Hollywood power player Franklin Leonard on how AirPods changed his life | Mashable.

Should AirPods be white? Hollywood heavyweight Franklin Leonard on the earbuds' hearing feature

The founder of the Black List recently opened up about his struggles with diminished hearing.
By Matthews Martins on 
Black List founder Franklin Leonard is using AirPods to help with hearing loss. Credit: Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty Images

Comments

  1. Actually as someone how owns upward of 10+ these earbds, I'd say black is still the dominant color. And frankly if I have to choose, I don't necessary like it to match the color of my skin - e.g. Blue would be my favorite which Sony produces a lot in the line of headphones.

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  2. The color of the airpods is an irrelevance.

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    Replies
    1. reading comprehension isn't your strong suit.

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    2. I read it, but my comment is about the headline there. I wish they would learn to word them better.

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    3. they know how to word them and are doing it just fine. They got you to click and comment, which is what they want.

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  3. Hey! There is a great opportunity here. Hearing Aids are something I wanted resolved with blue tooth enabling and cell phone TV listening years ago. Particularly 2016. I forgot I met Mr. Tim Cook prior to Apple. I believe they were developing products to help my mother live better.
    The opportunity here is to have a teeny tiny Air Pod wrapping business. The footprint on use of natural resources as the vinyl is created is miniscule. In fact, automobile dealerships discard excess vehicle wrapping vinyl daily. The recycling or redirection of indirect salvage or scrap is where the bread and butter can be made.
    Wrap it. Wrapping is where Beats Music made its deal with those who rolled out the headphones. Correction: Rapping. That has been the only thing that has lived in excess in front, on top and all around me.

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  4. Gosh, wanna black air pods? Buy all-black AirPods from ColorWare. But honestly, there are lots of better and cheaper options.

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  5. https://www.colorware.com/products/airpods-pro-2nd-gen-usb-c

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  6. They are white so they are easily seen when on a table or other places … white is an easily visible Color on something so small … if they were brown or black you’d constantly lose them … not everything is about skin Color most of the time it’s about common sense

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    1. they're white for brand recognition and has nothing to do with visibility. JBL makes black ones that are way better anyway.

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    2. my i phone is silver grey… there’s a lot of apple products that aren’t white

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    3. congratulations we're talking about earbuds.

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    4. Airpods* whatever

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    5. you brought up apple products being all white which isn’t true that’s all it’s not “a brand thing”

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    6. no. Read again... I said THEY'RE white. Not that ALL apple products are white.

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    7. no, you says their white for brand recognition. This implies that you believe Apple products are generally white so that people can identify them as an Apple product. There, i fixed your response.

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  7. These comments lol Apple AirPods are white always been white. Apple AirPod Max (they look like headphones) comes in different colors.

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  8. 🙄😬🤦‍♂️

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  9. Unless I clicked a different article, nothing in here has anything to do with the color of AirPods, so…
    a) this is an incredibly misleading header, and b) people need to read before commenting.

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  10. Stop it. Just stop it.

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    Replies
    1. Why? Completely reasonable ask.

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    2. it is a bit much. Next: should white wine be served in restaurants?

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  11. Black AirPods would be 100% on my to buy list

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  12. i have this same problem. my hearing is bad on one side (but test show the frequency response is fine? strange). guess i will have to try this solution.

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    1. I started wearing an amplifier in that one bad ear earlier this year and it was a game changer. You can get them very cheap through EBay, Timu or Amazon, less than $30. I don't need to mess with expensive hearing aids and I'm happy. Much cheaper than the Apple products.

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  13. I’m gonna start using these in loud environments too — another friend does this and they really help him, I didn’t get it but I’m getting onboard!!

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    1. I use them all the time in Atlanta for games. The tailgate area has extremely loud music (nearly 90 dB for five hours) and I’d like to keep hearing.

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  14. https://t.co/1PBmH2E1kD

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  15. I started wearing hearing aids a few years ago, and they are mind-bogglingly expensive for something that feels so critical and improved my quality of life so much. I don't know how anyone justifies them being excluded from insurance. I hope the AirPods work!

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    1. Somehow ears and teeth are not medically necessary to survival 🤷‍♀️

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    2. Eyes either 🙄

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    3. Who needs eyes when you — nope, you know what, I have no joke, it’s just all bad.

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  16. I am actually so glad to read this, I saw the commercial too and wondered if they really work because I have moderate hearing loss and have a hard time hearing conversations when there’s ambient noise

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  17. I bought a pair last month. I also have diminished hearing in my left ear. And these have changed the way I interact with the world. I'm appreciative!

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  18. I agree with skin tone AirPods!

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  19. Thank you for sharing ❤️

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  20. All of this, but especially the last part…

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  21. Thank you for sharing.

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  22. Thank you so much!!! I have a friend that has hearing loss. I’m going to forward this post to her husband, so he can get some for her asap!! Happy Holidays!

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  23. Yeeeeesssss for the skin tone airpods.

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  24. Do they help you hear conversations or just music? Sorry, I’m old and don’t understand how this works

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  25. I also have lost half my hearing and can’t reconcile the price of hearing aids, this is great to know thanks for sharing

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  26. Cool solution! You can get AirPod skins in various colors, btw.

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  27. Same thing happened in my left ear several years ago. I hope the AirPods help 🫶

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  28. Thanks so much for posting this! I having loss in both ears and tinnitus, so Again, thanks for posting!

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  29. I have congenital hearing loss. I had surgery to fix my right ear 25 years ago. They took out fused bones and replaced with wire. It worked. Last year I had 2 surgeries to fix the left. They DIDN’T work. I’m going to try these.

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  30. Thanks for sharing. I have genetic partial deafness and have been holding back from getting hearing aids. It’s great to see these work. Will be putting them on Santa’s list

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  31. Skin tone
    You need to patent that
    Copy right that and sell it to apple
    But guess catering to black ppl is not a standard

    Tokyo Olympics committee didn’t allow for hair caps made especially for black ppl hair
    Zero performance impact and 100 more comfort
    Ballet shoes etc

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  32. They’re still very expensive, but in my experience, very good quality hearing aids are available at Costco thousands of dollars cheaper than from audiologists. I believe they even do free hearing tests at Costco. I hope this information can help somebody.

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  33. Kudos to you for sharing!!

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  34. I need to try these—my hearing is not what it was and I have tinnitus. It can be isolating, and at my age not great for the brain.

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  35. Thank you for sharing this!! 🙂❤️🙌🏼 I’m hard of hearing.

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  36. How do the AirPods help?

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  37. I'm seeing a lot of comments thanking me for posting but I'm just the intermediary, you have to thank Franklin Leonard! https://x.com/franklinleonard

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    1. Thanks anyway for posting on your blog, it reaches more people who possibly don't follow Franklin

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    2. exactly! super important!!

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  38. I think it was a couple of years ago that I first heard about AirPods being helpful this way. Seriously considering getting a pair for my better half. I don't know which one of us is getting more frustrated. 😄

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  39. I love my AirPods for all of the same reasons, and they come specifically in my blinding white skin tone 😂

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  40. They've been a game-changer for us. Many hearing aides, lots of out of pocket money didn't work. He wouldn't wear them for long. He's worn AirPods for weeks. We have conversations again! He's talking in groups, engaging in convos. Miraculous! Now if they just stay charged all day

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    1. Would they still help if he wore one at a time? That way, one can be charging while one is being used.

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  41. An absolute travesty, the insurance industry

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  42. I hope others can find use in them too!

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  43. I am an Android gal so I haven't been paying attention to what Apple does ... but if this could help me hear better I'm all for it. I've been struggling to hear well since I had Strep and RSV at the same time almost a year ago

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    1. I haven't tried airpods to compare, but pixel buds pro will boost volume of sounds around you. I'm looking at apps that will boost the specific frequencies I have trouble with.

      A friend has Jabra's that do something similar, so I suspect this is becoming a common feature.

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    2. I do have Pixel Buds Pro - I have never thought about wearing them for this purpose! I usually use them to shut noise out when I'm working! lol

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  44. I don't understand how insurance companies weaseled out of paying for them, but then again, perhaps I do

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    1. this is another one for the defense if the shooter is ever caught - they may have a self defense case

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    2. How do you pick a jury for this 😂

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    3. I was talking to the sweetest woman in her 80s yesterday at synagogue and she casually drops, “I hope they never find him.” No jury would convict!!

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    4. Some insurance companies will pay up to $1000 for hearing aids and you have to pay the rest of the cost. I'm interested in the airpods or something similar because my aids fall out my ears and off my head constantly. Earpods stay in my ears until I take them out.

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    5. When most things cost thousands of dollars the insurance company won’t cover $250? Sounds like a steal to me.

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  45. Good point-“dramatically cheaper than hearing aids.”

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  46. thank you for sharing. I literally have the exact same story-- same ear, same timeline. hadn't considered airpods but definitely will now.

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  47. So, I'm grateful the Airpods helped the franklin. But we need more details so even more people might benefit. How does this work?

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  48. I saw this commercial and I also suffer fro hearing loss. This could be useful.

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  49. The optics are a problem. Seeing someone with those in means walk on by because in most cases they are on the phone or listening to music. Costco hearing aides are awesome and great price. I’m on my third set from there. Changing the color might help.

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  50. A bazillion years ago I did a story on Michigan State and disability access. The take away for me was that at any given time, at least 25% of the population can benefit from accommodations.

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  51. Thanks for reposting this and yes, anyone can become disabled at any time …

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  52. A friend of mine is using AirPods to hear also! He had good hearing aides and could not stand them. He hears better this way. And he let people know too, so that they wouldn’t think he was listening to something else while they were talking to him.

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    1. That's my problem as well. I hate my hearing aids and am looking into earpods. Earpods stay in my ears much better when I'm using them to listen to books, etc.

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  53. That's phenomenal, I've been wondering if they live up to the hype.

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  54. For what it’s worth, I also lost half my hearing in my left ear three years ago. I have 100% in my right ear. So the cheapest hearing aid was around 1200.00 from Costco.
    I live in Canada and it is a massive improvement for my social life.

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  55. I have a family member who developed almost complete sudden sensorineural hearing loss in one ear. It started soon after a flu-like illness during the Delta wave a few years back, and has not recovered or improved.

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  56. I have lost considerable hearing in my left ear and Air Pods have also been a game changer for me.

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  57. This is wonderful! I just read a Wired article today talking about these AirPods! Game changing for sure.

    And yes - the fact insurance doesn’t cover the cost of hearings aids is outrageous.

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  58. You should watch Sound of Metal (2019)

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  59. Don’t they have to be paired to function? It's one reason I've ignored them. I am deaf in one ear (congenital), but my good ear has gone from perfect+ to moderate loss.

    I only need one device, so I dismissed them as I was told they have to be paired. Are you wearing one or two?

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  60. I have a friend that wears hearing aids and is used to paying $5K. However, in the last year Costco has been carrying HA. Instead of 5K, he bought some there that are more like 1K! He is v happy with them and the price! Hope this helps maybe!

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