How Apple’s wireless EarPods could change the way we hear everything
[Philip Lelyveld note: this is a speculative article - Apple has no announced plans - but it is a good idea.]
...it’s time for smart audio devices — or “hearables,” as they have become known — to grab our ears. Several such successful Kickstarter projects launched at CES earlier this month, and most aren’t targeting people with hearing loss.
Bragi’s Dash earbuds stream music wirelessly from your iPhone, but they also act as fitness trackers and recognize gestures, like nodding your head to accept a call.
Doppler Labs’ Here promises to bring the benefits of hearing aids to people with normal hearing, by providing a “live listening” experience for Coachella festival attendees. Even Twitter is getting in on the act. And there are many moreexamples.
iPhones already feature CoreMotion, a framework that provides applications with data from a magnetic compass, accelerometer and gyroscope. If Apple were to build CoreMotion into its Smart EarPods, it could quite literally add a new dimension to music.
Hearing aids today can cost as much as $5,000. One of the reasons they are so expensive is because the sales channel is complicated.
I realize Apple may have other priorities, like building electric, self-driving cars. But for anyone who could benefit from better, more affordable hearing aids, I hope Apple is listening.
see the full story here: http://www.cultofmac.com/407128/apple-wireless-earpods-hearing-aids/