Why modern hearing aids are nothing like the old ones
“We’re living in the digital age and our hearing aids are full of advanced technologies that make it easier for people with hearing loss to live normal lives,” says Marguerite Dunstan, an audiologist and clinician from ihear, a leading provider of hearing tests and hearing aids.
“Today’s hearing aids are advanced, computerised devices with micro technologies that enhance the user’s hearing and they offer more lifestyle benefits these days,” she says.
Here we look at some of the cool new tech upgrades and the technologies that make them possible and discuss why you should not hesitate to follow up and purchase a hearing aid today.
Upgrade 1: They don’t whistle
There’s no need to worry about your digital hearing aid embarrassing you by whistling while you’re catching up with friends or family. Digital hearing aids eliminate whistling. Whistling is prevented by a feedback prevention circuit that continually monitors the output of the hearing aid for feedback. If it picks up feedback, it simply cancels or reduces it.
Upgrade 2: They eliminate background noise
One common complaint from users of hearing aids in social settings has always been how difficult it is to hear when there is a lot of background noise. But thanks to innovative new technology patients now have access to features such as Acuity Binaural Imaging™ which use ultra high-definition audio to bring a more natural ear-to-ear experience to patients. Thanks to collaborative decision making, speech audibility can be preserved while simultaneously maintain comfort.
DSP does this by differentiating between background noise and speech in noisy environments and then reducing just the background noise. This ensures you can hear and understand your friends when they talk to you, thereby avoiding any awkwardness from not understanding each other.
'Almost completely invisible' – new gen hearing aids are much smaller
Upgrade 3: They are better designed than ever before
Think hearing aids are big and ugly? The new generation is anything but. Apart from being loaded with advanced digital technologies, digital hearing aids are smaller, more compact and ergonomically designed now days. At ihear that can sometimes be a pleasant surprise for patients, says Dunstan.
“People often forget they are wearing them because they are so small and so well designed. Some are almost completely invisible. They can even be moulded to fit specific ear shapes and patients can even choose what colour they want,” she says.
Since modern devices are almost undetectable, users can rest easy that their hearing device is highly discreet and won’t affect their fashion sense or look.
Upgrade 4: They have directional microphones to hear sounds from different directions
This technology allows the user to switch automatically from hearing sounds in all directions, front, back and sides, to hearing sounds just in front. Designed to improve speech detection in difficult listening environments, Acuity Directionality is intelligent and personalised to continually adapt in all channels, prioritising conversations with up to 6dB of speech enhancement, so patients can better hear and participate in conversations from all directions.
Why you should not hesitate to purchase a digital hearing aid today
Thanks to these advanced technological upgrades and the fact that you can now achieve a higher level of personalisation, trialling a hearing aid can be as easy as choosing a pair of spectacles to wear from the optometrist.
To find out how to purchase your new digital hearing aid log on to www.ihear.com.au
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