In the near future, Apple AirPods will Offer Health-Related Features

Apple's AirPods may become more beneficial in assisting users in staying healthy, with the personal audio gadgets possibly including hearing health functions in the future years.

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Given their proclivity to be worn for extended periods of time, the AirPods and AirPods Pro are excellent accessories that are primed to add health features in the future. As part of that endeavor, it is anticipated that the earphones will offer improved hearing health features over the next several years.

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Mark Gurman predicts Apple will enhance the AirPods line to make it "a health tool in the next year or two."

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The capacity to "obtain hearing data of some type" utilizing the accessories may be upgraded.

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According to Gurman, the "health tool" features would be a logical extension of what the Apple Watch presently gives consumers, but its hearing-related potential might be substantially more than what is currently supplied.

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According to patents and patent applications, Apple may develop biometric sensing capabilities in an AirPods package, utilizing the ear and a photoplethysmograph (PPG) sensor to monitor heart rate and describe blood flow in the ear's skin. In files dating back to 2017, there is also mention of an electrocardiogram sensor, impedance cardiography, galvanic skin response, VO2 sensors, and thermometers being integrated into the device.

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According to several patents dating back to 2014, Apple examined tracking a headphone user's heart rate, temperature, and sweat, indicating that the corporation has been researching the matter for many years. Meanwhile, additional filings in 2018 suggested that Apple was developing a more secure fit for the AirPods so that sensors could make better contact with the skin.

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On the hearing health front, Apple already offers certain features, such as Live Listen, which improves a user's hearing by picking up noise from an iPhone. Meanwhile, AirPods Pro's Conversation Boost is an assistive technology that makes it simpler to hear neighboring conversations.

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For the time being, neither of these capabilities is FDA-approved nor qualifies as a replacement for a hearing aid, but others have previously suggested that AirPods can serve as a low-cost first step toward embracing the need to use a hearing aid. Yet, Apple is thought to be working on making these and other comparable benefits it develops more "official" in the future.

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