Your Needs Assessment Choosing The Right Hearing Aids For You
When you come for your consultation, we will discuss your individual hearing needs and then match the best technology for you. We choose from a wide range of hearing aid brands so we can select the most appropriate hearing aids for your needs.
An appointment for a hearing aid consultation at Auckland Hearing is free of charge. We require a current full hearing test at this appointment . Before the hearing consultation, you can bring along a recent full hearing test or do a diagnostic hearing assessment.
We usually program some hearing aids for you to try at this appointment; this allows you to experience how hearing aids help you hear easier and more clearly.
Connectline And Streamer Pro
- Wireless connections to TV, landlines, cell phones and more
- Easy to select streaming sources
- Discreet remote control for hearing instruments
- Streamer Pro: the gateway to wireless connections
- TV Adapter: for comfortable TV viewing
- Microphone: for one-on-one conversations
- Phone Adapter: simple connections to landline phones
Best Overall: Widex Moment
Widex is a widely loved brand, first launched in Denmark in 1956. It pairs high-value technology with quality sound and comfort. Widex Moment was specially designed with the iPhone in mind, allowing you to directly stream music and take phone calls without skipping a beat. This hearing aid is designed for those with mild to severe hearing loss and comes with a ZeroDelay accelerator that cuts delay to under 0.5 milliseconds. Over time, with its machine learning technology, it will be able to tell your preferences and adjust accordingly.;
This hearing aid is barely visible in your ear, sitting right in your ear canal. While it may be small, its still extremely powerful and creates pure, natural sound. Widex Moment may be on the more expensive side at around $2000 or more, but its well worth the investment.
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How To Buy Oticon Hearing Aids
Oticon doesnt sell its hearing aids to patients directly but through third parties. A hearing assessment and talking with an Oticon specialist will help you get started on the right footing. From there, youll work with an audiologist to determine the best Oticon hearing aids to suit your needs.
If youve never had an audiologist assessment, the Oticon website can help you get started:
Take the hearing test. The company offers a free and straightforward online hearing test under the Your Hearing link at the top of the main page. This assessment takes five minutes and is for screening purposes only. It does not provide sounds but only questions about your hearing issues.
Find an audiologist. If you show potential for hearing aids, the site prompts you to the Contact a Hearing Professional link, which provides a list of Oticon-authorized hearing centers and audiologists in your area.
Undergo an audiologist assessment. Technically, any audiologist can perform the initial audiogram and calibrate an Oticon hearing aid for you. If your health insurance covers audiograms or hearing aids, your best bet may be going to an in-network audiologist. However, by going to one of Oticons partner hearing clinics, you will be able to access a risk-free trial. This trial will let you test out one of the companys flagship models for 30 days. If you decide to keep it and buy it, you will receive a $50 gift card for Oticon accessories.
Widex Hearing Aids Review
Best for Tech-Savvy Users
Founded in 1956, Widex has long been regarded as one of the best hearing aid companies in the world. As a brand with a track record of being on the cutting edge of technology, Widex hearing aids offer features that allow for a totally customizable user experience with unparalleled sound quality.
Equipped with technology that can differentiate between conversations and ambient noise, users hear more of what they want while background sounds like wind and traffic are minimized. Some models, such as the Evoke, are even capable of learning user preferences when users provide feedback in the accompanying app, which personalizes the sound.
The company offers many different models for different levels of hearing loss and the users preferred style. These range from behind the ear, in-ear, and in-the-canal. All models are water-resistant and feature rechargeable battery options. This wide array of options means theres truly a Widex hearing aid to meet everyones needs.
Products
The table below highlights three of the companys most popular submodels of hearing aids.
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In addition to hearing aids, Widex offers several accessories and apps that integrate with its hearing aids to improve the user experience. These accessories allow users to stream audio directly from the radio, a TV, or a smartphone with the built-in microphone off so they can hear media clearly and without any background noise.
Pricing
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We Make Sure Your Goals Are Met
We record and clarify specific areas where you would like an improvement in your hearing at the needs assessment. Then after you have been wearing your hearing aids for a few weeks, we can check we have met your specific hearing needs. That is how we know we have chosen the right hearing aids for you.
Oticon Hearing Aid Products
Oticon is one of the biggest hearing technology brands in the world. Theyve been in operation since 1904 and distribute their cutting-edge products in over 20 countries.
The companys key ideology is People First, with their mission being to help people with hearing loss fulfil their potential while living the life they choose with the hearing they have.
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A Bit Of History On Oticon
Oticon is one of the oldest hearing aid companies in the world. In 1904, Hans Demant became the Danish distributor of Acousticon, which later became Oticon.1
In 1992, Oticon released MultiFocus, their first non-linear, programmable, automatic hearing aid. This new approach to amplification has become the standard. At that time, only Oticon and ReSound had this technology. Patients reported significant improvements in hearing and quality of life. The success of the MultiFocus was followed by their first digital instrument, DigiFocus, in 1996.
Since MultiFocus, Oticon’s philosophy of hearing aids has revolved around restoring normal loudness perception through the use of compression. Their angle on this was slightly different from others like ReSound because Oticon used less compression in the higher frequencies to allow critical speech sounds to remain audible in background noise. In combination with directional microphones, this has worked well for many of my patients.
Purchase Recommendations: Managing Costs With Oticon
From a technological perspective, Oticon hearing aids are a worthy investment for anyone suffering from hearing loss. Yet, they are also a significant investment. Oticon keeps its low-tier models more affordable than competitors such as Signia, but it also relies heavily on accessories and add-ons. Therefore, if you are genuinely eager to enjoy direct streaming or smart connectivity features, you may find it hard to keep an eye on the total price. On the bright side, this means that you will only need to pay for the features you need.
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Speech In Noisy Settings
All of the major brand hearing aids devote a lot of time and research into improving speech recognition in noisy settings such as restaurants, train stations, and airports. In general, these devices all perform very highly in this aspect but the Oticon OPN range has a clear edge over the competition.
Oticons Open Sound Navigator can process sounds at an extraordinary rate of 56,000 times per second. This allows the device to prioritise the sounds you want to hear faster than you can think. The result is clearer sound especially in challenging situations.
Which Hearing Aid Is Best For Me
Finding the best hearing aid to fit your needs often requires the help of an expert who can conduct a hearing test and ask questions related to your hearing loss. You also need to consider the nature and degree of your hearing loss, lifestyle habits, occupation, environments you frequent, and what you want out of a hearing aid. After working with a doctor or a hearing expert like an audiologist, you should have a better idea of your needs. Then, it’s time to identify a list of hearing aids that match your degree of hearing loss and your budget. And don’t forget about the fit and feel of a hearing aid. Most experts say the best hearing aid is one you will wear regularly.
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Best For Profound Hearing Loss: Phonak Audeo Paradise 90
- Automatically adjusts to your sound environment
- Specifically designed for profound hearing loss
Phonak is one of the most well-known hearing aid brands on the market, and the Audeo Paradise 90 is an excellent choice for people with profound hearing loss who are active and on the go. Itâs considered one of the top hearing aids by users, reviewers, and hearing professionals.
How Do Hearing Aids Work
Hearing aids are worn in or behind your ear. They are designed to make some sounds louder by magnifying sound vibrations entering the ear, which helps improve your hearing and speech comprehension. How a hearing aid works is fairly simple to understand. First, a microphone inside the hearing aid picks up nearby sounds. These sounds are analyzed and converted to electrical signals based on your hearing loss, which are then sent to the amplifier. The amplified sounds are sent to the speaker or receiver, which are transmitted to the inner ear by a tube or thin wire. Once in the inner ear, the sounds are transformed into electrical impulses that your brain processes into sound.
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The Best Hearing Aids Of 2021
Best for Discreet Hearing Aids
- Rechargeable & Virtually Invisible
- Remote Audiologist Care
Best for Low-Cost Hearing Aids
- Bluetooth Enabled Options
| Companies Selected | Hearing Aids Reviewed |
According to a study from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, approximately 20% or 48 million Americans suffer from some level of hearing loss. This percentage increases with age, with one-third of Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 suffering from hearing loss and one-half of people over the age of 75 being affected.
Hearing loss can make it difficult to have conversations, complete normal interactions, enjoy music and other media. It can even pose a safety hazard if one is unable to hear warnings and alarms. Hearing aids can help remedy this problem by amplifying sounds. But with so many companies and models available, shopping for the right one can be overwhelming.
Weve curated this guide profiling the best hearing aid companies and their products. Youll find details about product features, pricing, warranties, accessories, customer service, and how to buy. As you shop for your new hearing aids, this information can help you decide which company is able to provide the features you need in the style you want.
Starkey Livio Edge Ai
Price: $$$
These tech-forward hearing aids have Bluetooth connectivity, plus lots of other special features. Theyre available in multiple styles, including behind the ear, in the ear, in the canal, and receiver in the canal.
According to Starkey, they use artificial intelligence to adapt to your environment and hearing needs through automatic adjustments that dont require manual input.
They suppress background noise and boost speech sounds, so you can easily follow conversations. You can program them to listen and transcribe your words or translate foreign languages.
They can also detect falls and can be programmed to notify an emergency contact.
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How Much Do Hearing Aids Cost
The average price for a pair of hearing aids is $4,672, according to a survey of more than 2,000 hearing aid consumers by HearingTracker.com. This price typically reflects warranties and audiology services. Hearing aid costs depend on provider, level of technology and features.
Manufacturers dont set pricesproviders do. Hearing aid prices are often bundled with services that provide ongoing help with fit, cleanings, repairs and upgrades. And the cost of running a hearing clinic varies regionally. Thats why hearing aid costs vary widely.
An Excellent Hearing Aid
In finishing, these are excellent hearing aids, they offer nuanced access to sound while delivering crisp and clear speech. They are easy to wear and use and offer great streaming of audio, whether it be phone calls or music. The ease of use when it comes to phone calls is outstanding and audio streaming is excellent.
Right now, there are a plethora of excellent hearing aids on offer from the big hearing aid manufacturers. Each one offering something different. More holds its own very well amongst the other offerings and offers a unique approach to the handling of sound.
As you would expect from a premium hearing aid from Oticon, More is amongst the best hearing aids on offer right now in the market. I would have no hesitation in recommending it to you. Steve should be able to do a second review soon, one from the perspective of a person with severe to profound hearing loss.
That review should be interesting, I think Steve will be even more aware of the changes in sound presentation and I would like to see how he gets on. Like us on Facebook by clicking the button below to keep up with our latest utterances.
Alternatively, if you don’t like Facebook, sign up to the newsletter below. It is important to remember, a hearing aid isn’t properly fitted unless they do Real Ear Measurement.
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The Benefits Of The Right Hearing Aid
Only one in five people who would benefit from a hearing aid uses one, says the Hearing Loss Association of America. Cost, confusion about and access to hearing care, and gradual hearing loss going unrecognized are all reasons. Vanity also plays a role, though hearing aids continue to become smaller and sleeker.
Having hearing loss is like youre backing out 10 feet from a conversation, says John Coverstone, a doctor of audiology in New Brighton, Minnesota, and host of the AudiologyTalk podcast. People feel more isolated.
Studies link trouble hearing with serious health consequences. Untreated hearing loss increases your risk of anxiety, depression, social isolation, falls and cognitive decline, research shows.
Proper hearing aids can greatly improve hearing and, consequently, health, studies show. For example, wearing hearing aids appears to reduce the excess risk of dementia from hearing loss, according to a 2020 report in The Lancet.
Are Hearing Aids Covered By Medicare Or Insurance
Hearing aids can be expensive and while not usually covered by insurance or by Medicare, its possible to find ones that work for you and ways to cover the costs.
Shop around for the best price. Many online retailers and big-box stores sell hearing aids at deep discounts.
Ask if the price youre paying is bundled or unbundled. Unbundling the costs of your hearing aids may eliminate line items you have no use for.
Hearing aids are an investment, so make sure to only purchase those that come with a risk-free trial of at least 30 days, as well as a manufacturers warranty.
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Oticon Level 2 Hearing Aids
As you might have guessed, Oticon Level 2 is the middle range of Oticons hearing aids. A few of their features are a step up from Level 3 but not as in-depth as Level 1. For example, with Level 2s, you get 14 different fitting bands instead of 12, and you can control a few more elements such as the clear dynamics and binaural noise management. But several of the crucial technical specifications are the same within both Levels 3 and 2.;
Best Customer Experience: Lively
- On-demand care seven days a week
- Direct, ongoing access to audiologists
Buying hearing aids online is simple with Lively. Known for excellent customer service and continued care, Lively offers prescription-strength hearing aids and expert guidance with help from a network of professional audiologists.
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Build Quality And Durability
Since the early days, I’ve always found Oticon products to be well built and durable. They offer up to a three-year warranty, and, in my clinical experience, they have always gone the extra mile to resolve any repair issues promptly. As with other Big Six companies in the industry, the warranty is international, and they have an extensive network of independent providers in addition to company-owned Hearing Life locations.
Here is a picture of my friend’s father-in-law with the Oticon OPN-S .
My Friends Father-in-Law wearing Oticon
Not only can you see that he is wearing a mask for safety, but the hearing aid itself is barely visible. This is his second pair of Oticon hearing aids. The first lasted 13 years; they still work, but he wanted to take advantage of the newest technology.
Below is an image of the rechargeable base station. Simply put it on your nightstand, and you’ll have a full days charge when you wake up in the morning. It is smaller than a clock radio, making it easy to place.
Oticon Rechargeable Base Station
Here’s one last picture of the hearing aids resting on the bench of this septuagenarian’s boat he rented for the day to water ski. He took out the hearing aids before skiing and snapped the photo for me. You might notice they’re color-coded to easily tell left vs. right ears.
Oticon Hearing Aids