Turn Your iPhone Into a Powerful Hearing Assistant

Amplify sounds, see live captions, and translate speech in real-time. Includes an Apple Watch companion app for remote control and captions on your wrist.

The cloud already knows too much about your life — it doesn't need to listen to your conversations too. Everything stays on your device.

Coming Soon on the App Store
OndaHear Main Screen
OndaHear Live Captions

Features

🎧

Listen Mode

Real-time hearing amplification that captures sound through your iPhone mic or an external USB microphone like the Hollyland Lark wireless system, then plays it through your earbuds with a volume boost of 100% to 500%. Listen Mode works in the background with your phone locked, delivering ultra-low latency of approximately 21 milliseconds so conversations feel natural and immediate. Simply plug in your earbuds, tap start, and hear the world around you with crystal clarity.

📝

Live Captions

Real-time speech-to-text transcription powered entirely by on-device processing -- your words are never sent to any server. Captions appear on screen with adjustable font sizes and smooth auto-scrolling, so you can follow along effortlessly in lectures, meetings, or one-on-one conversations. Save your transcripts for later review, and use Live Captions across Listen Mode, Conversation Mode, and Translation Mode for a consistent captioning experience everywhere.

🌍

Translation Mode

Real-time speech translation between 19 languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, Russian, Turkish, Dutch, Hindi, Indonesian, Polish, Thai, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese. All translation runs on-device using the Apple Translation framework -- download language packs once and use them offline anywhere without an internet connection. Swap between source and target languages with a single tap, and hear translations spoken aloud with built-in text-to-speech playback. Requires iOS 26+.

💬

Conversation Mode

Connect two iPhones for seamless two-way voice communication with real-time translated captions. Hear the other person's voice instantly through your earbuds while reading translated captions on screen in your chosen language. Each person picks their own language -- the app automatically translates between them using English as a common bridge, all on-device. Supports all 19 translation languages. Perfect for noisy restaurants, cross-language conversations, or any situation where you need extra help hearing clearly.

💬

Text Chat Mode

Push-to-talk text messaging between two iPhones with built-in translation. Press and hold to speak -- your voice is converted to text and automatically translated to the other person's language before sending. Each device picks its own language, and all translation happens on-device using English as a common bridge format. No typing required -- just talk and the other person reads your message in their language. Great for quiet environments, cross-language communication, or when voice isn't practical.

📡

Transmit / Broadcast Mode

One phone broadcasts amplified audio to multiple listeners at once, making it ideal for tour guides, classrooms, religious services, conferences, and group events. Listeners connect with their own phones and earbuds to receive clear, amplified audio from the presenter without any special hardware. Broadcast Mode is always free -- no subscription required -- so anyone can set up an accessible listening experience for a group of any size.

Apple Watch App

Control OndaHear right from your wrist with the companion Apple Watch app. Start and stop listening, adjust volume, and see live captions displayed on your Watch face without ever pulling out your phone. Quick-replay the last 30 seconds of audio with a single tap, so you never miss an important moment even when your iPhone is tucked away in your pocket or bag.

🔔

Sound Alerts

OndaHear continuously monitors for important environmental sounds and sends you notifications when they are detected. Recognizes doorbells, fire alarms, baby crying, appliance timers, phone ringing, glass breaking, and more -- so you never miss a critical alert even in noisy environments or while wearing noise-canceling earbuds. Sound Alerts is a premium feature available with any OndaHear subscription.

🩺

Hearing Test

Take a built-in audiogram-style hearing assessment right on your iPhone. The test measures your hearing sensitivity across multiple frequencies in each ear individually, then generates a detailed hearing profile. Apply your results directly to the equalizer so OndaHear automatically compensates for your specific hearing needs -- no audiologist visit required. Hearing Test is a premium feature available with any OndaHear subscription.

🎛️

EQ & Hearing Profiles

Fine-tune your listening experience with a 10-band parametric equalizer. Choose from built-in presets including Flat, Voice Boost, High Frequency Boost, and Music, or create and save your own custom profiles tailored to your hearing needs. Share your hearing profiles with other OndaHear users so family members or caregivers can help dial in the perfect settings for you.

💾

Transcript Saving & Export

Save any conversation with a custom title and browse your transcript history organized by date. Every transcript is stored locally on your device for complete privacy. Export transcripts to share with doctors, colleagues, or family members -- perfect for keeping a record of medical appointments, lectures, or important meetings you want to revisit later.

🎤

External USB Mic Support

OndaHear automatically detects external USB microphones like the Hollyland Lark, RODE Wireless GO, and other USB audio devices, prioritizing them over the built-in iPhone mic for superior audio pickup. Using an external mic also enables speaker output without feedback loops, making it possible to amplify sound through the phone's speakers instead of earbuds. Just plug in your USB mic and OndaHear switches to it instantly.

🔒

100% Private

Every bit of audio processing, speech recognition, and translation happens entirely on your device. No audio, transcripts, or personal data ever leaves your iPhone -- there are no cloud servers, no analytics, and no tracking whatsoever. OndaHear is built from the ground up with privacy as a core principle, so you can use it with complete confidence that your conversations remain yours alone.

See OndaHear in Action

OndaHear Main Screen

The main screen gives you one-tap access to all five modes — Listen, Transmit, Conversation, Text Chat, and Translation — with volume control, EQ settings, and live captions, all designed for simplicity.

OndaHear Live Captions

Live Captions transcribe speech in real-time with adjustable font sizes and auto-scrolling to help you follow conversations.

Ways People Use OndaHear

🎓

Lectures & Classrooms

Place your iPhone near the lecturer or connect a wireless USB mic. Listen through earbuds with amplified audio, or turn on Live Captions to read along in real-time. Save the transcript after class for study notes you never had to write.

🍽️

Noisy Restaurants

Struggling to hear your dinner companion over background noise? Use Listen Mode with earbuds to boost their voice, or switch to Conversation Mode so they speak into their phone and you hear them clearly through yours. Live captions help you catch every word.

🏥

Doctor Appointments

Never miss important medical information. Record the entire appointment with Live Captions, then save and export the transcript to review later or share with family members. Keep an accurate record of diagnoses, instructions, and follow-up plans.

✈️

Traveling Abroad

Use Text Chat to communicate with locals who speak a different language -- just speak into your phone and they read the translation on their device. Or use Conversation Mode with translated captions to have a real-time voice conversation across languages, no typing needed.

Religious Services & Events

The speaker uses Transmit Mode to broadcast to the entire congregation. Attendees connect with their own phones and earbuds to hear amplified audio with optional captions. No special hardware, no installation -- works immediately for groups of any size. Transmit is always free.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

Family Gatherings

Holiday dinners and family events can be overwhelming when multiple people talk at once. Use Listen Mode to boost the voices around you, or Conversation Mode with a family member who helps relay what's being said. Live captions let you follow along even in the noisiest room.

🏢

Work Meetings

Place your phone on the conference table and let Live Captions transcribe the entire meeting in real-time. Export the transcript afterward as meeting notes. Use the volume boost through earbuds to hear soft-spoken colleagues more clearly.

🌍

Multilingual Workplaces

Team members speaking different languages? Use Text Chat so each person speaks their own language and reads messages in theirs. Or use Conversation Mode where everyone hears the original voice and reads translated captions on screen -- real-time, no delays on the audio.

📺

Watching TV

Place your iPhone near the TV speaker and use Listen Mode to boost the audio through your earbuds -- hear every word without cranking the TV volume and disturbing others. Turn on Live Captions for real-time subtitles of whatever you're watching, even on channels that don't offer closed captioning.

💑

Conversations with Your Partner

Use Listen Mode at home to amplify your spouse's voice through earbuds, or set up Conversation Mode so they speak into their phone and you hear them clearly on yours. Live captions on screen mean you never have to ask "what did you say?" again -- even from across the room.

🛒

Shopping & Errands

Keep up with conversations in busy stores, pharmacies, and banks. Listen Mode amplifies the cashier or clerk speaking to you, and Live Captions help you catch details like prices, instructions, or prescription information in noisy retail environments.

🚗

In the Car

Hear your passenger clearly over road noise and engine sounds. Place your phone between the seats with Listen Mode running and earbuds in -- the volume boost cuts through background noise so you can have a normal conversation while driving.

🎭

Theater & Live Events

Enjoy performances without missing dialogue. Place your phone near the stage or use an external mic for better pickup. Live Captions give you subtitles for live theater, stand-up comedy, or any spoken event -- no special accessibility equipment required.

How It Works

1

Connect Earbuds

Pair your AirPods, Bluetooth earbuds, or wired headphones.

2

Tap Start

Launch OndaHear and tap the start button to begin listening.

3

Hear Clearly

Enjoy amplified, crystal-clear audio with optional live captions.

Simple, Affordable Pricing

Enjoy unlimited access free for your first 2 weeks. After that, usage is limited to 30 minutes per day unless you subscribe.

Free

$0
  • First 2 weeks: unlimited
  • Then 30 min/day
  • Live captions
  • Limited features

Weekly

$2.99/week
  • Unlimited listening
  • All features included
  • Cancel anytime

Yearly

$89.99/year
  • Unlimited listening
  • All features included
  • Save ~3 months

Prices shown in USD. Final price determined by the App Store in your local currency.

Better Hearing Starts Here

Your personal hearing assistant, right in your pocket.

Coming Soon