Types of Hearing Aids
Learning about hearing aids can be quite daunting. We want to keep it as simple as possible to keep you educated & informed. We’ll divide the types of hearing aids into 3 different categories:
Style
Hearing aids come in different styles or form factors for different preferences, hearing requirements and ear shapes. As a rule of thumb, the larger the device, the more power it can hold, the longer the battery life, and the more features it can have. The smaller the device, the shorter the battery life, and the fewer features it has (ie. no Bluetooth/wireless capabilities). Your hearing healthcare provider will discuss your personal preferences and the pros/cons of specific styles, and decide on a style together that would meet your hearing needs.
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The most prescribed/worn style worldwide is the open-fit RIC (receiver-in-canal style). That’s because it is the most natural sounding hearing aid as oftentimes nothing is plugging up the ear, and it’s the most customizable for mild to severe hearing losses and various ear shapes and sizes. It’s near-invisible, while also containing the largest number of technological features. It houses wireless/Bluetooth technology, can come with rechargeable batteries, has a very thin wire that camouflages nicely when it sits against your skin, and a small piece behind the ear which is usually hidden (even with the shortest of hair styles, or right next to the arm of your glasses!).
Technology
Like buying a computer or a smartphone, hearing aids come in various technology levels to meet different budgets & lifestyle requirements. All manufacturers of hearing aids have instruments at varying tech levels; they all offer premium, advanced, standard and budget product lines, and you generally can’t tell from the style of the device what level of technology it is! It’s a common misconception that the bigger the hearing aid, the less expensive it is, and the smaller and more discreet the device, the more expensive it is. All hearing aid styles can come at varying price points; it just depends what you need. To break it down, the higher the technology level, the more features are embedded into the chip of the instrument in order to help you hear better in more complex listening environments.
Here is a breakdown of the varying levels of technology and the environments they will help with:
Which one is right for me?
Here is a breakdown of the varying levels of technology and the environments they will help with:
Manufacturers
The manufacturer of the hearing aids is the instrument’s brand. Like Honda, BMW, and Audi all try and give you a smooth, comfortable, safe car ride, hearing aid manufacturers have a common goal of helping you hear better. They vary in their research and development, but all have excellent customer service and quality products with state-of-the-art hearing aid technology. We dispense all major manufacturers’ hearing instruments; feel free to click their logo to be redirected to their website to learn more about each company.
Get in Touch
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