iPhone compatible hearing aids are Apple's new venture into healthcare.
With all the buzz around fitness and mobile devices, spurred by the recent release of the Samsung galaxy of new launches, the Galaxy S5, the Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo and Gear Fit, all hosting fitness functionality - heart monitoring on the S5 and the fitness-check wrist band dubbed Fit exploring new frontiers in health and medicine - Apple too is hiring experts and working with a Danish company to improve hearing aids.
Rumors said that Apple's soon to be released iWatch would be able to prevent heart attacks. It looks like the Cupertino, California smartphone maker is getting its feet wet with hearing aids. Well, that might be an understatement since the hearing aids that sync to the iPhone and enable listening to streaming music and receiving calls will cost a lot more than a smartwatch or Google Glass. In fact, it will cost about double what 'explorers' paid for the generation 1 Google Glass - specifically, $3000.
Denmark-based GN ReSound and Apple have come out with new hearing aid technology that pretty much does everything a person who is not hearing impaired can do on a smartphone. Apple has a great way of problem solving and innovating.
Dubbed LiNX and labeled "the world's smartest hearing aid," this remarkable technology enables hearing aids to sync wirelessly to the iPad, iPhone, iPod, etc. with iOS 7′s new accessibility options for the hearing-impaired.
LiNX is 'a hybrid of hearing aids and stereo Bluetooth headphones,' picking up and amplifying sounds in the vicinity while also being able to make use of a smartphone's various features, including making phone and FaceTime calls, playing music, getting turn-by-turn directions, and so on," CNN reports.
"Right now, people wait about eight years on average between the time they think they have a hearing problem and when they see someone about it," audiologist Dr. Ken Smith was reported as saying.
Dr. Smith said, "The association with Apple is going to make a great difference in getting people in the door in the first place," reports digitaltrends.com
The $3000 price tag stems from LiNX classified as a medical device. It's highly unlikely to be listed in an Apple store.
The best part about this collaboration is that Apple's reputation as the iPhone maker might get rid of hearing aid stigmas.
According to CNN, "With Apple integration, wearers can make adjustments as easily as they can check e-mail or watch a video. Basic settings like battery life and volume are built directly into the iOS 7 operating system."
The report adds, "It's been possible for people to operate their hearing aids via custom remote controls and even link them to smartphones, but that has required an intermediary piece of hardware, most often a small, clunky box worn around the neck. Now, using a combination of Bluetooth and a proprietary Apple protocol, the LiNX hearing aids can communicate directly with Apple mobile devices."
Making calls using a smartphone is a huge step and is difficult to achieve.
Laurel Christensen, chief audiologist at ReSound and co-inventor of the device said that the next generation device that couples a smartphone with a hearing aid would be a huge breakthrough.
Too bad for Android users though, the app will not fit in to the Google-based system, but with all the competition for health and fitness apps and devices, Samsung might surprise with a hearing aid of its own.
With Reports from CNN
