iOS 26 Adds New AirPods Pro Hearing Protection Setting in Some Countries

by

iOS 26 adds a new Hearing Protection setting for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 in some countries across Europe and the Middle East, such as Belgium, Czechia, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Türkiye, and the United Arab Emirates.

iphone 17 airpods purple
Specifically, there is a new "EN 352 Protection" setting in these countries. When this setting is turned on, Apple's website says the Hearing Protection feature on AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 complies with the European hearing protection standard EN 352, by limiting the maximum volume level of media playback to 82 dBA.

When a set of AirPods Pro 2 or AirPods Pro 3 are paired to an iPhone, this new setting can be turned on or off in the Settings app, by tapping on your AirPods, selecting Hearing Protection, and adjusting the "EN 352 Protection" toggle switch.

It is unclear if Apple was required to introduce this setting, or added it voluntarily.

iOS 26 will be released to the general public on Monday, September 15. AirPods Pro 3 are available to pre-order now, and launch on Friday, September 19.

With the overall Hearing Protection feature, AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 can help protect your hearing in loud environments, by reducing your exposure to loud sounds.

The new setting was discovered by MacRumors contributors Aaron Perris and Steve Moser.

Related Roundups: AirPods Pro 3, iOS 26, iPadOS 26
Buyer's Guide: AirPods Pro (Buy Now)
Related Forums: AirPods, iOS 26

Popular Stories

wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
Read Full Article
maxresdefault

Apple Shows Off a Key Reason to Upgrade to the iPhone 17

Saturday February 7, 2026 9:26 am PST by
Apple today shared an ad that shows how the upgraded Center Stage front camera on the latest iPhones improves the process of taking a group selfie. "Watch how the new front facing camera on iPhone 17 Pro takes group selfies that automatically expand and rotate as more people come into frame," says Apple. While the ad is focused on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, the regular iPhone...
Read Full Article • 79 comments
Apple Logo Zoomed

Tim Cook Teases Plans for Apple's Upcoming 50th Anniversary

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026. "I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
Read Full Article • 149 comments
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...
Read Full Article • 154 comments
iOS 26

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
Read Full Article • 37 comments

Top Rated Comments

star-affinity Avatar
star-affinity
21 weeks ago
Let me tell you that you don’t want hearing issues due to overexposure to sound.

It is difficult to comprehend how this can be since normally you don’t think about your ears nor your hearing – it’s just there.

But there are symptoms to be had such as tinnitus, hearing-loss, hyperacusis and pain hyperacusis, crawling and burning sensations in the ears and dysacusis etc. Symptoms that can truly effect the quality of life and prevent you from using your ears and listening to music like you used to. It can affect your sleep, and your cognitive abilities. Quality of life being severely affected.

So many symptoms and the ears in humans are pretty bad at healing, unfortunately.

Hoping for future cures.
Until then, be aware and don’t take your hearing and ear health for granted!

https://hearinghealthfoundation.org/keeplistening
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ries Avatar
Ries
21 weeks ago

Apple's website says the Hearing Protection feature on AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 complies with the European hearing protection standard EN 352, by limiting the maximum volume level of media playback to 82 dBA.

Ugh! Someone please DELETE the European Union.
You might think this is an non issue, but once you get old and your hearing starts crapping out, you wish you hadn't disabled that setting.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
svish Avatar
svish
21 weeks ago
Good to know about the change. Reason for this implementation should most probably be to comply with local regulations.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ntombi Avatar
Ntombi
21 weeks ago



But there are symptoms to be had such as tinnitus, hearing-loss, hyperacusis and pain hyperacusis, crawling and burning sensations in the ears and dysacusis etc. Symptoms that can truly effect the quality of life and prevent you from using your ears and listening to music like you used to. It can affect your sleep, and your cognitive abilities. Quality of life being severely affected.

So many symptoms and the ears in humans are pretty bad at healing, unfortunately.


I recently had tinnitus as a med side effect, and even though it was intermittent and apparently classified as mild, it was incredibly annoying and distracting. I am really lucky that it has basically gone away now that I’m done with that round of meds. Eight months was quite enough, thank you.

I also have friends and family members with lifestyle related serious hearing loss, and it is really hard and also expensive to address! The even worse thing is that if you don’t address it, you’re at a much higher risk of developing dementia.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Paradoxally Avatar
Paradoxally
21 weeks ago
This is absolutely a good move.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Little Boy Blue Avatar
Little Boy Blue
21 weeks ago
This should help limit the amount of damage younger people do to their hearing. Hearing loss is annoying and tinnitus is no fun at all.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments