Recently, Apple received the Helen Keller Achievement Award. It’s VoiceOver feature has earned acclaim worldwide for helping people with vision impairments. Now, Apple may be taking another step further.
Apple just received a patent for new hearing aid technology. This would help people hard of hearing be able to have their hearing aid’s volume automatically adjusted. For example, the iPhone will be able to detect that there is a hearing aid close by, and then it will adjust the volume to ensure that the person is able to hear the phone ringing or alerts for notifications. As it is now, people need to adjust the volume themselves by fumbling with the buttons on the hearing aid. This isn’t always easy, and some believe people can forget to adjust the volume which leads to missed calls and notifications.
There’s no guarantee that this new technology will be introduced in future iPhones, but there is a possibility since the patent was awarded. Apple continues to lead the market with features that help people with disabilities. It’s part of their good human service efforts as well as a way to gain attention.
Apple is also working hard on new features that won’t be able to be added to older phones. As people start to keep their phones for years by just getting them repaired, it’s critical the company comes up with features that can only be gained from the purchase of a new phone.
What many people must consider is if it is worth the cost of a new phone. People for years have adjusted their hearing aids. They seldom forget to do it because it’s become a habit. This may mean that the implementation of it will unlikely result in a huge push forward for Apple. It’s more about their brand and how they can improve their reputation with this feature.