Apple's AirPods Pro 2 Bring 'Clinical-Grade Hearing Aid' Without The Stigma Or High Cost: Here's What People Have To Say

On Monday, Apple Inc. AAPL announced a new feature in its AirPods Pro 2, aiming to transform the hearing health experience. This feature will offer an end-to-end hearing health experience, including active Hearing Protection, a scientifically validated Hearing Test, and a clinical-grade Hearing Aid feature.

What Happened: With an estimated 1.5 billion people worldwide suffering from hearing loss, as per the World Health Organization, Apple has developed a comprehensive solution focused on prevention, awareness, and assistance.

The Hearing Protection feature will help users avoid exposure to loud environmental noise, while the Hearing Test feature will allow users to check their hearing at home. The results of this test will be used to create a personalized hearing profile for each user.

The typical prescription hearing aids cost $2,000 to $7,000 which makes them inaccessible to millions who need them.

In 2022, the FDA approved over the counter hearing aids. Now Apple's latest AirPods offer a hearing aid mode. Excited to see this technology become widely used! pic.twitter.com/ioI5KVbT5I

— Nick Mark MD (@nickmmark) September 9, 2024

The Hearing Aid capability uses the personalized hearing profile to transform the AirPods Pro into a “clinical-grade hearing aid,” boosting sounds in real-time to help users better engage in conversations and stay connected to their surroundings.

The Hearing Test and Hearing Aid features are expected to receive marketing authorization from global health authorities soon, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and will be available this fall in more than 100 countries and regions.

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AirPods Pro 2 adding a clinical grade hearing aid functionality: Awesome

— Marques Brownlee (@MKBHD) September 9, 2024

Why It Matters: This announcement follows a series of developments and hints in Apple’s hearing health initiatives. In November 2022, a study published in the iScience journal suggested that AirPods Pro met four of five standards of personal sound amplification products, indicating their potential as a hearing assistive device.

The AirPods are now hearing aids, without the stigma of hearing aids.

If you have some hearing loss but don't want to be sporting hearing aids, you can now just throw in apple airpods and nobody is the wiser.

— Joseph Carlson (@joecarlsonshow) September 9, 2024

In March, rumors circulated about the new “hearing aid mode” for AirPods Pro in the upcoming iOS 18 update, building on the existing Live Listen feature.

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Image via Apple

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.