Apple is exploring ways to transform AirPods into a health device, including features that improve hearing, read body temperature, and monitor posture, according to documents examined by The Wall Street Journal. The plans also highlight the company's ambition to add health features to devices beyond the Apple Watch, where most of the company's health functions currently exist.
The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Apple is also working on technology aimed at using iPhones to help diagnose depression and cognitive decline. The features may include using the earbuds to measure the wearer's temperature, monitor their posture, and enhance their hearing. The Wall Street Journal notes that it is unclear whether the latter functionality differs significantly from the conversation enhancement feature already present in AirPods.
According to The Wall Street Journal, these functionalities are not expected by next year and may never be released to consumers, or the timing may change. In other words, it seems that the iPhone manufacturer is only exploring these new health features, rather than actively working to integrate them into products that may be released in the next year or two.
Adding such sensors makes sense for the company. Apple has increasingly marketed its products based on the strength of its health and fitness applications, although so far, most of this focus has been on the Apple Watch. Reports last month indicated that the company was looking to add various sensors to the wearable device, including blood pressure, temperature, sleep quality, blood oxygen, and blood sugar monitoring.
Integrating health features into commercial products is a challenging task, primarily due to the difficulty of meeting high medical regulatory standards. This inevitably leads to delays.
For instance, it was reported in June that the next Apple Watch would add temperature monitoring. However, this feature did not appear in the Apple Watch 7 released in September. The Wall Street Journal's report does not provide many details about Apple's plans for AirPods. Measuring someone's temperature from their ear is a standard practice, despite the presence of many devices in the market that use digital sensors to alert wearers when they are in a relaxed state.
Apple has shown interest in using AirPods as some type of hearing assistance, even though the earbuds are not FDA-approved for that purpose.
