This is an important - historical even - announcement from the Danish audiology company, clearly defining what the hearing aid industry understands would be an avenue for convergence between the best technology current available for "hearables" and the needs of people with hearing loss - under the framework of the over-the-counter category.
According to the GN Group announcement, the new Jabra Enhance Plus earbuds - a product unveiled earlier in August 2021 - will be launching February 25, 2022, at select Hearing Care Professionals across the US with a recommended retail price of $799 - which is clearly not an impulse buy, but certainly much less than standard hearing aids. The product was engineered to help people with mild-to-moderate hearing loss, combining true wireless earbud features with advanced hearing aid technology in a discrete, comfortable design. GN Group also confirmed that the Jabra Enhance Plus earbuds are now 510(k)-cleared with FDA as a self-fitting hearing aid, ahead of the proposed OTC Hearing Aid category currently in draft regulation.
"Jabra Enhance Plus combines the convenience and design of true wireless earbuds with advanced hearing technology to address the needs of millions of Americans with mild-to-moderate hearing loss, helping them take the first steps on their hearing health journey," the company states.
The Jabra Enhance Plus earbuds come in a comfortable, miniaturized design, 40 percent smaller than the Jabra Elite 7 Pro consumer earbuds, which are already amongst the smallest true wireless earbuds in the market. The stylish design is intended to create a desirable look both in and out of the ear. And with a leading battery life of 10 hours on a single charge (and 30 hours with the compact charging case), the earbuds will be a reliable solution for daily use and challenging hearing situations. The product is also water and dust resistant.
The few technical details confirmed by Jabra in its website show that the new Enhance Plus earbuds use a state-of-the-art signal processor that receives the output from 4 dedicated microphones (per earbud) in order to reduce background noise and improve speech clarity. These precision microphones work together with advanced noise reduction algorithms, and a new proprietary microprocessor, allowing the user to switch between Adaptive, Focus, and Surround listen modes, depending on the environment and hearing needs. No details are offered for now regarding drivers used (balanced armature) or the Bluetooth module (not yet using LE Audio) but the design look based on the recently launched Jabra Elite 7 Pro TWS earbuds with adjustable ANC.
The simple setup through the Jabra Enhance app allows for a great user experience from the start. And the earbuds are designed with cutting-edge personalization technology, enabling individualized situational hearing enhancement during real-life conversations, and supporting high-quality calls and music listening. But more importantly, they will also provide hearing help for users that need assistance setting up hearing profiles, and will be sold through select Hearing Care Clinics across the US.
As the announcement details, the Jabra Enhance Plus earbuds "have been developed according to the highest standards of quality" and have been 510(k)-cleared with the FDA under the self-fit hearing aid regulation, which most companies in the audiology space have been anticipating. In October 2021, the FDA released a draft regulation to introduce a new Over-The-Counter (OTC) Hearing Aid category, intended to allow greater access and more affordable hearing treatment options.
"GN welcomes the intention of increasing awareness and treatment of hearing loss to improving people’s quality of life through the power of sound. With Jabra Enhance Plus, more people will have a solution that has been specifically tailored to their needs and lifestyle," says Gitte Aabo, CEO of GN Hearing.
“When the new OTC regulation comes into effect, we look forward to be there to help people with solutions that provide better situational hearing as well as music and calls in modern and stylish designs,” says René Svendsen-Tune, CEO at Jabra.
GN also confirms that it intends to launch the Jabra Enhance Plus earbuds in further markets internationally, as local regulations develop.
www.gn.com
www.jabra.com
