iOS 18 has Apple fans salivating, as it promises the biggest changes yet. And it seems it might include a hearing aid mode for AirPods. Mark Gurman of Bloomberg said that iOS 18 might potentially be the biggest update to iOS ever. Gurman, who has a long history of reporting accurate Apple plans, recently gave readers a sneak peek at what iOS 18 could potentially ship with. The report comes from Gurman’s newsletter; Power On.
Hearing mode for AirPods but no hardware changes, says Gurman
Gurman reports that he doesn’t expect any changes to the AirPods, physically speaking. Fans who have been waiting for better drivers or a change in design will have to wait a little longer. Instead, according to Gurman, Apple has been working on a hearing mode for iOS 18. Gurman doesn’t elaborate, but a few guesses can be made on how this will work.
Apple already offers somewhat similar features. For example, Live Listen, which uses the iPhone’s microphone and transmits captured audio to a user’s AirPods Pro. This works similar to the ambient mode in a lot of other wireless audio gear but with the addition of audio received from the phone. There’s also Conversation Boost, which works on the same principle as Live Listen. Unlike Live Listen, however, Conversation Boost intelligently boosts voices so users don’t have to take out their AirPods to hear someone talk.
What other changes can users expect from iOS 18?
The biggest thing to look forward to with iOS 18 is undoubtedly AI. Apple always likes to take its time before releasing a new and popular tool, and it’s done the same for AI. The company’s take on AI will probably rival what Google’s Pixel phones and Samsung AI can do. This includes extreme control over pictures and video editing. Apple might also add other, as of yet unseen uses for AI. There is a lot of potential for what AI can do in a closed ecosystem like Apple’s.
Leaks also suggest Apple is going to completely overhaul its virtual assistant, Siri. Assistants like Siri, Bixby, and Google Assistant can be enhanced to science-fiction levels of accuracy with LLM AIs. According to other reports from Gurman, iOS 18 will change the signature look of iOS too. How far these changes go remains to be seen, as Apple likely doesn’t want to alienate long-time users. Lastly, Apple promised to include RCS support in 2024. It only stands to reason users can expect it in iOS 18.
2024-03-11 15:04:42