Long the purview of doctors, prescription, and expensive hardware, it's a pivotal moment for hearing aid technology with over-the-counter clinical-grade solutions like Apple's recently updated AirPods Pro 2 arriving in consumers' ears and potentially changing lives.
I think that is the message of Apple's latest holiday commercial, "Heartstrings," naturally, which focuses specifically on the Apple AirPods Pro 2's latest auditory capabilities.
Apple unveiled its over-the-counter (OTC) clinical-grade hearing aid test and augmentation in September alongside its new iPhone 16 handsets. Instead of new hardware, Apple was able to push a firmware update in the Apple AirPods Pros and for iPhones courtesy of iOS 18.1. I tried the hearing test last month and was surprised to find that I am not suffering from much hearing loss at all.
Apple's ad, though, paints a different scenario. In the video, which you can view on YouTube, a teenager opens her Christmas gift in front of her parents. It's a guitar, and as she tears into the wrapping, her father's mind traces back through flashbacks of her childhood. It's touching and effective because the toddler and child all appear to be the same person, but it's also heartbreaking because of the audio in the current scene, and all the memories are muffled. The father is clearly suffering from some hearing loss.
Apple doesn't specify his level of hearing loss but its Hearing Aid technology is designed to address mild-to-moderate hearing loss and not something that might be addressed with a doctor-prescribed hearing aid.
The daughter begins playing on her new (and miraculously in-tune) guitar, and the mother encourages the dad to "listen". He puts in the AirPods Pros and the sound is, as the commercial depicts it, instantly clearer. He uses a hearing aid volume slider on the iPhone to raise the volume of the assisted hearing.
I don't know if it's because I'm a dad or that Apple's advertising firm is just that good, but I got emotional watching the nearly two-minute ad.
Apple AirPods Pro 2 earbuds are incredibly effective at high-quality audio and excellent noise-canceling earbuds. They're also quite smart when it comes to automating transparency mode. I walk up to my coffee guy while wearing my AirPods Pro 2s and listening to a podcast. As soon as I start talking, the podcast pauses, and the ambient sound rushes in, delivered by the earbud's built-in mics. It's that technology, in concert with the recent firmware upgrade and a solid ear seal, that helps make the new hearing aid technology possible.
I can confirm that Apple's scientifically validated hearing test works, and even though I don't have hearing loss, we already have examples of people using – and loving – Apple's new hearing aid technology.
TechRadar's Managing Editor, news, Jake Krol, asked his 77-year-old dad, whom the tests found was suffering from moderate hearing loss, to try the AirPods Pros 2 as hearing aids. Here's how Krol described his dad's experience:
"He described sounds as being more pronounced and amplified, particularly voices when he was conversing with family members or visitors in the house. Henry said he could hear much better, picking up all the details, including more subtle sounds, which he doesn’t have with partial hearing loss."
Seems like a lot of the heart-warming AirPods Pro 2 hearing aid stories might involve parents and their children. Also, if you plan on watching that ad, maybe find someplace private so you can have yourself a good ugly cry.
By the way, if you have or think you have some hearing loss and want to try out Apple's latest audio gear with hearing aid technology, you might want to check out the latest Black Friday Deals. There are some excellent values on the AirPods Pro 2 (previous AirPod models do not support OTC hearing aid tech).
- Amazon: Record low on AirPods Pro and Max
- Best Buy: Double discounts with Best Buy Plus
- Target: AirPods from $99
- Walmart: AirPods Pro 2 for $154
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