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The Food and Drug Administration has approved Apples over-the-counter Hearing Aid feature. Designed for people with mild to moderate hearing loss, it transforms the second-gen AirPods Pro into OTC hearing aids. This follows the FDAs 2022 decision to allow adults with less-than-severe impairment to use corrective consumer hearing devices without a professional test, prescription or fitting. The FDA says Apples software-based Hearing Test feature for AirPods Pro showed similar benefits to those who received a professional fitting of the wireless earbuds. Results also showed comparable performance for tests measuring levels of amplification in the ear canal, as well as a measure of speech understanding in noise, the FDA wrote in its announcement. The agency adds that it didnt observe any adverse events from using the device as an OTC hearing aid. Apples Hearing Aid feature, coming in iOS 18, starts with a hearing test on your paired iPhone or iPad. As the image above shows, the test begins by ensuring your earbuds have a good seal. After that, it activates active noise cancellation (ANC) and asks you to tap the screen when you hear tones in the left and right ears. Once you finish, your results will live in the iOS Health app, where you can see how your results change (or not) over time. You can download your results and give them to an audiologist anytime. (If the test determines you have severe hearing loss, it will recommend you seek a professional assessment since the AirPods feature is only approved for those with mild to moderate impairment.) Engadgets Billy Steele got an early preview of the feature after Apples big iPhone 16 event earlier this week. It seems to be as quick and easy as Apple describes, our audio expert wrote. Although the demo was a simulation, it covered each step of the process, adding up to only about five minutes. Apple developed the feature using 150,000 real-world audiograms and millions of simulations. The companys FDA application was reviewed under the agencys De Novo premarket pathway, which provides a runway for novel devices that dont carry serious risk. Apples Hearing Aid and Hearing Test features will arrive no earlier than when iOS 18 launches to the public on September 16. The AirPods Pro (second-gen) is required to use the feature. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/the-fda-greenlights-apples-hearing-aid-feature-for-airpods-pro-164912484.html?src=rss
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It's not totally uncommon for major automakers to buddy up on projects, share their knowledge and try to find ideas that benefit all parties. The latest to snuggle up are GM and Hyundai. Through their collaboration, they hope to improve their competitiveness while trying to reduce the costs and risks involved with developing new tech. The two companies have signed a non-binding agreement and they'll immediately start assessing joint opportunities and working toward binding agreements. According to GM CEO Mary Barra, the aim "is to unlock the scale and creativity of both companies to deliver even more competitive vehicles to customers faster and more efficiently." Projects that the two sides are looking at working on together include co-development and production of passenger and commercial vehicles, internal combustion engines and electric and hydrogen clean energy tech. They'll also explore supply chain efficiency combined sourcing for the likes of battery raw materials and steel could save them both a bundle. GM and Hyundai will look into ways that they can harness their scale and knowhow to do all of this while reducing costs. It might be a while before we see any fruits of these labors, but it's smart for automakers to team up and try to reduce costs, especially with the EV market being somewhat dicey. Ford's EV division, for instance, is on track to lose around $5 billion this year. There are other types of partnerships between automakers, of course. In June, Volkswagen and Rivian teamed up, with the former expected to invest $3 billion into the EV company and a further $2 billion on a joint venture between the two sides.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/gm-and-hyundai-plan-to-work-together-on-cars-and-clean-energy-tech-162625133.html?src=rss
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Chrome is getting a series of safety updates that could improve your security while browsing online. In a release, Google announced the new features, which include protecting against abusive notifications, limiting site permissions and reviewing extensions. Safety Check, Chrome's security monitor, will now run continuously in the background to more readily take protective steps. The tool will let you know what steps it's taking, which should include removing permissions from sites you no longer visit and ones Google Safe Browsing believes are deceiving you into giving permission. It will also flag any alerts it deems you might not want and notify you of issues that require attention, like security issues. Plus, Safety Check on your desktop should alert you to any Chrome extensions that might pose a risk. Google is also reducing the number of permissions that last for sites on Chrome for desktops or Android devices. The new feature will allow you to approve mic or camera access for one time only instead of always for the site. Instead, they will have to request your permission again on the next use. Plus, Google is also expanding the ability to unsubscribe from a site on Chrome with one button beyond Pixel devices to more Android ones. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/chromes-latest-safety-update-will-be-more-proactive-about-protecting-you-160046221.html?src=rss
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