Hearing Aid Question - How long do they last?

[zcaveman]

I have been wearing this pair of hearing aids since 2007. In 2009, before my warranty ran out, they sent them to the factory for reconditioning.

A couple of weeks ago, one of the battery holders broke off. I have been able to make it work but yesterday, it completely quit on me.

I had stopped by Village Ear to see if they could replace the battery holder but he said he had to be shipped to the factory and would cost $450. He could put me in a new pair with newer technology but I think the price would be about $2500 each for ones that would work with my hearing. But I do get a $1500 trade-in allowance for my two old aids.

I guess I am wondering if it would be better to just get these reconditioned or get the latest they have? I am not sure newer technology would be better with my hearing loss.

Can anyone that wears hearing aids tell me if the new technology is REALLY that much better or would I be better off just getting the current ones reconditioned.

Also, how often do you upgrade your hearing aids?

Thanks for any replies.

Z

[Trish Miller]

I encourage you to get tested to see if the newer technology would work for you.

It worked for me as my old aides lasted 15 yrs!!!!!!!

Also, shop around for financing. I got 1 yr financing on my new ones, which was great!!!

So in my opinion, the newer technology is better.

Hope this helps and feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I've been wearing hearing aides since I was 4 yrs old.

[KayakerNC]

I would suggest visiting the Hearing Center at Costco.

[2BNTV]

I encourage you to get tested to see if the newer technology would work for you.

It worked for me as my old aides lasted 15 yrs!!!!!!!

Also, shop around for financing. I got 1 yr financing on my new ones, which was great!!!

So in my opinion, the newer technology is better.

Hope this helps and feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I've been wearing hearing aides since I was 4 yrs old.

:agree: It couldn't hurt to check it out.

Mine have worked for the last 4/5 years and there is still room to make adjustments.

Some if it depends if you need/want the top of the line hearing aid, as oppossed to one level below. Only a qualified audiologist can guide you.

Mine cost 1K per ear, Top of the line, 2.5K per ear.

I may be wrong and sometimes I am, but hearings aids may be coming down in price, as technology improves. IMHO

[caseycasebeer]

I have worn hearing aids since age 40 (27 years), and have been through several pair over the years. My longest lasting was about seven years as I recall.

If your aids are the old analog type, you will be amazed at the new(er) digital aids.

Yes, the person at COSTCO (Kim Eveleth) is very good, and knows her stuff. If you were in the military, you should also check with VA (near Mulberry Rec Center) to see if they can do anything for you.

One of the things that I have found that seems to help a H/A's longevity is keeping it dry. All the tiny electronics like to be kept dry, and since we live in Florida that is a daily issue. At night I use something called a "AudioDry" manufactured by Thermal Science LLC (273 Langston Road, Piedmont, SC 29673). You can buy them on eBay for less than $20/ea and they work very well.

Good Luck!
Casey

[zcaveman]

Thanks for the answers so far. The newer technology has the receiver in the ear canal. I have spoken to a couple of people that do not think it helped. One thinks that it is no better than the regular over the ear HA. The other one says that it starts hurting after a couple of hours in the ear and he has to take it out.

So does anyone have experience with the receiver -in-channel technology?

I have a Village Ear place in the area so I am going down later today to make an appointment for a hearing test and to see what they can do for me.

For reference I bought these aids at Lake Hearing. Great for 5-6 years, then they changed doctors and I did not like him. I tried the HA place in Mulberry plaza and was not happy with him. That is why I am trying Village Ear. Also it is a shorter golf cart ride.

There is no Costco here anyway, so that is not a choice.

More info would be appreciated.

Z

[jojo]

My mother got used hearing aids at the place in Colony Plaza. We like the owner. I think the business is well run. He's been in business for many years.

[Skip2MySue]

Thanks for the answers so far. The newer technology has the receiver in the ear canal. I have spoken to a couple of people that do not think it helped. One thinks that it is no better than the regular over the ear HA. The other one says that it starts hurting after a couple of hours in the ear and he has to take it out.

So does anyone have experience with the receiver -in-channel technology?

I have a Village Ear place in the area so I am going down later today to make an appointment for a hearing test and to see what they can do for me.

For reference I bought these aids at Lake Hearing. Great for 5-6 years, then they changed doctors and I did not like him. I tried the HA place in Mulberry plaza and was not happy with him. That is why I am trying Village Ear. Also it is a shorter golf cart ride.

There is no Costco here anyway, so that is not a choice.

More info would be appreciated.

Z

Z, I've just recently upgraded my 6 year old aids to the newer technology now available. I'm not an in the ear fan so I use the over the ear model. I also went to Village Ear and have been very happy with the service and Kirk's knowledge of the product. I'm in the stage now of getting them tuned in and return each week for readjustment based on my experience.
Skip 2

[caseycasebeer]

Oops, in my earlier post I said that Kim Eveleth was a COSTCO. She is not; she is at SAM'S on 27/441. My mistake.

Speaker In Ear (SIE) hearing aid's are supposed to be very comfortable, but I have not been able to try SIE's. (My hearing problem is to the "profound" level, so [as I understand it], I'm relegated to those big ugly Behind The Ear (BTE) models that provide more power.) The SIE's are much smaller and I suspect easier to adjust-to.

As for hurting your ear(s), any hearing aid can be bothersome until you get used to them. Sometimes it's a 'fit issue, and sometimes it's a user-experience issue. Simply put, your ear's don't usually like things put in them! You may find that some adaptation is necessary. Try wearing the aid(s) for one to three hours a day for a few days, then increase it to longer periods, and your ears will have some time to adapt to the new device. If you have full canal aid's, try this: Put a minuscule amount of mineral oil on your fingertip and rub it in the outer part of the canal where the aid fits (Don't put mineral oil IN the ear, and be sure to only just enough to make the surface a bit more slippery). This will reduce the aid/ear friction and it may be more comfortable.

Now days, if you are buying a new aid, check out the various Bluetooth features. My Phonak (model: Belero) aids are two years old and permit iPhone calls to Bluetooth directly to my ears, and listening to music on the iPhone is once again a Joy. The rapid pace of technology is amazing ... and we (Baby Boomers) are leading the way!

Best,
Casey

[zcaveman]

Thanks for all the answers. I decided to go The Villages Ear in Mulberry. Took the test and failed miserably. Profound hearing loss. That was what I figured. I decided to get the Phonak Naida Q50, as recommended. Not as cheap as I wanted to pay but we will see.

They did the molds and I will get a fitting next week.

Hoping for the best.

Thanks for all of the replies.

Z

[drdodge]

i have been wearing aids for about 7 years, i have had miracle ear and starkys and the best one i have ever had i got thru walmart. they were a lot cheaper and alot better than the other ones i had. A person that needs aids should really research the brand they are looking at and all of the of the ones also. i think my cheap ones work just as good as the $5000.00 ones and most of the time better

drd

[Shimpy]

Let it be known that prices quoted are like buying a car and can be negotiated down by a large amount. I've been wearing hearing aids for 13 years and am on my 3rd or 4th set. I killed one that had fallen out of my ear after removing my motorcycle hemet. Not knowing it had fallen out stepped on it and crushed it.
Make sure whatever you get it comes with a wax guard that is replaceable. The set I am now using has this and I have to replace it about once a month as it becomes clogged and my hearing becomes muted. My hearing aids before this didn't have this and when the hearing aid quit working I had to have it repaired for about $200.

[slipcovers]

I just got new hearing aids a month ago from America Hears, online and cant believe the difference. Conventional hearing aids from all suppliers use digital "compression", which compress sounds, which distorts them, you also get feedbacl. America Hears uses ADRO tech, invented by Dr Peter Blamey and developed for the coclier implant. He is Austrailian and has teamed up with America Hears to make a state of the art hearing aid affordable to everyone. Just google his name for info. Of course, I first went to an Audiologist for exam and sent to AH to adjust. I also purchased equip so that I can do future adjustment on my computer or AH will adjust free.

I must say that I am totally impressed with my hearing. If anyone is looking for aids please check out this company.

If you go to americahears.com you can take the word test to see results, also they do not call you on the phone. Costco and Walmart sell a low-end aid, entry level. Believe me, I have researched extensively.

[2BNTV]

You can be unhappy on the day you purchase an expensive hearing aid due to price, and be happy for the rest of of your life or.......

You can be happy on the day you purchase hearings aids due to the price, and unhappy for the rest of your life.

You get what you pay for. I believe in the "buy it nice or buy it twice".

I purchased Starkey's a couple of years ago for 1K per ear. Now he is recommending the 2.5K per ear type. The audiologists claims the upgraded hearing aids will improve my hearing significantly.

Will go for a hearing test to see if this is right for me. I have the behind the ear type hearing aids and I don't even feel them. One must be fitted with the right plugs that go into the canal. With the new type, you don't have to put them into the canal deeply. You will hear just fine.

[slipcovers]

You can be unhappy on the day you purchase an expensive hearing aid due to price, and be happy for the rest of of your life or.......

You can be happy on the day you purchase hearings aids due to the price, and unhappy for the rest of your life.

You get what you pay for. I believe in the "buy it nice or buy it twice".

I purchased Starkey's a couple of years ago for 1K per ear. Now he is recommending the 2.5K per ear type. The audiologists claims the upgraded hearing aids will improve my hearing significantly.

Will go for a hearing test to see if this is right for me. I have the behind the ear type hearing aids and I don't even feel them. One must be fitted with the right plugs that go into the canal. With the new type, you don't have to put them into the canal deeply. You will hear just fine.

The markup on hearing aids 4 or 5x. I think you are referring to SIE, speaker in the ear. The Starkey Xino retails for $2999 according to Hearing Planet, yet it only has 16 channels. Not that nice for the price.

[zcaveman]

Thanks for all the answers. I decided to go The Villages Ear in Mulberry. Took the test and failed miserably. Profound hearing loss. That was what I figured. I decided to get the Phonak Naida Q50, as recommended. Not as cheap as I wanted to pay but we will see.

They did the molds and I will get a fitting next week.

Hoping for the best.

Thanks for all of the replies.

Z

I love these hearing aids. They are in the canal hearing aids. With my hearing loss these were the only ones for me. I am in the adjustment phase right now. Weekly visits to see if I am doing okay and fine tune ups.

Thanks for all of the info you all gave me.

Z

[Loudoll]

Don't forget. You can try hearing aids for 30 days/ If you are not happy...not hearing...insist on getting back your money.

[slipcovers]

Don't forget. You can try hearing aids for 30 days/ If you are not happy...not hearing...insist on getting back your money.

That is true, it is a law created to protect the consumer. Best to use Credit card also.

[Bizdoc]

Just had to replace hearing aids for both parents. They both have dementia and are in a nursing home in Ocala. Had a long discussion with the audiologist that the nursing home uses and went with his recommendations.

One thing that he does recommend and includes is a "y-string" with loops around each hearing aid and a nifty clip that opens by pulling up on the clip instead of pushing down. He finds it works well with dementia patients as they have difficulty in figuring it out. (and if you have a loved one with dementia, you already know why that is important - Mom has already sent several thru the wash, taken a few apart, and probably flushed several down the toilet).

He doesn't recommend the in-ear type as folks with dementia have trouble remembering what it is and have been known to try to eat the nice candy mint.

[LittleDog]

I just got new hearing aids a month ago from America Hears, online and cant believe the difference. Conventional hearing aids from all suppliers use digital "compression", which compress sounds, which distorts them, you also get feedbacl. America Hears uses ADRO tech, invented by Dr Peter Blamey and developed for the coclier implant. He is Austrailian and has teamed up with America Hears to make a state of the art hearing aid affordable to everyone. Just google his name for info. Of course, I first went to an Audiologist for exam and sent to AH to adjust. I also purchased equip so that I can do future adjustment on my computer or AH will adjust free.

I must say that I am totally impressed with my hearing. If anyone is looking for aids please check out this company.

If you go to americahears.com you can take the word test to see results, also they do not call you on the phone. Costco and Walmart sell a low-end aid, entry level. Believe me, I have researched extensively.

I have to disagree that they don't call you. I went online and took the hearing test and within an hour I received a call and an email from them.

John

[slipcovers]

I originally reviewer their site, took the test and never received an email or call. I also did searches on hearing aids,functions, and differences of so many choices. I also checked forums to get a voice from hearing aid users as it is a lot to sort out.
I have been totally pleased with this company, getting good aids, great customer service and affordable price. 30 day money back if not satisfied, nothing to loose. JMO