New Meta Software to Tackle Hearing Loss With $150 Smart Glasses Add-On

People usually wear earbud-like devices to address hearing loss, but Meta is preparing an alternative that works with its smart glasses, eliminating the need to insert anything into the ear.  Hearing Enhancement is the company’s first FDA-cleared software feature, which will arrive later this year on select models as a $149.99 add-on. In his keynote at Meta Connect, CEO Mark Zuckerberg specifically mentioned the "Meta Glasses" models, rather than the Ray-Ban Metas, will first support the Hearing Enhancement. "And like all of our software features, we're going to roll it out more broadly soon," he added. The company designed it for people with "mild to moderate hearing loss," including those who might not even be aware of a problem, but need to turn up the volume on a TV, or have trouble hearing from a specific ear. The feature has been in the works for over five years, and harnesses the six microphones in the glasses to capture all the sounds around the wearer. Built-in speakers then amplify the surrounding audio; no additional hardware required. The software is also smart enough to detect which sounds the user struggles to hear, and adapt by boosting the select tones, Meta says. I tried it out while wearing a pair of Meta's Adventurer glasses and two earplugs to simulate mild hearing loss. Once the feature was activated, I could immediately tell the sounds and voices around me were amplified, making it easier to hear.  The feature can be turned on and off throughout the day as needed via a mobile app. Meta received feedback from about 400 people suffering from hearing loss while developing the feature, some of whom preferred the glasses, the company says. “With this, there’s nothing going in your ear,” a spokesperson told me. Meta views the solution as a more affordable alternative to traditional prescription hearing aids, which can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $8,000. Meta smart glasses start around $299.  The Hearing Enhancement also addresses the criticism that smart glasses are still searching for a use case. Meta’s glasses have also faced pushback over the built-in camera being misused to take videos and photos of people without their permission.  Still, the company isn't the first to use smart glasses to address hearing issues. Nuance Audio, whose parent company, EssilorLuxottica, partners with Meta on smart glasses, offers its own audio glasses that start at $699. In the meantime, Meta says Hearing Enhancement is designed to be “set up at home in minutes, with no clinic or prescription needed.” The software feature will also be free for customers on a paid Meta One subscription. Also today, Meta unveiled the camera-free Ray-Ban Meta Audio, Meta VR Glasses, and the Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 3). For more, check out some post-show analysis from PCMag's Iyaz Akhtar, Angela Moscaritolo, and Will Greenwald. I've been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I'm currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country's technology sector. Since 2020, I've covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I've combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink's cellular service. I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard. I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I'm now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I'm always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.