The latest revolution in the in-ear wearable niche are “Hearables”. These, on the surface, look exactly like Wireless Headsets. But Hearables are much more than a pair of earbuds.

Hearables are AI-powered, smart in-ear devices that make use of both microphone and earphones. Just like any headset, they can link you to music, uninterrupted calls, etc.

But here’s where Hearables differ:

They interact with the user using artificial intelligence. These little buds can analyze speech patterns, relay relevant information, identify physiological conditions of the user, and help in real-time translation. Hearables have also been developed to act as hearing aid for the ailing alongside all the other perks.

Revolution in Education

Hearables are a sort of always-worn AI assistant that sits on your ear. It’s what Sci-Fi movies are made of. Let’s take a look at the huge potential that it holds for education.

The smooth real-time communication allows students to interact with their educators from any corner of the earth, as long as they have internet access. Hearables’ ability to translate seamlessly between languages will be very important in learning new languages. Moreover, music students will benefit immensely from them. This is because listening is at the core of these subjects. Text-to-speech also allows students to collaborate in real-time with teachers and their fellow students.

Outside of formal education, Hearables can be used to control smart home-devices with voice. With enough assistance from Hearables, smart home-devices can learn the users’ needs and adapt accordingly.

A Possible Elimination of Screens

In professional settings, workers could put Hearables to good use. Their ability to read voice commands and relay information effectively makes them a very useful tool. Workers could equip themselves with a search engine in their ears at all times.

This could possibly lead to an elimination of screens, at least in some industries. The 2000s’ dependence on screens has been a pandemic on its own. And if we can already replace that with Hearables, then we will. A lack of dependency on screens could also see a rise in productivity, seeing how the source of most distractions when we’re trying to be productive is the dreaded screen.

The Obstacles

Much like any other innovation, Hearables will rely very highly on the internet. Cities without 5G access will face inconsistency in the performance of the device.

Developers also are concerned about the battery life. Increasing battery longevity, decreasing power usage and regulating the battery size are all constant challenges that innovators are facing.

Aside from the technical difficulties, the social problems could be equally valid. The use of Hearables instead of hearing aids could have a major stigma associated with it.

Tagged Education