Made for iPhone (MFi) Hearing Aids Will Now Pair Directly with Mac Computers

Apple today announced a suite of improvements for accessibility in its devices, among those being that Made-for-iPhone (MFi) hearing aids will soon be able to pair directly with Mac computers.

Bluetooth streaming for iOS is now offered by many hearing aid manufacturers, allowing users access to streamed audio, like music, podcasts, Siri, and video, including Facetime calls. However, before now, iPhones, iPod Touch, and iPad tablets were the only devices that could pair directly with MFi hearing aids without workarounds or accessories.

The news of direct steaming from a Mac is mentioned in just one bullet point in Apple's news release, so details about how the new function will work are still forthcoming:

• Deaf or hard-of-hearing users can pair Made for iPhone hearing devices directly to Mac and customize them for hearing comfort.

The fine print says, “Users will be able to pair their Made for iPhone hearing devices with select Mac devices with M1 chip, and all Mac devices with M2 chip.”

The announcement is part of the lead-up to Apple’s Worldwide Developer’s Conference (WWDC), which will be held June 5-9, where the company is expected to provide its developers a first glimpse at the new iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS updates.

Apple also announced several new features for cognitive accessibility, Live Speech, Personal Voice, and vision enhancement features. For details see the Apple newsroom.