The Latest Bluetooth Hearing Loss Aids will let you Dial your iPhone and Swim (Preferably not at the Same Time)
How are today's hearing loss devices different from what your grandmother used to hear with? Well, this should convince you that they are a completely different animal - they come with Bluetooth that will let grandma communicate with cell phones, iPods and the like with. No one would know she had them on, either - they are inserted deep into the ear canal, and just can't be seen on the outside. The attempt is to make hearing loss devices as natural to live with as your natural-born ears themselves. The latest development here is the swimming pool-proof hearing aid. These are called the Lyric; and they have started testing them on swimmers who like to go take a thorough dip about twice a week.
The technology involved putting a coating on the hearing aids inserted in your year, that make all water bead up and leave them alone. Ordinary hearing aids would not stand a chance - they would crackle and bite the dust (the water?) in a second. So what kind of market is such a product aimed at? Basically, seniors who love swimming. As a way to get exercise, swimming gives the elderly a very stress-free outlet, as opposed to, say, the Stairmaster. It isn't as if people with hearing loss aids haven't been swimming at all until now; they just use a little DIY ingenuity. They get those special earplugs they make to help people swim when they have ear infections; a waterproof headband and a Speedo round it out. For people with hearing loss, using these products is all about getting their lives back - without having people give them strange looks, and with the comfort of taking their hearing for granted. These new Lyrics certainly seem up to the job.
But it's a shame that most people don't really buy hearing loss aids at all; four out of five just live their lives as they best can. It happens to be very difficult to admit it when your hearing begins to fade out. Sometimes, it is just the way you were born; at other times, it could be untreated infections, or a weakness for loud rock music. If people were to just lose their hearing all of a sudden one day, they would surely pick up on it. But hearing loss is something that takes your life away day by day - in increments.
But hearing loss aids are usually quite expensive; the really good ones hide in your ear canal, and are the most comfortable; but your ear canal has to be large enough to fit them in. These can actually cost you more than $1000 every year. And if older people have the problem that the sound of a hearing aid is seriously annoying to them, the newer models carry directional microphones that do really good job of only picking up the useful sounds, and rejecting the really loud annoying noises. There is really no reason to not accept one anymore; and once you are in, you get to use every sound-operated tech toy out there, car navigation systems, cell phones, included.
How are today's hearing loss devices different from what your grandmother used to hear with? Well, this should convince you that they are a completely different animal - they come with Bluetooth that will let grandma communicate with cell phones, iPods and the like with. No one would know she had them on, either - they are inserted deep into the ear canal, and just can't be seen on the outside. The attempt is to make hearing loss devices as natural to live with as your natural-born ears themselves. The latest development here is the swimming pool-proof hearing aid. These are called the Lyric; and they have started testing them on swimmers who like to go take a thorough dip about twice a week.
The technology involved putting a coating on the hearing aids inserted in your year, that make all water bead up and leave them alone. Ordinary hearing aids would not stand a chance - they would crackle and bite the dust (the water?) in a second. So what kind of market is such a product aimed at? Basically, seniors who love swimming. As a way to get exercise, swimming gives the elderly a very stress-free outlet, as opposed to, say, the Stairmaster. It isn't as if people with hearing loss aids haven't been swimming at all until now; they just use a little DIY ingenuity. They get those special earplugs they make to help people swim when they have ear infections; a waterproof headband and a Speedo round it out. For people with hearing loss, using these products is all about getting their lives back - without having people give them strange looks, and with the comfort of taking their hearing for granted. These new Lyrics certainly seem up to the job.
But it's a shame that most people don't really buy hearing loss aids at all; four out of five just live their lives as they best can. It happens to be very difficult to admit it when your hearing begins to fade out. Sometimes, it is just the way you were born; at other times, it could be untreated infections, or a weakness for loud rock music. If people were to just lose their hearing all of a sudden one day, they would surely pick up on it. But hearing loss is something that takes your life away day by day - in increments.
But hearing loss aids are usually quite expensive; the really good ones hide in your ear canal, and are the most comfortable; but your ear canal has to be large enough to fit them in. These can actually cost you more than $1000 every year. And if older people have the problem that the sound of a hearing aid is seriously annoying to them, the newer models carry directional microphones that do really good job of only picking up the useful sounds, and rejecting the really loud annoying noises. There is really no reason to not accept one anymore; and once you are in, you get to use every sound-operated tech toy out there, car navigation systems, cell phones, included.