In an article we undertook quite a while ago called “Nano Hearing Aids, An Outrageous Hearing Aids Rip Off Site, nanohearingaids.com”, we explained why the devices from nanohearingaids.com were an outrageous rip-off and pointed out the blatant lies that they tell consumers. Anyway, we pointed out that those Nano CIC hearing aids looked just like cheap Alibaba amplifiers that could be bought for around thirty dollars. Dr Cliff Olson a highly respected Doctor of Audiology who provides hearing care and hearing aids in Phoenix, Arizona went one better. He got his hands on both the Nano CIC and the cheap Alibaba amplifier. He ran a load of diagnostics on the devices and surprise, surprise, they are almost identical. Let’s talk about what he found out and the video he undertook.
Who is Dr Cliff?
First of all, let me tell you who Cliff Olson is and why his opinion matters and can be trusted implicitly. Cliff has dedicated himself to producing high-quality educational videos which allow consumers to be informed about hearing aids and hearing care. His Youtube channel is by now famous and he has over 27,000 subscribers. His videos get thousands of views. Cliff knows what he is doing and he prides himself on giving clear unbiased info.
What Did He Do?
So Cliff ordered the two separate devices from Nano and Alibaba. When they turned up, he did a physical comparison between the devices. In essence, apart from the branding, the two devices were exactly the same. More than that though, they were both packaged with an accessory pack that was exactly the same right down to the little screwdriver to turn the volume control. But hey, that could simply be a coincidence, you know, these things happen. Sometimes if it walks like a duck, looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a swan in disguise right? Well, no, actually, it’s usually a duck.
Electro-Acoustic Testing
Cliff undertook electroacoustic testing of the device using an industry standard testing device (hearing industry). What he found out was fascinating. The Otometrics hearing instrument test box allows us to measure the Diagnostics of hearing aids with an extremely high level of accuracy by doing a diagnostic test. With the equipment, Cliff could directly compare the output of the Nano hearing aids with the Alibaba amplifiers in a very controlled environment that eliminates variability of measurement.
He ran the Nano hearing aid through the diagnostic testing sequence first and he found that he couldn’t complete the full usual set of tests because the volume control on the Nano hearing aid was only set for two levels of volume, minimum and maximum, there was no in-between. It seems that even though the Nano devices have volume wheels they only have two volume settings maximum volume and minimum volume no matter how much he adjusted the volume wheel.
After completing the testing with the Nano hearing aid he undertook the test sequence with the Alibaba amplifier There was a striking similarity between the results of the Nano devices and the Alibaba devices right down to the exact same issues with the volume control occurred with the Alibaba devices just like they did with the nanos. The finished output comparison between the nano devices and the Alibaba devices showed the numbers are almost identical almost as if he was testing the exact same device. Imagine that?!
Performance in The Ear
Cliff, not being one for half measures then used a real ear testing device to see how both the Nano devices and the Alibaba devices actually worked in the ear. Yes, you guessed it, exactly the same, identical performance from both. However, we learned a rather worrying thing from this test. Cliff set the targets for a normal sloping to moderate sensorineural hearing loss which is a very easy type of hearing loss prescription to match. He found that the outputs from both devices set to low volume just didn’t match the targets needed. Even worse, the ouputs on the maximum volume could in fact further damage someone’s hearing.
Cliff Olson finished off his video by saying that he couldn’t advise anyone to even try either of the devices. He, like us is an unbiased source of information who is simply concerned that consumers get good solid easy to understand information. While it is difficult to say that these devices are the same device without deeper investigation, the simple fact is this:
Same crap build quality
Same volume wheel functionality
Same crap sound
Exactly the same electro-accoustic characteristics
While everyone else seems to be announcing lithium-ion for their rechargeable hearing aids, Widex recently announced that they were going with the second-generation ZPower Rechargeable System. I think they may well be the only company doing so, they say that the upgrade has taken every element of how the battery system works into account, from the charger station software to the battery door. I always liked the idea of the ZPower system, it made real sense to me to be able to swap out rechargeable batteries for traditional batteries if need be. However, the systems have proved problematic at best. It looks as though ZPower has worked to iron out all the problems though. It should be interesting to see what happens moving forward. Let’s talk about Widex, the Evoke and the new ZPower system.
The Changes
They have not been shy about this and it seems that it is a complete overhaul as opposed to some cosmetic changes. They say that the charging station provides a more optimized charging cycle, and a new nanocoated ASIC chip ensures the best use of both short-and long-term power.
They have made the battery door stronger with 100% more plastic, they have also enhanced the battery contact configuration which they say will make the design more robust. They have also provided extra moisture protection of metal parts which should reduce any chances of corrosion from moisture.
They say the new design offers enhanced dependability and quality. I hope so because I really like the ZPower system and I would like to see them succeed. Up to now, reliability has been a huge problem. Some of that is down to the hearing aid brands and some of it has been an issue with ZPower. Hopefully, the new system for Widex will overcome all of the issues.
I have been wearing a set of the Styletto Connect for close to a week now and I have put them through their paces. I have to say that I have been impressed with them although I expected them to work well. I have experience with the Nx platform before while wearing the original Styletto and the Pure 312 Nx. They are good hearing aids and they deliver pretty strongly. The connectivity on the Pure 312 is excellent, so I was interested to see how the smaller Styletto Connect would handle Bluetooth connection. I was also really interested to see what the battery life would be. To be honest, they weren’t too bad, let’s talk about my experiences.
Wearing Them
The devices are light enough and they sit on the ear well, wearing them isn’t a major inconvenience. For some reason the left receiver kept sliding out, I definitely need to look at a custom tip for the left ear. The right receiver stayed in place most of the time without issue. All in all, put them on and pretty much forget them really.
People’s Reactions
During the last week, I have fielded many questions from different people about the devices. Generally, someone notices them and asks what they are, they seem to be always surprised when I say hearing aids. When I show them the case and explain they are rechargeable hearing aids they are fascinated. They always and I mean always, say something about fancy earphones or Apple products. It was fascinating to watch their reactions during the week and I think it is the first time I have had to field so many questions about my hearing aids.
Rechargeability & The Case
This is probably a strange thing to start with but it’s worth talking about and I will explain why. I spent the week, more or less in Copenhagen working. I was there from Tuesday to Friday and I purposely didn’t bring the cable for the charger case with me to test it. The charger works as designed and it really is an attractive little thing. I used the aids over the few days just throwing them into the charger every night before bed.
Battery Life
To be honest, I hammered them on the first day, I streamed an audio book for slightly over seven hours. I didn’t put the hearing aids on until just after nine that morning before I went for my flight and the low battery warning kicked in at about half ten that night. As I was in Copenhagen, it was half eleven Danish time, and I was ready for bed. Taking the time difference into account, it means that the battery delivered thirteen and a half hours with over seven hours of streaming. During the rest of the week, the hearing aids were put on at about eight am and came out at about eleven pm.
Heavy User
I am a heavy user of streaming, I listen to audio books and music quite a lot. I always listen to a book when travelling and I nearly always listen to music when I am writing. For this reason, I want a stable connection and a really strong battery life from the hearing aids I use. The Styletto Connect handled much of what I wanted very well, The battery life wasn’t bad considering the abuse I threw at it. One night during the week after some heavy use during the day and nearly constant streaming I got a low battery warning at about nine pm. I threw the aids in the charger case for about twenty minutes and then just put them on again until I was ready to go to bed.
Overall Sound
In my experience, the overall sound quality of Signia hearing aids is excellent in general, they are crisp yet full sounding. High-frequency sounds are clear and the clarity is excellent. The own voice experience still surprises me every time I set up the feature. Hear your own voice, train the aids, don’t hear your own voice, amazing. Streaming audio is generally really good quality. I played more than a few tunes during the week and I had a marathon session of “Debt of Honour” by Tom Clancy on Audible.
The audio reproduction is pretty solid and phone calls were really great. I was wearing open domes because they are the most comfortable for me. It means the sound could be better, but the hearing aids try to make up for it. If you are looking for really high-quality earphone type sound, ask your professional to give you closed domes as well. Then you can switch to them if you are going for a marathon streaming session.
The connectivity is really solid, during the week I never once had a full drop out while streaming audio and I never had any problems with a call full stop. There are the usual Bluetooth issues with the streaming (all of the Made For iPhone hearing aids have them) which I will explain later, but overall they don’t suffer any more problems than I expected. Considering their small size, I was pleasantly surprised.
Everyday Situations
As you move through different sound situations the hearing aids react seamlessly. There is no obvious change or switch, they just seem to work. I found myself in several typical situations and several untypical situations during the week, in quiet reading a book, on a plane, one to one conversations, a noisy food hall, many train stations a busy urban situation, a noisy cafe and in the car.
The Styletto Connects just did their thing delivering the ability to hear without fuss or fanfare. As with the rest of the Nx range I have tried, quiet was quiet, and as I moved from situation to situation the differing features worked seamlessly without audible changes in the sound.
Wind Noise
The hearing aids handled wind noise pretty well during the week. In the car with the window open and the wind whistling through the window, there was no cavitation across the microphones. When I was out and about during the week it was really quite windy and again, I had no real problems. Signia devices seemed to handle the wind pretty well, the wind sounded no louder than it should and it didn’t intrude upon my ability to hold a conversation.
What About Noisy Situations?
I was in a fair few noisy situations during the week and the hearing aids performed well. They delivered the ability to understand speech in all of the situations I found myself in. I ate in the Tivoli Food Hall on Wednesday night and it was pretty busy, I could hear the guy taking my order very well without much issue. It was a good night, I scored free Quesadillas, whoop whoop (a story for another time). Any night you score free Quesadillas is a good night.
On Thursday night, I was back again at the Tivoli Food Hall meeting a young analyst for a chat. Again it was pretty busy. This time I went for the chicken place, I could hear the girl behind the counter clearly without issue. I sat down at the counter with my companion and chatted while we waited for the food. The chap is Norwegian, but he has spent so much time in the US that he has an American accent.
Usually, the biggest problems you have understanding speech are with people you aren’t familiar with and accents that you may not hear regularly. Throw in background noise and you tend to be all over the place. The noise in the background was kept there, in the background. His voice was clear and easily understood. In fairness, I think he had more problem understanding my accent than I did understanding him.
myControl App
Because the Styletto Connect is Bluetooth enabled, you can use the myControl app which you couldn’t on the original Styletto. The app delivers fantastic power over your experience with the devices. Signia have given you the ability to control the focus of the hearing aids, in fact, they give you the power to surgically target the focus.
Surgical Focus!
Using the myControl app you can narrow the focus of the directional microphones to a narrow beam. It means that the hearing aids are focused narrowly on what you are pointing them at. Giving you outstanding levels of hearing in even the most complex of situations.
I first used the app while testing the Pure 312 Nx a while ago and I was really impressed, I said and I quote “So, I placed the emphasis on the front of me and then I narrowed the beam, surgical focus. It rocked, I mean truly rocked! It doesn’t sound natural, in fact, it sounds a little odd, but who cares, I could hear what my companion was saying. Considering I had several drinks on, the whole room was shouting and my companion had begun to slur at that stage “you know I love you right!!!!” I think I was doing okay.”
The feature works as advertised with the Styletto Connect, another reason why Bluetooth connectivity rocks so much.
Streaming Audio
It is important to point out that Styletto Connect has the twin radios onboard, and they are able to deliver all of those amazing Signia ear to ear features while they are receiving streaming audio from an iPhone. It means that the own voice feature continues to work while you stream audio as does the directionality features. Basically, it means the hearing aids aren’t hobbled in any way while you are streaming audio. As I said, the audio is pretty good, my tunes were excellent, full and clear and phone calls were excellent.
The Usual Bluetooth Problems
As I said earlier, I had the usual Bluetooth problems, Bluetooth signals don’t pass through water very well. As the body is mostly water, they don’t pass through the body very well. So, from time to time, the audio drops out, usually to one ear only. Shifting position or taking the iPhone out of my pocket usually sorted the problem out. This is just what you need to expect with Bluetooth and iPhone.
Bass Boost & Changing Volume of Streaming Audio
As I said, I am wearing the Signia aids with open tips, however, the streamed audio sounds pretty good. The devices give an automatic bass boost to streamed audio which means you get a full and pleasant sound. As with the Pure 312 Nx, the volume of the streamed audio increases as the external sound increases. I noticed this several times in particular when I was on the platform of the different train stations and trains were coming in. That there, is a pretty cool feature for a man that likes to listen to audiobooks. Features like this just make life easier, it means that you have to spend less time trying to hear better, it just happens.
In finishing for this article, pretty good overall sound, easy and pretty solid connection to the phone, good streamed audio, fantastic own voice experience and surgical focus with the app. The battery life is respectable although if you are a heavy user like me, well then you need to know that you will probably be throwing them in the case for a quick charge every now and then.
Google have announced that they are rolling out captions to all videos on Youtube. A little while back they announced a test of captioning for a small number of videos. I guess they’ve ironed out any problems seen during the trial run and they’re now ready to offer across the board. From Google themselves on March 4th 2010:
Today, we are opening up auto-captions to all YouTube users. There will even be a “request processing” button for un-captioned videos that any video owner can click on if they want to speed up the availability of auto-captions. It will take some time to process all the available video, so here are some things to keep in mind:
While we plan to broaden the feature to include more languages in the months to come, currently, auto-captioning is only for videos where English is spoken.
Just like any speech recognition application, auto-captions require a clearly spoken audio track. Videos with background noise or a muffled voice can’t be auto-captioned. President Obama’s speech on the recent Chilean Earthquake is a good example of the kind of audio that works for auto-captions.
Auto-captions aren’t perfect and just like any other transcription, the owner of the video needs to check to make sure they’re accurate. In other cases, the audio file may not be good enough to generate auto-captions. But please be patient — our speech recognition technology gets better every day.
Auto-captions should be available to everyone who’s interested in using them. We’re also working to provide auto-captions for all past user uploads that fit the above mentioned requirements. If you’re having trouble enabling them for your video, please visit our Help Center: this article is for uploaders and this article is for viewers.
For content owners, the power of auto-captioning is significant. With just a few quick clicks your videos can be accessed by a whole new global audience. And captions can make is easier for users to discover content on YouTube.
Twenty hours of video is uploaded to YouTube every minute. Making some of these videos more accessible to people who have hearing disabilities or who speak different languages, not only represents a significant advancement in the democratization of information, it can also help foster greater collaboration and understanding.
I managed to get my hands on a set of the new Signia Styletto Connect hearing aids and I think these devices are going to make a pretty big splash. Sivantos sent me a demo set and an iPhone for testing purposes (I don’t have an iPhone, had one, my daughter killed it). Anyway, let’s talk about the Styletto Connect.
Similar Form Factor
Firstly, the new Styletto Connect is built on the Nx platform and they will be available in the three levels of technology. They will also have the Own Voice feature that has been pretty successful for Signia. As with the original, the devices will be suitable for mild to moderate hearing losses mainly. Unlike the original, they are Bluetooth enabled Made For iPhone hearing aids. The Connect is slightly longer than the original Styletto, no more than about 5mm though.
Not Like Hearing Devices
First of all, I want to speak about the unboxing experience, a small but powerful thing. I think I said it about the original Styletto packaging, this ain’t like any other hearing aid. The box is really pretty, it reminds you of an iPhone box or some other high worth mobile phone. When you slide the outer case up, the inner box is revealed with the charger and aids nestled in a moulded tray.
The whole experience is unlike any other hearing aid experience I have had with the possible exception of the Eargo. It feels good, and that is the point because the Styletto Connect like the Styletto before it, is unlike any other hearing aid. The hearing aids are small and quite discreet, they feel really light on the ears and hug the back of the ear just as well as the original.
The devices I am trialling are black with the brushed steel stripe down the back. I said it before, the case of the device has a nice quality feel to it and they look both modern and luxurious. As with the original, the receiver is fixed to the case and the case appears sealed pretty well.
The Charger Case
The charger case is a little bigger than the original so it can hold those four days of charge. Having said that it is easy to hold, still fits in the palm of your hand and will easily fit even in trouser pockets. They have changed the lid slightly with the hinge on the inside of the case rather than jutting out of the back and an easier opened catch. The original had a bit of a knack to opening it, the new one just opens as you would expect. I have said it before, Signia has a lot of experience with rechargeable hearing aids and their rechargers are some of the best in the business.
This charger is no different, it is an automatic charger which turns the hearing aids off when placed in it and on when they are taken out. It charges the devices in as little as three hours and it offers four extra charges. When you put the hearing aids into their charging ports, you can feel the magnet pulling them into place. There is no pushing, or pulling or twisting or bending, they slip in and slip out with ease.
The Original Market Research
Signia undertook market research around the Styletto when it was first introduced which seemed to show that it changed attitudes to hearing devices. In essence, they showed a group one range without the Styletto and one range with the Styletto included. The differences were a little startling. In the first group, 24% of the group did not choose a hearing aid.
When shown the second range with the Styletto included, the number of people who did not choose a hearing aid had reduced to 10%. That meant that nine in ten picked a hearing aid with many of them actually picking the Styletto.
I don’t think the original Styletto lived up to the promise though. For me, the Styletto is a young and funky hearing aid most attractive to a younger demographic than the norm. The problem with that is that demographic want connectivity. The original Styletto couldn’t deliver, the Styletto Connect delivers in spades. I think that the Styletto Connect may well be the roaring success that they hoped the Styletto would be.
Bluetooth, YAY!!!!
The fact that these devices are Bluetooth enabled means that you will have access to calls and music streamed to your hearing aids. Even better, you will have access to the excellent Signia app and telecare. I like the app and I had a pretty excellent experience with the directionality feature with the Pure Nx. In the interests of science, taking one for the team and you dear readers, I might just have to go down the pub again to see if I can replicate it with the Styletto Connect, wouldn’t be a true review if I didn’t.
Pros and Cons
If you are worried about discretion this is a pretty discrete device when worn. More than that, it is a pretty device and is more reminiscent of modern high-end consumer electronics than a hearing aid. It’s easy to wear, light on the ears and sits well.
Like the original, the receiver is fixed in the hearing aid and can not be replaced in the clinic, it will have to be a factory repair job. That means that you will need to take care of it to ensure it doesn’t fail. Generally, people do not take care of their receivers, we see them failing all of the time through user negligence. They get full of wax and moisture and die.
This is your fault, let me be very clear if you don’t clean your hearing aids and your receiver dies, that is your fault, no one else. Having said that, manufacturers have ignored this fact and just repaired them under warranty.
Double Wax Guard System
As I said about the original Styletto, Signia offers a pretty good wax management system. It comprises both a wax guard in the receiver and a grid guard in the tip. That’s really double protection, so if you do kill your receiver with wax, you really have been negligent.
The devices will be launched in a couple of days to the market. I had a great experience with the Pure Nx, so I look forward to giving them a try. I have them for the next two weeks, don’t worry Sivantos, I will give them and your uber sexy iPhone 5C back hahahhahahahahah. Keep tuned and in a couple of days, I will let you know how I have got on.
Signia announced the introduction of a new Styletto model today, the Styletto Connect will be a Rechargeable Bluetooth enabled hearing aid and it will be released this month. The original Styletto suffered a little from the lack of connectivity, however, it was still well received. I tried it and I liked it a lot and you can read my original thoughts in the article “My Day To Day Experience of The Signia Styletto“. As I said, I liked it a lot but for me, the lack of connectivity was a deal breaker. The new model fixes that so I will be taking a strong look at them again pretty soon. Let’s talk about the press release.
Rechargeable Bluetooth Hearing Aids
As before, the new Styletto is a rechargeable hearing aid, but as I said, for the first time, it is also a Bluetooth hearing aid. The new Styletto Connect comes with the same type of charger unit as the original, but according to the Press Release it will now hold four days of extra charge rather than the original three. I really liked the charger case, it is small, discreet and easy to slip in a pocket. They say in the press release that it is three times smaller and half the weight of other charging cases and I probably can’t disagree.
Battery Life With Streaming
Sivantos says that you will get 16 hours worth of battery life from one charge with 5 hours of streaming. That is pretty much a full day for most people, however, they point out that a simple 30-minute fast charge adds 5 hours of extra use or 3 hours of streaming.
Own Voice Processing
The Styletto Connect is based on the Nx platform and it offers the Own Voice Processing feature that I was so impressed with. In essence, it is a pretty astounding feature that removes the user’s voice from the signal. This completely reduces the sense of occlusion and makes the hearing aids much easier to wear for first-time users.
Telecare
Because the Styletto Connect is Bluetooth enabled, it will also offer access to Signia’s remote care system. The Signia Telecare system is pretty good and like the others, it offers a new way for people to engage with their hearing care professional and have fine-tuning and aftercare undertaken.
Three Levels of Technology
The Styletto Connect will be offered in the normal 3 levels of technology from Signia, that will be a 7, 5 and finally 3.
The original Styletto was designed with the concept of changing the feel of hearing aids. They were designed to make hearing aids attractive to users. I always felt that the style was most attractive and most suitable for young users. However, the lack of connectivity and access to remote care hobbled them quite a bit. After all, younger users are all about connectivity and they’re more than happy to use telecare.
The new Styletto Connect solves all of those issues and I think they will be a very popular choice. Like us on Facebook by clicking the button below to keep up to date with our latest ramblings. You can read the full press release below.
Sivantos launches Styletto Connect: an ultra-slim hearing aid with connectivity and portable charging
New Signia Styletto Connect combines unique SLIM-RIC form factor with Bluetooth® connectivity
Stylish, high-tech device complements Signia as the world’s largest Li-ion rechargeable hearing aid portfolio
Styletto Connect provides up to four days of wireless charging-on-the-go
Hearing aid technology leader Sivantos today unveiled its latest innovation: Styletto Connect from the brand Signia. Built upon Signia’s revolutionary SLIM-RIC form factor and Signia Nx technology platform, Styletto Connect combines exceptional design with high-quality connectivity to the wearer’s smartphone to stream calls, music and TV via Bluetooth, plus fully portable rechargeability. Styletto Connect comes with a pocket-sized portable charging case that powers a full day’s worth of wearing[1] with five hours of streaming on a single charge. A 30-minute fast charge adds five hours of use, or three hours of streaming, for complete flexibility on the move. Fully loaded, the charging case delivers four days of user autonomy, free from plugs or cables – ideal for a weekend getaway or a business trip. Three times smaller and half the weight of other chargers with a built-in power cell, it is easy to fit in the wearer’s pocket and carry with them. At a time when more people develop hearing loss, but many remain reluctant to wear hearing aids, Styletto Connect was developed to offer a viable solution. It is a sleek, elegant device people can be proud towear, while providing the latest audiological technology for better hearing and speech understanding in any situation. Styletto Connect is available in the performance levels 7, 5, and 3 and includes remote-control options via the Signia myControl app. The new hearing aid is IP 68 rated and available in three attractivecolor combinations: Black / Silver, Cosmic Blue / Rose Gold, and Snow White / Rose Gold. Leading the way in rechargeability Signia’s latest premium hearing aid forms part of the world’s largest Li-ion hearing aid portfolio, covering SLIM-RIC, RIC, BTE, and CROS device[2] as well as all performance levels. This means that hearing care professionals (HCPs) can meet the needs of experienced hearing aid users as well as younger and first-time wearers looking for stylish all-around hearwear. Eric Timm, CEO of Sivantos, said: “Sivantos aims to create hearing solutions that don’t just help people hear better, but also help them live life to the fullest. Our Styletto Connect delivers on this goal by offering high-tech hearing aids that combine cutting-edge style and direct streaming with on-the-go charging. The Signia brand offers hearing care professionals the greatest choice of Li-ion rechargeable hearing aids so their patients can benefit from market-leading sound performance, stylish design, and the utmost convenience.” The entire Signia Li-ion portfolio is built on the acclaimed Signia Nx platform, which includes Ultra HD e2e with Narrow Directionality for superior speech understanding in noise. It also has the world’s first Own Voice Processing (OVP™) feature for a more natural sounding own voice and higher user acceptance. All hearing aids offer Signia TeleCare™, the remote support and fine-tuning software that keeps HCPs connected to their clients. It enables them to offer advice and remote tuning via the wearer’s myHearing™ smartphone app in between appointments to help ensure a smooth and successful trial period and continued customer loyalty. For more information: https://pro.signiausa.com/styletto-connect/
GN released its financial reports to investors recently. They are doing very well with the Quattro helping them to increase market share which I won’t go over because I am sure you can read it elsewhere. One thing caught my eye though, in the presentation GN mentioned two separate Artificial Intelligence strategies that they hoped to introduce to their hearing aids. One of the is a personalised noise management system and the other is a system to increase the efficacy of the first fit and fine tuning for professionals. Let’s take a look.
Noise Management Extraordinaire
I spoke about GN’s collaboration with audEERING in the article “Resound & Beltone to Have Artificial Intelligence & Siri Upgrades For Hearing Aids“. I said then “A fascinating Press Release by Jabra (part of the GN Family) talks about how they are introducing AI within their active noise cancellation headphones. They say that they will be using AI to tune out specific types of noise. Using technology from audEERING, the Elite 85h can detect over 6,000 sound characteristics and filter out the noise more specifically”.
It was reported at the time that the new Jabra headphones could identify and eliminate noise almost instantaneously. I also said at the time that the introduction of such a system to hearing aids offered technical difficulty but not an impossibility. It appears that GN agrees with that sentiment and are working towards it.
What Would it Mean?
In essence, the system would begin to learn what sounds are worthless and what sounds are important. Over time the system would then work to remove or attenuate the worthless while leaving the important alone. One day it could mean completely clean speech signal. It would mean that hearing aid users would actually have better hearing in some situations than people with normal hearing. Wouldn’t that be cool?
It isn’t going to happen right now, but the introduction of the system would begin the process in earnest. The more information these systems have, the better they learn and the better the outcome. To be honest, it can’t happen soon enough.
The second system mentioned appears to be a learning system based around hearing aid user experience in relation to first fit and fine-tuning strategies. It appears to promise to channel the learning back to the professional in the fitting software to ensure both a better first fit and stronger fine-tuning suggestions. That’s just a guess though. No matter, it looks really interesting and as I learn more, I will, of course, update the article.
Phonak has extended the Audeo Marvel range with two new model types, a 312 with a telecoil and a size 13 with a telecoil. It makes the Audeo Marvel range a really strong contender for pretty much everyone. The sooner the better that they introduce the RogerDirect though, I think the range suffers badly from the lack of access to assistive devices.
They are releasing the Audeo M-312T and the Audeo M-13T to the market. I think they will both be well received although my money would be on the size 13 being the favourite for many pros and consumers alike. There has been a lot of mumblings about the battery life of the 312 on forums on the internet of late. The size 13 battery should deliver much better battery life while not being dramatically bigger in size.
Pretty Good in Noise
While the Marvel has proved itself as a pretty good hearing device in noise, it still lacks access to assistive listening devices for the purpose. I believe in remote microphones, I think they are outstanding additions. So for me, the RogerDirect functionality can’t come quick enough.
Currently, there is a trend in the hearing aid industry toward smaller and more discreet hearing aids, including the recent development of open fit hearing aids (also known as open ear hearing aids). Open fit hearing aids have one major limitation, however; they are not appropriate for many people with a more severe hearing loss and are best used by those with high frequency hearing loss and normal low frequency hearing.
This means that those with severe hearing loss inquiring about this new technology may have either been steered toward more traditional hearing aids (which also have their benefits) or been improperly fitted with open fit hearing aids. However, a recent modification to open fit hearing aids, known as speaker-in-the-ear (SIE) hearing aids, can make these nearly invisible hearing aids available to people with more severe hearing loss.
The Technical Side of a Speaker-in-the-Ear Hearing Aid
Speaker-in-the-ear hearing aids (also known as a receiver-in-the-ear hearing aid, or RITE) are extremely lightweight and are essentially invisible hearing aids, just like standard open fit hearing aids. They consist of a small plastic casing that sits on top of and behind the wearer’s ear and that houses all of the electronic components of the hearing aid (except for the speaker). A thin clear tube is attached to this case, through which very thin wires are run to attach to the speaker, which is located in the end of the tube. From this sound tube, there is a retention line that rests in the bottom of the bowl of the user’s outer ear, keeping the hearing aid securely in place.
The Benefits
The speaker-in-the-ear hearing aid can be programmed to accommodate two distinct hearing losses, a sloping high frequency loss and a more severe hearing loss covering a wider range. As with open fit hearing aids, this type of hearing aid does not require an earmold, so it leaves the ear canal unoccluded, providing a more natural sound quality to the user’s own voice. For those who have a high frequency loss, the unoccluded ear will hear low frequency sounds naturally, through the ear canal, offering a more natural sound quality than a hearing aid that fills the ear canal.
For individuals who have a wider range of severe hearing loss, meaning that there is a loss in the low frequencies as well as the high frequencies, having the receiver placed down in the ear canal will provide more gain and thus fit a greater hearing loss than standard open fit hearing aids. Because the speaker is in the ear canal, the sound does not need to travel down the acoustic tube, which means that these nearly invisible hearing aids are able to provide improved sound quality for those with this type of severe hearing loss.
Another benefit of a speaker-in-the-ear hearing aid is that it is much easier to insert into the ear than a custom hearing aid, because the speaker-in-the-ear hearing aid is one-third the size of a custom fitting. This means that this hearing aid can now be an option for users with severe hearing loss and limited mobility.
The Fitting Range
The fitting range for a speaker-in-the-ear hearing aid for a wide range hearing loss would be a maximum of 60dB in the low frequencies and 80dB in the high frequencies. Those with more severe hearing loss and that require this greater gain can still take advantage of a speaker-in-the-ear hearing aid with the addition of a dome tip ear plug, or custom earmold, which other open fit hearing aids may not allow. While other users may not require an earmold with this type of hearing aid, the addition of one can help to meet the increased gain requirement of those with severe hearing loss with less risk of feedback.
Pricing
If you are interested in purchasing a speaker-in-the-ear hearing aid, make sure that you shop around to find the best price and the highest quality product. These nearly invisible hearing aids should not cost much more – if anything – than traditional in-the-ear hearing aids or standard open fit hearing aids. Because this technology is still new, it is important to work with a vendor that has a full understanding of its limitations (particularly for those with severe hearing loss) and abilities. Make sure that you ask many questions before making a final purchase to ensure that you feel comfortable with the vendor that you have chosen.
Conclusion
A speaker-in-the-ear hearing aid can offer the benefits of open fit hearing aids to people with moderate to severe hearing loss. These lightweight, nearly invisible hearing aids can be used with or without an earmold and can provide superior results. Those who were previously told they could not use open fit hearing aids should investigate this new option, carefully choosing the vendor with which they will work.
About the Author
Henry Smith is the founder of America Hears, a leading manufacturer and distributor of digital hearing aids for over 26 years. Henry started the company in 1979, following a 15-year career at the Pennsylvania School of the Deaf, including his work as an Acoustic Technician. Henry is a pioneer in the use of computers and the Internet to allow customers to have a hands-on approach to the tuning and adjusting of their electronic hearing devices. He strives to be customer-centric in all aspects of his work.
Oticon has decided to go with a lithium-ion powered rechargeable hearing aid for the new Opn S platform. The specs look good and it means that finally, Oticon has joined many of the other big brands to back lithium-ion as a power source. It seems to make sense, there appear to be few problems if any with the systems. In the near future when power management systems get better and power density increases in battery packs, I half expect every hearing device to be rechargeable. Anyway, let’s talk about the new Opn S miniRITE-R.
The devices themselves look very like the miniRITE-T and appear to be around the same size. They have the dual push button at the bottom of the spine but obviously no battery door. Overall, they appear no bigger than any of the rechargeable hearing aids from the other brands that I have seen so far.
They can use any of the typical receivers that Oticon offers so that means they should be suitable for hearing losses that range from mild all the way to severe to profound. We will know more about that next week.
The Charger
Oticon seems to have taken a different tack when it comes to the charger than some of the brands. The charger is just that, a desktop charger, it isn’t a carrying case nor does it offer extra power on the go. I think that is a mistake and I have said the same thing about another hearing aid brand. Having said that, most people won’t mind and the charger itself is pretty as well as functional.
As with other systems, you simply place the hearing aids in the charger at night and it turns them off and begins charging. When you take the hearing aids out of the charger in the morning, it turns them on. Like every other brand they advise that if you take the hearing aids out of your ears, the best place for them is in the charger. However, if you take them out while you are out and about for some reason, you can turn them off by pressing the button on the back and holding it for a few seconds.
The hearing aids take just three hours to fully charge, and If you forget to charge them, a quick 30-minute charge will provide another six hours of use. Oticon says that they offer:
Super fast three-hour charging time for a full day of power
Quick recharge – 30 minutes for an additional five hours of power
Contact-free and reliable, inductive charging
Intuitive-to-use, stable and stylish charger
Battery Life
Oticon says that the new Opn S miniRITE-R will provide:
24 hours of battery life with no streaming
18 hours of battery life with five hours of streaming
Those figures are in line with most of the other brands with lithium-ion powered hearing aids. All in all, they look like pretty solid options if you are looking for a rechargeable hearing aid. When you combine the specs with the benefits in speech understanding that Oticon is quoting from their new system they look really good.
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