Hearing Aids Overview

Today's hearing aids are a significant improvement on those used in the past.

They're more discreet, and work much better. Hearing aids will not improve your hearing, but they make sounds quieter and more precise, reducing the impact of hearing loss on your life.

Hearing aids can:

Help you hear daily noises like the doorbell and telephone.
Improve your ability to understand speech.
Help you enjoy listening to music and television, at a volume convenient for those around you.

Hearing Aid Manufacturers

How does a hearing aid work?

It can be helpful to understand a little more about how hearing aids function before explaining the types of hearing aids. While the actual method and procedure are mostly dependent on individual hearing aids, the basic concept remains the same.

Hearing aids receive sounds into their microphones, then computer analyzes and optimizes the sounds, then transmits them to an amplifier. The amplifier pushes them through a speaker and into the wearer's ears, after enhancing the sound waves' strength.

The most significant change in recent years has been the shift to digital hearing aids. These can control the amplification so that it outputs more at specific frequencies. This is useful because most hearing losses involve loss of the higher frequencies in the initial stages.

Types of Hearing Aids

There are many different types of hearing aids to recognize, each with their own benefits and disadvantages. Read on to see which one fits your needs best.

Completely-in-the-canal(CIC)

Invisible-in-the-canal(IIC)

Receiver-in-the-canal(RIC)

In-the-Canal(ITC)

In-the-Ear(ITE)

Behind-the-Ear(BTE)

Rechargeable Batteries

In the world of rechargeable batteries, the introduction of Lithium-ion technology (sometimes called the Li-on) has been a game-changer. They are based on the type of battery used in cell phones, providing a more convenient and reliable charge than other rechargeable batteries.

A hearing aid with a lithium-ion rechargeable battery is an excellent choice for several reasons:

Better for limited dexterity: People with limited dexterity will not need to change batteries every week. They simply need to place it in the charging station.
Practical: Rechargeable batteries will give you a full day of power when charged overnight. Much like charging your phone – you place it in the charger before going to bed, and you will have a fully-powered device when you wake up in the morning.
Long-lasting: The rechargeable battery lasts a long time. It doesn't need to be replaced for the length of the hearing aid's own lifespan.

Direct Bluetooth connectivity

Hearing aids have been around for a while with Bluetooth connectivity, but you still needed a wired streamer to help you connect. That's all changed with the 'Made for iPhone' and 'Made for any phone' hearing aids we are now seeing. These can connect directly to your phone, television, music player, and any other Bluetooth-enabled gadget, allowing you to stream content and phone calls straight into your ears quickly and conveniently.

Which hearing aid is right for you?

It depends on whether you are searching for the best features or the smallest size. Larger models are less discreet but more comfortable to handle, have better battery lives, and boast a broader range of features.

You also have to consider the degree of your hearing loss. Some hearing aid types can carry all levels of hearing loss, while the smaller models have a more limited range of hearing losses served.

We can't wait to help you choose a hearing aid that best suits your lifestyle and needs. The sooner you use them, the more you get out of them. Contact us today to set up a consultation.