You could buy 2 pairs and swap them out. That would still be a 75% discount over the $2000 pair.

This will help more people hear. It might not be the best possible solution, but it surely beats not having it.

That’s a much, MUCH lower barrier of entry, though, fella… and that can be celebrated in my opinion

It's helpful, sure, but it's not the same thing.

Existing hearing aid products are still available for purchase for those who want them. I don’t think AirPods are going to replace hearing aids. Hopefully they lower the barrier for entry and perhaps lower the price of existing products.

Just to be pedantic: AirPods Pro 2 come with 4 sizes for tips. Also, I'm sure you can get third-party tips with different shapes if you wanted to.

Airpods don’t fit in my tiny ear canals. I even bought a smaller aftermarket tip and still no luck.

A condescending reply showing you didn't read the whole comment isn't the best look. The point isn't that they're the bestest hearing aids ever, the point is that they are an option at all at a tiny fraction of the typical price which will force manufacturers to innovate.

Condescending or not, saying "Now Apple just brought that price down to ~$250." is grossly overstating it.

But Apple always gets a pass, so...

"You can now buy hearing aids (as defined by the FDA) for $250" is an objectively true statement, so unless you think the FDA is filled with Apple fanboys I have no idea what "pass" you think Apple is getting.

To be fair, it is a little misleading. "You can buy hearing aids with considerably lower functionality for $250" is more accurate. But there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. There's a LOT of people who can't afford high quality hearing aids (and the doctor assisted tuning) costing thousands of dollars. And if this getting _something_ into their hands, it has the potential to be a very big win.

Also, since it is an alternative (even if lower functionality), it has the potential to bring down the cost of other options, because that's a common outcome from competition.

> AirPods needs to be charged several times a day. That's a bit of an inconvenience.

that's if you wear them all the time. I have hearing difficulties and know I need aids even without taking a test. But I wouldn't want something in my ear all day long and most of the time I don't need to hear better because I'm working or whatever. But there are situations where it's hard for me to understand what people are saying and that's when I would put them on.

So with that in mind the AirPods would work great. It's unfortunate that it doesn't work with the regular AirPods which are only $100. (I don't have the Pro's).

AirPods Pro have replaceable tips, and there are third parties who sell different tips.

Actually the better the tip fits you, the more I'd think you'd take them out once in a while, because a perfect seal means your ears will get sweaty.