Ali Pardiwala | 29 Oct 2024 03:11 PM
Apple's latest iOS 18.1 update brings a bunch of new features, including the much-anticipated Apple Intelligence. However, if you're an AirPods Pro (2nd Gen) user, you'll be particularly interested in this set of features which have been somewhat quietly introduced alongside. Although Apple announced the new hearing aid and hearing health features for AirPods Pro 2 back in September at the iPhone 16 launch event, these features have just rolled out with the latest software update taking compatible iOS devices to iOS 18.1.
The new features include hearing test, hearing aid functionality, and hearing protection. While the protection feature is limited to the US and Canada for now, the hearing test and hearing aid features should be available to users globally as well. The hearing aid functionality is particularly interesting, as it helps the AirPods Pro 2 be used as a clinical-grade hearing aid, according to Apple. Notably, these new features are coming only to the second-generation AirPods Pro, and no other devices in the AirPods range for now.
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Apple has developed these new features for the AirPods Pro 2 at its dedicated facility in its Cupertino headquarters, called the Audio Lab. The lab is used to conduct user studies in various listening rooms and test new features in its anechoic chambers, which are said to completely absorb reflective sounds and isolate external noise.
The Longwave anechoic chamber is said to be the most important part of the Audio Lab, and was built on a separate foundation that uses springs to isolate it from the rest of the lab. This is said to allow for accurate sound measurements without any noise or vibration disturbances.
The chamber includes a custom-built loudspeaker and microphone arc that can measure head-related transfer functions - essentially how sound interacts with the human body. Having both the loudspeaker and microphone arrays within this chamber makes it a unique space with many applications, and in this case has aided with the development of the new hearing health features on the AirPods Pro 2.
“From the quietest sounds we can hear for the Hearing Test feature, to speech in noisy restaurants for the Hearing Aid feature, and even concert levels for Hearing Protection, we can bring the real world into our acoustics facilities with playback of calibrated soundscapes from all over the world, or take accurate acoustic measurements at the touch of a button,” says Kuba Mazur, Apple’s hearing health lead engineer within Acoustics Engineering.
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The new features coming to the AirPods Pro (2nd gen) have been highly anticipated for many, particularly those with hearing disabilities. While dedicated and clinically-approved hearing aids typically cost a lot more, the AirPods Pro 2 could offer similar levels of performance at a considerably lower price, thus helping those with hearing loss and hearing disabilities gain some assistance.
Understandably, the hearing health features aren't only for those with diagnosed hearing loss; they're meant to help you protect your hearing in the long run, by providing useful prompts and protection in loud environments such as concerts or public events.