14 DAY TRIAL // Apple has been working with GN Store Nord to connect its iPhone to a new generation of hearing aids, spurring speculation that the move counts as Apple’s first foray in the wearable devices market.
Reuters reports that GN Store Nord, the world’s fourth-largest maker of hearing aids headquartered in Denmark, has been working with Apple to allow iPhones and the ReSound LiNX aids to work seamlessly together to deliver audio to the user, such as voice calls and even music.
The device is slated to ship in the first quarter of 2014. The hearing aid market is estimated to be worth around $15 billion (around €11.1 billion).
During a quarterly earnings conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook this year said his company was expanding its business to other product categories throughout 2013 and 2014.
Everyone thought iWatch and iTV, but it seems Apple’s first such foray includes other companies’ products. An excerpt from Tim Cook’s speech is available below.
“In terms of new product categories, specifically if you look at the skills that Apple has from hardware, software and services and at incredible app ecosystems, these set of things are very, very unique.”
“I think no one has a set of skills like us and we obviously believe that we can use our skills in building other great products that are in categories that represent areas where we do not participate today. So we're pretty confident about that.”
A high-end hearing aid sells for around $3,000 (€2,220) in the United States. GN reportedly said it was pondering a 5 to 10 percent premium (over the standard price model) for the LiNX.
Analysts at Morgan Stanley are calling the LiNX the “first attempt to turn a hearing aid into more of a lifestyle product.” In other words, Apple is helping make hearing aids cool with the help of its iPhone.