Apple AirPods Tipped To Receive Live Listen Feature To Aid Those With Limited Hearing

Lots of people around the world have hearing problems and those hearing difficulties are compounded for many when they are in a noisy environment. However, some people don’t want to go through the expense and hassle of getting hearing aids. Apple is tipped to be adding tech called Live Listen to its AirPods later this year that will help people hear better in noisy environments and while it won’t replace real medical hearing devices, it could provide an added boost.

Live Listen is a feature specifically meant to help people hear conversations in a noisy environment. The tech is designed to turn the iPhone into a microphone and shoot the conversation audio over to the AirPods or hearing aid. All the user has to do is point the mic of the iPhone at the conversation they want to hear.

Live Listen is the first feature of the sort for AirPods that Apple has offered. When Apple launched AirPods they were mainly for listening to music and giving users control of Siri without having to dig a smartphone out of their pocket. For iPhone users who don’t listen to music and prefer using a Bluetooth system in their car, Live Listen could be the first feature that really makes AirPods a must have.

Live Listen is viewed by some as the first indication that AirPods might be evolving beyond a gadget just for tech fans. If this non-traditional use of the earphones proves successful, maybe more features for non-traditional use will also arrive. Live Listen will roll out with iOS 12 later this year.