead of passive suppression. It sometimes sounds like I can hear a compressor/limiter engaging and stomping the signal, with a little bit of metallic/humming sounding distortion underneath. Curious about the improvements.
I love this idea of this, but as someone with weird-shaped ear canals, I wish they would bring this feature to their regular AirPods as well, since those are the only inner-ear shaped things I can actually use comfortably.
They have! AirPods with ANC, released at the iPhone event a month ago.
ooohhhh yessss. Thanks for letting me know!
Side question, is there an equally good android/non-apple alternative? I use pixel buds and they work great as headphones, especially since with their form factor they actually stay in my ears*, but I'd like something with comparable features to airpods. Noise canceling, transparency, adaptive audio, and also something akin to basic hearing aids. I have some significant hearing loss but I'm broke as a joke and can't afford however many thousands of dollars to get tested, fitted for, and then buying actual hearing aids.
*I've never been able to successfully keep iPod style headphones in my ears, and need the ones that go into the ear canal.
I've found the Beats Fit Pro to fit much better in my ear compared to Airpods. I'm always nervous that Airpods are going to go flying out of my ear and they don't sit well.
The pixel buds pro have all of that. Are you using the -A?
...wait, do the pixel buds actually have hearing aids functionality? I wasn't aware of that
Sort of. I skimmed the post and didn't realize that the hearing aids were the main thing they were looking for.
I have the basic ones, not the pro.
I didn't see any mention of this in the article, but did Apple have to jump through any hoops to be able to officially announce/support this "medical" use case? I'd have expected players in the existing hearing aid industry to push back against something like this. My understanding is that higher end hearing aid models can cost several thousand dollars per pair--I'm curious how Apple's pods would compare to something in that category.
The FDA did have to approve the feature afaik. Here's an article about it. Presumably it wouldn't have worked if the FDA hadn't ruled to allow OTC hearing aids in 2022.
A regulatory topic! The hearing aid software got granted a De Novo which is FDAs pathway for devices that create a new product type. It's mainly just an administrative difference from the normal way to clear a lower risk (Class 2) medical device which is a 510k submission. You can read a public summary of what they submitted here for technical and regulatory details.
I don't see mention of the protection feature but that may be a valid regulatory strategy. It's not like other noise cancelling devices are getting FDA clearance even if they're rated for concerts.
Looks like the FDA were involved but under ”a regulatory pathway for some low- to moderate-risk devices that are novel and for which there is no prior legally marketed device”. I’ve got no particular domain knowledge on this one, but at least on the surface it seems like a nice example of systems working as they should!
Congress passed a law in 2017 requiring the FDA to make over-the-counter hearing aids a thing, and the FDA published their rules in 2022. There are already other manufacturers of over-the-counter hearing aids, but Apple gets more attention.
I wear fancy hearing aids and I also use Airpods, which I swap in when listening to music or playing certain video games. I see them more as a supplement. Hearing aids are optimized for voice recognition, being able to wear them all day, and being unobtrusive in social situations. They often support bluetooth nowadays, which is great for phone calls, but they aren’t good for music. (No bass response.)
I expect that a lot of people will start out with just Airpods and then think about getting dedicated hearing aids.
I'd love to try getting hearing aids if they were more affordable. I see $K+ price tags and gag - I have a family of 5 to support and I'll suffer a bit of QOL for myself over putting them through financial hardship.
Haven't tried them but there are a few very cheap over-the-counter hearing aids now, below $100. Apparently they are basically glorified earbuds.
https://www.wired.com/review/jlab-hear-otc-hearing-aid/
Question for those of you who have them, how good is the long term comfort factor on them? My ears have a tendency to feel bruised if I wear pods/headphones too long unless they fit really well/comfortable. I am absolutely sure I have hearing damage (took some online test with headsets and it said it was moderate).
But I am not sure my insurance covers hearing aids and I'm not willing to pay 1000's of dollars for one so I never bothered the doctor for a hearing test or to have a specialist look and I honestly don't really want to go through all that just for a hearing aid. I've always liked the sales pitch of earpods but 200 something dollars is more than I'm willing to pay for headphones/ear pods (I know, Apple Tax but that is one thing I'm not willing to pay Apple tax for especially as my husband a year or so back handed me down his set of Sony xm1002 I believe hte model is, really nice headsets, they feel as comfortable as the 1000 dollar Bose pilot headsets he has for the plane that are too bulky and expensive to use as everyday headsets <- Bose makes excellent pilot headsets). Admittedly though if they serve as a decent hearing aid I could get myself to justify it though.
Edit: Found some at costco, bought cause of return policy. Good thing Costco has a good return policy, as much as I really liked how they worked I could not get around that even less than an hour or wear they started hurting my ears. I have no idea how my ear size compares to others but I do suspect I have smallish ears and the big plastic part behind the ear tips would press on the edges around it and cause them to start hurting (meaning different ear tips would not help).
The fit is my main disappointment with my AirPods (Pro 2, the same ones they’ve just pushed this update for), but the ANC and audio processing in general are excellent, so I can fully believe the hearing aid feature itself is going to work well.
I used to have no problem wearing my cheap Soundmagic wired earbuds when I worked in a noisy office 8+ hours a day, but the shape of the plastic on the AirPods is much wider to accommodate the electronics and it pushes against my outer ear in a way that gets more and more uncomfortable as the day goes on. It’s much worse with the medium ear tips, which I think are a touch too small for me, but that means I’ve ended up using the large ones that are slightly too large and don’t tend to feel like they’re quite seated properly.
I’ve been thinking that aftermarket (foam?) ear tips might help, actually, so any recommendations anyone has there would be very helpful!
May well be that I’m just unlucky/unusual not to fit them well - I imagine if they were commonly uncomfortable it’d be more of a known issue on a product that sells so many units, but it seemed worth mentioning since you asked.
I've used Comply foam eartips - they're great. A tad pricey, and they do eventually need to be replaced, but if you're looking for an alternative i would recommend them.
It might just be my earwax type, but I tried Comply tips for my previous pair of AirPods and while they work well, they're notably more difficult to clean than the standard silicone tips. My theory is that the foam is porous which allows the wax to soak in but I don't really know why. Thankfully the silicone tips on my newer pair work great.
To be honest, they're probably the most comfortable earphones I've ever used, but to be fair it is by a very narrow margin. I can use them long-term just fine except for that I get bothered by the buildup of wax in my ear, but that's something that's going to happen to just about any set of in-ear headsets regardless of type.
If you're in the US, they're frequently on sale in the $180-$200 range. I usually just set up an alert (something like "AirPods Pro 2" to weed out the other models) on SlickDeals and patiently wait for it to hit that range.
If you do decide to get AirPods, please be careful that Amazon has a track record of sending out counterfeits. I got burned 1 out of 3 times. I would wait for a sale from Best Buy or price match to Best Buy since they seem a little better there.
I was at Costco the other day and it looks like they're going for $199 there right now.
I'm in your boat, but with android. I refuse apple outright.
I've got a sort of discussion about it in a thread above.
You can use AirPods with android phones
"I refuse apple outright."
Will any of the actual features work or are they basically just overpriced bluetooth earbuds at that point?
All of the features work except for things like Spatial Audio. You also can’t receive firmware updates.
AirPods Pro are pretty comfortable for me. I can usually wear them for their full 5 hour battery life. Although that’s fairly rare outside of flights.