A closer look at the new features of AirPods Pro hearing aids

In November 2022, the FDA passed a resolution allowing Americans to buy hearing aids with no prescription. The move launched a mini-industry during which firms rushed to make technology available that had previously been mired by health care constraints.

Consumer electronics firms also saw the opportunity. In September, Apple announced that it could be bringing hearing aid features to AirPods Pro 2 in an upcoming iOS update.

I had the opportunity to check out a demo of this feature at the iPhone 16 event. The offer was designed to supply insight into how users can test their hearing at home, although these results were incomplete. However, Apple recently shared the upcoming feature in its final form with TechCrunch.

I admit I’m just a little concerned. I’ve suffered from tinnitus my whole life, and while I’m pretty good at packing earplugs, I used to be pretty convinced that many years of rock shows had taken a toll on my overall hearing health.

However, as these processes go, Apple’s new hearing test feature is painless. It had been far too long since I had participated in any formal testing, but this feature immediately took me back to elementary school testing. Wait for the beep and lift the appropriate hand. You catch the drift.

This feature is straight away available in the Settings menu when you’ve gotten a pair of AirPods Pro 2 connected and in your ears. At this time, this feature is simply available on this specific model. This is because they’re the only members of the AirPods family to have each the new chip and a silicone tip for passive noise cancellation. After all, the key’s absolute silence. The sounds are faint and will be easily masked by the slightest background noise.

After some basic questions – Are you over 18? Have you attended a loud concert in the last 24 hours? – The system will play a generic music track to be sure that the AirPods are properly fitted. If the seal is just not in place, the system will prompt you to repair it before testing again.

The test then monitors the room for absolute silence. The first time I attempted it, I used to be told my environment was too noisy. We found that the air filter in the corner of the room was loud enough to trigger it. When the room becomes quiet, the test will begin. But luckily for me, the guy was fertilizing the lawn outside. He passed by my window every 45 seconds and every time he stopped the test and waited for all the pieces to calm down.

The hearing test is performed one ear at a time, starting with the left. The system then cycles through a series of tones, twice apiece. When you hear the beep, touch the screen. It’s quite easy. The test doesn’t measure how briskly you touch the screen, only whether you touch it each time.

Sounds run over a certain frequency range to find out which parts of the range could also be affected by hearing loss. The whole process takes about five minutes.

Results appear quickly. I used to be surprised when my results showed “little to no” hearing loss. The app rated my left hearing level at 18 dBHL (decibel hearing loss) and my right hearing level at 19. Mild hearing loss starts at around 25 dBHL. The hearing aid feature will only be available to individuals who test for mild to moderate hearing loss.

If your hearing loss is more severe, Apple recommends having it professionally tested. However, for those who perform the test inside the normal range, the system will offer the choice to activate Media Assist. The new feature enhances certain elements, akin to speech, distinguishing them from background noise. It is comparable to a new hearing aid feature in that it is meant to enhance on a regular basis life, although the amplification is just not as pronounced.

Still, this feature takes some getting used to. I discovered that some things, akin to the sound of fabric rubbing against fabric when walking, were way more noticeable than usual. In a more chaotic environment, it is a really useful feature – whenever you break the social norm of putting on headphones to check with someone.

This could also be the biggest challenge for this feature. We are used to hearing aids. If you see someone wearing this, you assume they’ve some extent of hearing loss. If the same person was using AirPods and didn’t hassle to take out at least one of them before striking up a conversation with you, you’d probably consider them rude.

However, as barriers come down, these little bits of social niceties will be resolved. This is a small price to pay for technology that may fundamentally improve the quality of life.