It may be both presumptuous and too early to say that Apple’s AirPods Pro are both a revolutionary and inexpensive way to solve humanity’s hearing loss problems, but a recent medical report experience It electrified the global medical community with its implications for people with hearing loss.
happy accidents
Sometimes radical inventions, even in medicine, do not result from the concerted and focused efforts of scientists to solve the scourges that afflict humanity. Instead, they emerge from happy accidents that become necessities of life.
For example, in 1928, Dr. Alexander Fleming left cultures of Staphylococcus aureus – or “staphylococcus” as it is often called (which are essentially soft tissue infections such as abscesses and boils) – for a few weeks. . When he returned to check on them, he discovered that a mold had prevented their growth, bringing the life-saving antibiotic to the world. penicillin.
And, in 1968, when Wilson Greatbatch, an assistant professor of engineering at the University at Buffalo, was trying to record heart sounds, he realized that the transistor he was using for the recording was emitting electrical impulses almost exactly like a human heart. This eventually led to a meeting with a surgeon, William Chardack, and the two reunited with another world-changing device: the pacemaker.
Likewise, could a relatively inexpensive and commonplace device used by tens of millions of people around the world revolutionize the treatment of healing loss?
Apple’s $249 AirPods Pro are a fraction of the price of hearing aids. Apple
The experience
Researchers from the Taipei Veterans General Hospital conducted a experience involving 21 people with mild to moderate hearing loss – with the aim of determining how the AirPods’ live listening feature, first introduced in 2014, would compare to a range of medical hearing aids. (Apple doesn’t advertise Live Listen for the hearing impaired, but on its website it says it improves hearing in noisy environments.)
The researchers read a short sentence, then their subjects’ hearing when they first wore a basic hearing aid, then a premium, followed by a pair of tested Apple AirPods 2, and finally a pair of Apple AirPods Pro. The results have been incredible.
In all but one scenario, the AirPods Pro gave hearing aids a run for their money. In a quiet environment, the pair of AirPods Pro, thanks to their noise canceling function, in addition to that of Live Listen, matched the experience of wearing basic hearing aids and were only slightly less effective than the premium ones. . (AirPods were linked to a smartphone).
Jabra’s Enhance Select hearing aid, rated No. 1 by the National Council on Aging, can cost 3 to 10 times more than AirPods Pro. Jabra
In a surprising development, the AirPods Pro matched the premium aids when noise came from the sides. The only time the AirPod Pro couldn’t match the premium aids was when the sounds emanated directly in front of the subject.
According to the study, the AirPods Pro also met four of five electro-acoustic criteria for hearing aids known as ANSI/CTA-2051 standards.
Hearing aids vs. AirPods Pro
Ultimately, you may need a more robust hearing solution than what an AirPods Pro can offer.
In a decision with huge implications for people with hearing loss, the price of hearing aids will start to drop very soon. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the green light over-the-counter hearing aids that do not require a prescription or medical examination as before,
However, these are still hovering around the $2,000-$3,000 mark right now versus $249 for the AirPods Pro. Most are generally not covered by insurance.
Here’s how over-the-counter hearing aids compare to AirPods Pro:
|
Device |
Apple AirPods Pro |
||
|
Price |
$799 to $1,995 |
$1,398 to $2,998 |
$249 |
|
Hearing aid style |
Receiver in the canal, in-ear |
Earpiece in the canal, behind the ear, completely in the canal |
Headphones with active noise cancellation |
|
Battery life (hours) |
12 to 30 |
18 |
6 |
|
Bluetooth |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Duration of standard warranty (years) |
3 |
2 |
1 year limited warranty |
Source: National Council on Aging
Affordability is one reason only about 20% of those who need to wear hearing aids actually do so in the United States. For them, this is a development that could be as epic as Fleming’s discovery of penicillin was for the world.
How to Use Live Listen on AirPods Pro
First, add Live Listen to Control Center on your iPhone:
- Go to Settings > Control Center
- Tap the Add button next to the Audience button
- Go to Settings to save changes
Second, deploy Live Listen:
- Open Control Center on your Apple device (iPhone, iPad, etc.)
- Press the Hearing button
- Tap Listen Live
- Try positioning your device close to your subject, either in front or to the sides
- Be sure to monitor your volume levels
- Try connecting an external mic to your device
The warnings
Now, before some of us go looking for a pair of AirPods Pro to fix hearing problems, you might want to listen to some experts who have weighed in on their thoughts. be important issues regarding this development. Most important is the emphasis that AirPods are not a replacement for hearing aids.
Indeed, not all cases of hearing loss are the same. There is a significant discrepancy in the two causes as well as in the anatomy of the ear. Some, like hearing tracker recommend getting an audiogram from an audiologist for clarification of the condition. (According to the website, you can also download the Mimi app to get a general assessment of your hearing ability, then share the results with the Apple Health app before seeing an audiologist).
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