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iPadOS 18 Control Panel’s Sound Control Icon

 

I wear HAs (Hearing Aids) that I connect to my iPad. ?In the past, I was always able to readily see that they were connected by looking at Control Panel’s Sound control, where:
? ? ?speaker = iPad’s speaker
? ? ?headphone = headphones?
? ? ?ear = hearing aids
?
Yesterday I noticed that even though audio is being routed to my HAs, the icon displayed on the Sound control is a headphone, not the ear as I expected.
?
I’m wondering whether anyone else has noticed this? ?I’m running iPadOS 18.2.
?
As an aside, I’m also having more HAs connectivity issues. ?I used to very infrequently encounter such problems.
?
--
Bev in TX
 

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On Dec 31, 2024, at 10:18?AM, Bev in TX via groups.io <countryone77@...> wrote:

Yesterday I noticed that even though audio is being routed to my HAs, the icon displayed on the Sound control is a headphone, not the ear as I expected.

I listen to my MacBook Pro frequently through my BT enabled hearing aids (they’re not over-the-ear acoustic wonders, but even gargantuan things like Mahler symphonies sound better than not listening—and of course, after 2 trips to the local Cinema to see A Complete Unknown, my end-of-eighth decade ears are being treated to a reverie of growing of age memories from the 1960s).

But, on topic: I’ve NEVER seen an “ear” icon in the menubar, and my iPhone also shows an image of over the ear headphones.

FWIW.

--?
Jim Robertson

 

It's back! ?This week I applied the iPadOS 18.4 update and discovered that, when I'm wearing my HAs, Control Center's sound icon is finally back to an ear wearing a hearing aid. ?I've attached a picture.
--
Bev in TX

IMG_8476.jpeg

 

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I call that knowing your audience. Eye candy for the kids and assistive software for those who need it.


Brent ?

On my late 2012 Mac mini running 10.15.7?

On Apr 18, 2025, at 12:11 PM, Bev in TX via <countryone77@...> wrote:

It's back! ?This week I applied the iPadOS 18.4 update and discovered that, when I'm wearing my HAs, Control Center's sound icon is finally back to an ear wearing a hearing aid. ?I've attached a picture.
--
Bev in TX
 

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On Apr 18, 2025, at 1:11?PM, Bev in TX via groups.io <countryone77@...> wrote:

It's back! ?This week I applied the iPadOS 18.4 update and discovered that, when I'm wearing my HAs, Control Center's sound icon is finally back to an ear wearing a hearing aid. ?I've attached a picture.

And, I’ll revise my own report, because my M3 MacBook Pro, still running Sonoma 14.7.5, because, well, I used to LIVE in Sonoma County, now shows an ear in my MenuBar just to the left of the headphones icon that designates my HAs. As best I can tell, the “ear” icon is supposed to make selections of sound parameters for MFi (“Made for iPhone”) hearing aids. The “Headphones” icon to its right allows me to select the sound output source, and that icon changes with the output device chosen; e.g., default, TVs, AirPods, HomePods, Apple TVs, as well as designate the output and input sources separately and adjust the volume. If I click on the “ear” icon, the two dropdown items are “Background Sounds” (I have NO idea why I’d want to activate one of those given that I can’t hear normally even without those additional synthesized sounds being pumped into my hearing aids.

Another thing I learned just now is that my Phonak-manufactured but Costco-marketed “Kirkland Signature 10” rechargeable hearing aids are NOT on Apple’s list of “Made for iPhone” hearing aids, although earlier KS-branded hearing aids ARE, whereas NO “Phonak” nor “Sonova” (parent company) devices are listed. So when I bring up the dialog by clicking on the “ear” icon, a dialog box opens and says it’s “searching” for appropriate devices once I make a choice from Settings: Accessibility Settings, but finds none. Makes me wonder why the ear shows up at all in the Menu Bar. Does that happen for the very rare Gen Z individual who’s not already cooked his cochleas?

But, since you wear HAs, I have another question for you. There’s been lots of buzz recently on hearing impairment websites about AI processing chips in newest models from several different manufacturers that supposedly improve speech discrimination. I’ve not sampled any of them, and I wonder if you or any any other list members have done so and can report on your own experiences.

--?
Jim Robertson

 

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The Hearing widget is used to view the status of hearing devices and to adjust their settings.??I've attached a screenshot of what that looks like on my iPad Air 4.??In that widget, the volume control is for the HA's speaker, not the iPad's volume.


On my iPad Air 4, I've found the battery level to be very inaccurate with my HA's replaceable batteries.??I suspect it would be more accurate with rechargeable batteries, but I can't verify that.


Background Sounds can be used to have a calming background sound.??It doesn't just apply to HAs.???Apple added that for several reasons, such as helping people concentrate, meditate, or calm down.??Some people have tinnitus, which can sound louder when there are no background sounds, so this option could help those folks in quiet situations.??I'll also attach a screenshot of the Background Sounds options on my iPad.


With Live Listen??your device becomes a remote microphone to your MFI HA's or AirPods.??It could be very useful in noisy situations. ?It's not meant for spying on anyone.


You can also find a list of compatible devices beneath that MFI (Made for iPhones) hearing aid list.??While my iPad and iPhone 13 Pro are in the device list, my Intel 2019 MacBook Pro is not.??


Another factor can be whether your HAs can simultaneously connect to multiple devices.??Mine, Oticon's Real, can only connect to one device at a time, so I leave them connected to the device I use the most (iPad).??It would be a pain to continuously disconnect/reconnect HA's, especially due to sometimes having to reboot to get them to connect.??I'm planning on getting a 13" MacBook Air, which according to that list, will be compatible with my HA's.??But I will still have the single device connection problem, so I'll still leave my HAs connected to my iPad.


I realize this is a bit late, but for others who may be reading this, always ask your HA provider about device compatibility.??


I sometimes listen to the Doctor Cliff, AuD YouTube channel.??The following video discusses the use of HA neural networks, as well as other HA advancements,


Another recent advancement is Bluetooth LE (Low Energy) Audio, which extends HA battery life.??Both the HAs, and the device to which they are connected, must support LE audio, or your device's regular Bluetooth will be used.??Here is a video on that technology:


Hearing Aid Bluetooth LE Audio


I hope that wasn't too long!

image0.jpegimage1.jpeg

On Apr 18, 2025, at 6:12?PM, jimrobertson via groups.io <jimrobertson@...> wrote:

And, I’ll revise my own report, because my M3 MacBook Pro, still running Sonoma 14.7.5, because, well, I used to LIVE in Sonoma County, now shows an ear in my MenuBar just to the left of the headphones icon that designates my HAs. As best I can tell, the “ear” icon is supposed to make selections of sound parameters for MFi (“Made for iPhone”) hearing aids. The “Headphones” icon to its right allows me to select the sound output source, and that icon changes with the output device chosen; e.g., default, TVs, AirPods, HomePods, Apple TVs, as well as designate the output and input sources separately and adjust the volume. If I click on the “ear” icon, the two dropdown items are “Background Sounds” (I have NO idea why I’d want to activate one of those given that I can’t hear normally even without those additional synthesized sounds being pumped into my hearing aids.

Another thing I learned just now is that my Phonak-manufactured but Costco-marketed “Kirkland Signature 10” rechargeable hearing aids are NOT on Apple’s list of “Made for iPhone” hearing aids, although earlier KS-branded hearing aids ARE, whereas NO “Phonak” nor “Sonova” (parent company) devices are listed. So when I bring up the dialog by clicking on the “ear” icon, a dialog box opens and says it’s “searching” for appropriate devices once I make a choice from Settings: Accessibility Settings, but finds none. Makes me wonder why the ear shows up at all in the Menu Bar. Does that happen for the very rare Gen Z individual who’s not already cooked his cochleas?

But, since you wear HAs, I have another question for you. There’s been lots of buzz recently on hearing impairment websites about AI processing chips in newest models from several different manufacturers that supposedly improve speech discrimination. I’ve not sampled any of them, and I wonder if you or any any other list members have done so and can report on your own experiences.

--
Bev in TX

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