How to test your hearing with your iPhone and AirPods Pro 2

Apple has seemed interested in turning AirPods into hearing devices for years, ever since the Conversation Boost feature appeared, and quite possibly before.

Now it has introduced a new hearing test and hearing aids feature for AirPods Pro 2, which should make it far easier for the 1.5 billion people on earth thought to be suffering hearing loss to discover their condition. Apple has also packed so much tech inside its higher end hearing devices that they can even act as ‘proper’ clinical-grade hearing aids as well.

About the hearing test

To identify flaws in your hearing Apple has introduced its hearing test feature, which uses a standard clinical approach called pure-tone audiometry. This relies on testing your hearing against a wide array of noise pulses to build an accurate representation of your hearing ability.

How to use the hearing test

The test takes around five minutes. To access it you need your iPhone to be updated to the latest iteration of Apple’s operating system and for your AirPods software to have been updated. To do the test just follow these steps, though you need to be wearing your AirPods, naturally.

• Tap the AirPods Pro 2 in Settings on your iPhone.
• Tap Take a Hearing Test.
• You’ll be asked for details such as your age, if you have a cold, or if you have been exposed to loud noise recently.
• Once the questions are answered, hit Next. You will feel noise cancellation begin on your AirPods and, after a few more simple prompts,  the test begins.
• During the test you’ll be played a series of tones during which you will be asked to tap the screen when you hear a tone. This part of the test takes a few minutes.

After testing is complete you’ll be given your hearing test results which will tell you the state of your hearing. Results are delivered in decibels – so if your left ear has a 45dB HL (Decibels Hearing Level) that means you need sounds to be 45dB louder in order to hear them.

Understanding the results

Apple provides the results in an easy-to-understand summary of their results in a personalized hearing profile for AirPods Pro, which is stored privately and securely in their Health app. Users can also share these results with their healthcare providers for more informed conversations.

-10 to 15db HL is a normal result, anything between 16-55 is seen as slight, mild, or moderate hearing loss. Anything over 56dB HL is Moderately Severe while any result in excess of 71dB HL represents Severe or (above 91db HL) Profound hearing loss. Apple has made it possible to share your results with your health provider for more insight.

Using AirPods Pro 2 as hearing aids

If the test shows you are suffering hearing loss you can choose to set your AirPods Pro 2 up as hearing aids. This works by taking the hearing data you just gathered and turning it into audio tweaks on your AirPods. They adjust the sound they pick up so you can hear it,. They are also small enough to understand how to help you hear different things, such as music, video, or phone calls. To do this, they make use of the same tech that lets AirPods detect noises around you when it checks 48,000 times each second.

Where will this be available?

The upgrade will be made available first in the US and Canada, but Apple is promises to bring it to 100 more countries over fall.

Where can I find out more?

Apple’s website is a good place to start.

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