Hearing Aids Are About to Become as Common as Reading Glasses

When friends I hadn’t seen in years passed through New York recently, I knew the perfect place for a late-night catch-up: Bar Goto on the Lower East Side. The Japanese-style cocktail lounge’s amber lighting makes everyone look good, and the drinks are some of the best in the city.

And the music? Well, it’s usually subdued, but when my highball was served, Motörhead’s God Was Never on Your Side thrummed over the speakers. Although it played at nowhere near the ear-splitting volume the band was famous for, I still strained to hear what was being said three seats down the ...