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Apple Highlights Using AirPods Pro 2 as Hearing Aid in Heartwarming Holiday Season Ad
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Well, of course you did because the two of them are actually singing the song (and playing piano) live, right then and there on the set/soundstage where the ad was recorded.
The singing done in Heartstrings is just lip-syncing to some heavily processed (and auto-tuned) song recorded in a studio at some different location, at a different time. Probably isn't even the actress' own voice, etc.
Like, I like the concept and narrative of Heartstrings. But I can't feel much when it's so obviously edited and nobody can sing like that IRL.
Sure, it's just an ad. Those are usually blatantly hyperrealistic. But please put a little more effort into it and make me believe it.
Either way, I'm happy that Apple is doing the hearing-aid thing for AirPods and that they're promoting it so more people get to know about it.
I’ve had problems hearing for years. I’ve got a flaming case of tinnitus that vexes me constantly.
I took the hearing test that comes with the iPods pro and my phone and it said my hearing loss was normal/minimal.
I always have problem hearing over noise like hearing my SO in the other room or when I’m in the shower. I’m wondering if it’s just normal and my SO talks in places no one should expect to hear or it’s the tinnitus.
The tinnitus is truly horrible. To the point I sometimes wish I could jab an icepick in my ear and turn it off. Just to find some peace.
I took the hearing test that comes with the iPods pro and my phone and it said my hearing loss was normal/minimal.
I always have problem hearing over noise like hearing my SO in the other room or when I’m in the shower. I’m wondering if it’s just normal and my SO talks in places no one should expect to hear or it’s the tinnitus.
The tinnitus is truly horrible. To the point I sometimes wish I could jab an icepick in my ear and turn it off. Just to find some peace.
Health regulations.
I have moderate to severe hearing loss. The AirPod Pros work pretty okay for me. If I had to have extensive daily conversations for work or school, I'd consider getting real hearing aids, but I work from home and am not going to school any more. So the APP work fine for occasional casual conversations, watching TV, and listening to music. I did have to make up a hearing chart for a moderate hearing loss, because my real hearing loss is outside the approved range for the APP hearing aid function.
If the APP hearing test shows you have severe hearing loss, and you haven't used hearing aids before, then you really should first consult a hearing professional before attempting to make do with APP as your hearing aid. But if you are already comfortable with using hearing aids, and know what to expect, the APP can be a useful tool in your hearing arsenal.
I bought APP2 and I've been experiencing ringing, I guess like what tinnitus is. It usually happens the day after I wear my headphones...which isn't daily. Recently, my wife bought APP2 and she is getting motion sickness. Apparently this is linked to the noise cancelling. Anyone else having this experience?
Uh, no. That is actually about the way it sounds, to me. I wear hearing aids, expensive little suckers. I can remove them and my hearing is almost exactly like in the video. The high frequencies are the most affected.
I also have the AirPods Pro and set them up as hearing aids. They do a remarkable job, almost as good as my hearing aids. What the AirPods really did was make listening to music from the iPhone much better. The sounds I hear from the music are clearer because the AirPods match the frequency response to the frequency curve established during the test.
The real downside to the AirPods over hearing aids is the battery life. I have rechargeable devices and the charge lasts 18 hours, or more. I have never gone more than 18 hours so I really don't know the life of the batteries. I can check the level on my phone but never have at the 18 hour mark.
When I had battery powered hearing aids I would go two days on a set of batteries. A few times the battery would run out and it was one minute procedure to replace the batteries and I was good for another two days. The AirPods are a long way from that type of battery life.
The other downside is that my customer fitted hearing aids is that the devices are really good at staying in my ears. Much more so than the AirPods. My devices are almost invisible with the bulk of the device behind my ears.
What the AirPods do really well is manage noise at sporting events. The noise cancelling is superior to my hearing aids, yet I can still hear people talking.
What Apple has done for less than $200.00 is provide a very useful device for people that may not otherwise use such devices. However, that $200.00 needs to be factored into the cost of the iPhone needed to operate, configure, and control the hearing aids. That may add another $800+ making the overall cost close to, or over $1,000. Custom hearing aids at Costco can be had for about $2K and will perform much better than the AirPods.
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My experience is that, for moderate, age-related hearing loss the AirPods are superior and far more versatile.
I just got these.
It's not quite as comfortable as my custom fit hearing aids, but they stay in place very well. I'm able to pull a sweater on and off and these hooks don't come off. Of course, may not work with all ear sizes/shapes. Also, a bit tricky to put the AirPods onto the hook. But once on, it's not likely to come off.
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One of the best Apple ads in a long time. Especially for any girl dad.
Indeed, so much different in contrast to that parents/vibrator ad. 
That's definitely on par with the coffee ad with the incest vibe from many years before.
That's definitely on par with the coffee ad with the incest vibe from many years before.
Nice to see an Apple ad that’s more about genuine sentiment than emotional manipulation or *insert genre artist of the moment here* like the last few years.
Agree though that this guy really needs to see an audiologist and get a dedicated set of hearing aids.
Agree though that this guy really needs to see an audiologist and get a dedicated set of hearing aids.
I cried. A lot. Because I've had hearing trouble that started four years ago. Not so much about hearing-loss (though a little), but tinnitus and now as of late some dysacusis where some sounds and especially louder sounds a bit as if they're coming through a megaphone – they are slightly distorted. Horrible. And the tinnitus is just piercing – like a cicada stuck at a certain frequency. Feels like a laser is running through the head. 😫
Also sounds sensitivty where some sounds feel uncomfortable and even cause some pain in the ear.
All this because of too much sound exposure.
So take care of your ears, people!
It's difficult to understand how much it can affect your well-being when the ears and hearing get compromised.
So sorry!
It truly can be horrible with tinnitus. But there seems to be some hope coming from the so called Susan Shore Device (not on the market yet) spoken about here (some people have been building the device themselves, mimicking its functionality):
Also looking forward to the day when hearing-loss can be fully treated so people don't have to use hearing aids. Talk about an uplift in quality of life, and for the music and technology industry where more people want to listen and stream music and buy hi-fi devices. I sure have lost my interst in these things and can't play guitar and produce music to the same excent anymore.
Also sounds sensitivty where some sounds feel uncomfortable and even cause some pain in the ear.
All this because of too much sound exposure.
So take care of your ears, people!
It's difficult to understand how much it can affect your well-being when the ears and hearing get compromised.
So sorry!
It truly can be horrible with tinnitus. But there seems to be some hope coming from the so called Susan Shore Device (not on the market yet) spoken about here (some people have been building the device themselves, mimicking its functionality):
Also looking forward to the day when hearing-loss can be fully treated so people don't have to use hearing aids. Talk about an uplift in quality of life, and for the music and technology industry where more people want to listen and stream music and buy hi-fi devices. I sure have lost my interst in these things and can't play guitar and produce music to the same excent anymore.
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No doubt the advert is aimed at the US but I do agree with you. So many people are buying them without checking availability in their own country. What is unforgivable is that the Apple Stores in those countries don't seem to know and are giving out wrong information.
They should also be warning people with severe, or worse, hearing loss that the Airpods won't work for them.
Thought it might be worthwhile chipping in my tuppence (or two cents worth) as someone in the UK with a hearing aid, I don't have Airpods, my personal phone is an Android, but my work phone is an iPhone.
I was diagnosed with otosclerosis in my left ear as an adult, and underwent surgery fairly soon after, it wasn't as successful as we hoped it would be, my hearing improved but for years I've tolerated having a good ear and a bad ear.
I recently decided to use a hearing aid again and was fortunate to have a Made for iPhone hearing aid provided by the NHS here in Scotland.
The way my iPhone integrates with my hearing aid, it's magic, it works, it helps, it makes my hearing aid feel more like an upgrade than a drag, and that's probably just down to a few things: native integration with the OS (no need for a dedicated app), and I'm told it supports multiple devices the same way you can jump between then with Airpods (this will likely make me switch from Pixel to iPhone in the next year or so), notifications ping directly into my hearing aid, can also steam media and calls but the audio quality isn't great, and the simple ability to be able to adjust the volume for my hearing aid from my phone.
I'm not that old and my fingers are fairly dexterous, but the wee buttons are too fiddly to repeatedly press to turn the volume all the way down, where as on the phone it's the same as adjusting a headphone volume slider.
A good audiologist should be able to fit you with a comfortable earpiece, I keep it in just about all day, with glasses, most of the time I forget it's there.
So the image at 53 seconds was of interest to me not having made much use of the hearing aid feature which will be badly needed this weekend with a late family holiday meeting.
Is showing the AirPod Pro2 in one ear only intentional? I posted here that using my right ear alone works well with no AirPod in my left ear.
Is showing the AirPod Pro2 in one ear only intentional? I posted here that using my right ear alone works well with no AirPod in my left ear.