Why Hearing Aids DON’T Suck by Healthy Hearing

A recent article published on the Healthy Hearing website provides a rebuttal to a Wired magazine article titled “Why Things Suck: Hearing Aids,” that according to Healthy Hearing, gave misinformation about current hearing aid technology. Here is one example from the Wired magazine article: “High-end hearing aids add a directional microphone trained in front of the listener, but that increases cost and, critically, bulk.” This is a false statement!


Almost every digital hearing aid on the market today is equipped with directional microphones that can assist the listener understand speech better in noisy situations compared to an omnidirectional microphone that picks up sound from all around. The hearing aids with dual microphones are not more expensive nor do they require larger hearing aid casings. Check out one of Phonak’s new products, the Audéo SMART (pictured), which is a small hearing device with directional microphones offered at all three performance levels along with other features. Not only does this hearing aid have a directional microphone but it has adaptive directionality, like most hearing aids on the market today. This means that the hearing device can be set to automatically evaluate the sound environment and select the best microphone configuration for the situation.


The Wired article also goes on to say, “Hearing aids can cost more than $3,000 apiece,” which is also incorrect! Hearing aid technology comes in a range of prices and do not start at $3,000! The article goes on and on feeding the reader inaccurate information without any resources.


Ok, I digress. Read the article by Healthy Hearing called, “Why Hearing Aids DON’T Suck,” to learn about how hearing aids can improve one’s ability to hear and positively impact the quality of life of hearing impaired individuals. It also provides a good overview of advancements in digital hearing aid technology including design, microphones, digital sound processing and batteries.