For a long time now I've been paranoid I'm going deaf.

It wouldn't be a major surprise. When I was a teenager I played and listened to a lot of noisy music as loudly as possible. Headphones, speakers, car stereos, guitar amps... all turned up all the way.

There's been a fair share of heavy machinery in my past too; tractors, orchard sprayers, chainsaws... and although I was more careful to wear ear plugs or protectors, a noisy environment is a noisy environment.

The last few years have been more peaceful, although I'm always listening to something - especially since the invention of True Wireless earbuds.

I pump a busy breakfast radio show into my brain via my headphones three hours a day and oh yes...

I'm not getting any younger.

As a result of all this (or perhaps not) when I struggle to hold up my end of a conversation in a busy room, or miss at least half of what the Domestic Manager is telling me when we're walking down a bustling street, it's easy to blame my failing auditory abilities.

Trouble is, turns out I'm not as hearing impaired as I thought.

If you were paying close attention to Apple's September product launch, you would have noticed there was no new generation of AirPods Pro. Instead, quite a bit of time was spent discussing forthcoming updates to the AirPods Pro 2's firmware - and how, in combination with Apple Intelligence, the full potential of the H2 chip inside the AirPods Pro 2 was about to be unleashed.

Not only did this mean a new level of mic isolation that ensures anyone on the other end of your calls or video chats only hears you, without any wind noise, traffic racket or office hubbub, you'd also be able to use head gestures to communicate with Siri. Want to accept the call? Nod. Dismiss the notification? Shake.

This was all great stuff. Useful stuff. Then came the potentially life-changing stuff; an entirely new feature called Hearing Assistance.

Turns out, since 2019, Apple has been investigating, scientifically, the feasibility of AirPods users conducting their own hearing tests with the end goal of using the AirPods themselves to help ameliorate any hearing loss detected.

In short, could AirPods Pro 2 be used as hearing aids?

There's no doubt AirPods Pro 2 are right at the cutting edge of personal audio technology. The Active Noise Cancellation is extremely effective and unlike most other earbuds, you can opt to use ANC even when you're only wearing one AirPod, something I do frequently when listening to podcasts around the house.

The personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking is also industry-leading - making the AirPods Pro 2 one of the best ways to enjoy movie and gaming soundtracks.

There were already a lot of fantastic features; Adaptive Audio, Transparency Mode, intuitive stem-based controls... not to mention the exercise-friendly sweat resistance and the convenient, trackable MagSafe charging case.

And now, yes, Apple has thrown in Hearing Assistance for free.

The whole process takes mere minutes. Simply open your AirPods Pro 2 settings menu on your paired iPhone or iPad and you'll discover the option to take a hearing test.

You'll then be guided through the test step by step, starting with a fit-test - checking you've selected the right-sized tips to ensure a tight seal. It turns out, if like me, you have one AirPod that falls out all the time it might not be that the tip is too small. In fact, by trying an even smaller option, the AirPod was able to nestle further inside my ear canal, resulting in a much more secure fit.

Once you've sorted that out, you'll then hear a series of three tones, played at different volumes and different pitches. All you have to do is tap the screen when you hear them.

Eventually you'll be presented with your results - both in written form and represented graphically. If it's bad news, it's probably still a good idea to consult a hearing professional but either way, the AirPods Pro 2 can now be customised to your unique profile, becoming actual hearing aids.

This means in one fell swoop, Apple has tackled (and triumphed over) three major hearing aid pain points.

1) People don't like wearing hearing aids. There are many reasons for this, some irrational, some practical but all valid. Nobody wants to admit they're getting older and for some people, being seen wearing hearing aids is a bit too much of a reality check. AirPods are much cooler.

2) Swapsies. While some hearing aids can also work as bluetooth earbuds, few offer the features that AiPods Pro 2 do. This means if you want to use both there's an inconvenient amount of swapping back and forth. Who needs that?

3) Money. AirPods Pro 2 are not cheap. But they don't cost thousands, that's for sure. Hearing Assistance now means you get hearing aids for free. You can't argue with that.

In my case, I was surprised to find my hearing was still okay, although, thanks to Media Assist, my AirPods Pro 2 have now been customised to tune my content to my specific requirements, compensating for some of the frequencies that I struggle to hear.

There's just no way this isn't a win-win situation. Buy the AirPods Pro 2. Take the test. If you're in the clear, you now own what are perhaps the most full-featured in-ear headphones on the market - tuned to your individual requirements. If the test results are more concerning, you're already wearing the hearing aids that can help - at no extra price. It's hard to find a reason not to take advantage.

Click here for more information on Apple AirPods Pro 2 and Apple Hearing Assistance.