Hearing Aids

[Bsuds]

I am looking for new hearing aids and got a pair from Costco that didn't work for me.

Any referrals for places in Kelowna that sell a good quality product that doesn't cost an arm and a leg and has good service?

[Jlabute]

Just curious, what makes a hearing aid good, and why didn't those work for you?

Certainly, hearing aids are a miracle in low power, digital signal processing, and should provide fairly clear audio. Does one basically get what they pay for when it comes to hearing aids?

[Bsuds]

The new ones I got were very high pitched and the volume on the bluetooth for my phone was too low and the "C's" and "S's"
sounded like snakes.

I went back and had them adjusted and they were better for a day then went right back to exactly what they were at first.

Costco's hearing centre is very busy and it takes too long to get an appointment (up to 4 months) so I have decided to try elsewhere.

[normaM]

Sudsy - the place in Capri is always busy ( walk past it to get to Independent) and since there are a lot of elderly need by might be worth a try
They also have great google reviews Expert hearing solutions

[Bsuds]

Sudsy - the place in Capri is always busy ( walk past it to get to Independent) and since there are a lot of elderly need by might be worth a try
They also have great google reviews Expert hearing solutions

Thanks and I have talked to them already and they seem OK.

I would like some reviews form people with personal experience as to service and brand quality.

[kelownman]

The audiologist, Aswin Kuttuva, who was at Expert Hearing started up his own company, Hear Care Audiology
https://www.myhearcare.ca/location-contact/
He offers all major HA brands. He is prepared to negotiate on price but it wont be as low as Costco.

https://directhearing.com offers Phonak, Signia, Widex, Resounds and sonic. https://directhearing.com/pages/customer-service. Send them your audiogram, they program the HAs, mail it to you. They claim discount prices.

https://www.listenlively.com/faq?bk=1
Our Lively 2 Lite model is battery-powered and priced at $1,195 (US$). Our most affordable, this option is great for everyday listening and comes with a year-supply of batteries.

The Lively 2 Plus is rechargeable and priced at $1,595. This option is great for active lifestyles with crisp, natural sound and comes with a convenient Charging Case that powers up to 30 hours of sound per charge.

The Lively 2 Pro is our next-generation rechargeable priced at $1,995. This is our most advanced option with premium sound for the most complex situations, and comes with a convenient Charging Case that powers up to 30 hours of sound per charge. You can explore all of our options here.

Here's everything included with Lively:

A pair of Bluetooth-enabled hearing aids
1-year supply of batteries (Battery-Powered), or a Charging Case with cord (Rechargeable)
Cleaning and maintenance tools
3 years of hearing care & tech support
Mobile app for remote adjustments and hearing aid controls
3-year warranty and 3-year loss and damage protection
A printed user manual, plus tons of online guides and video tutorials

The Lively 2 is a rebranded Resound HAs.

[Catsumi]

A pal, who has used every make and model over last 30 years is finally satisfied with this

Oticon brand "More 2 Minirite" type.

[Bsuds]

A pal, who has used every make and model over last 30 years is finally satisfied with this

Oticon brand "More 2 Minirite" type.

Thanks, I have heard that Oticon were a good brand.

[Bsuds]

I talked with someone else who recently got Oticon aides and was happy with them.

[kelownman]

I had the oticon OPN purchased in 2018. They were pretty good albeit expensive (but what HAs arent).

I purchased the Starkey evolv AI a little more than a month ago. They were/are rated as one of the best (feature wise).

[Patron]

you also can get Hearing Aids thru Worksafe if your claim is approved ( could take up to 9mths for approval) and I think the amount is up to $5000. Hearing Aids can also be claimed on your income taxes

[Bsuds]

I had the oticon OPN purchased in 2018. They were pretty good albeit expensive (but what HAs arent).

I purchased the Starkey evolv AI a little more than a month ago. They were/are rated as one of the best (feature wise).

How do you like those so far?

[Bsuds]

you also can get Hearing Aids thru Worksafe if your claim is approved

Don't think that's possible as my hearing loss is not work related as it was from a medical issue.

[seewood]

I bought my Phonak 3's from Costco just over 3 years ago. Love em, when I have both in.
Lost one or the other several times including today. Those ing masks were the reason the things were coming out most of the time. Once in Ladysmith I backtracked over town and finally found the thing on the ground in the 49th grocery store parking lot, looking like it was driven over. Works fine.
Today it was taking off the sweaters. A month ago it was putting up Christmas lights in an apple tree. Found that one 2 weeks later after the leaves blew away.
Dove into the pool several times, including today, forgetting to take the things out. Pull the battery out, blow and let sit and dry for an hour and good to go.

Told my wife tonight that after today's missing aid, I'm stapling the things to my head. Except when I go swimming.

I looked into another set at Costco when I lost that one for a couple of weeks ( 4 months past the free replacement warranty) but the timeframe to get an assessment was close to 3 months. Good products and decent prices, but still expensive.

[kelownman]

I had the oticon OPN purchased in 2018. They were pretty good albeit expensive (but what HAs arent).

I purchased the Starkey evolv AI a little more than a month ago. They were/are rated as one of the best (feature wise).

How do you like those so far?

I got the top-of-the-line evolv AI and the next level down to test out. The features in the top-level HA were supposedly superior to the next level. I honestly couldn't tell the difference between to two HAs. Some folks may be able to distinguish the different features between the two, however. It came down to the cost between the two HAs. It was around $1500 difference between the two models. Since I couldn't tell the difference between the two models, I chose the cheaper model.

The main features in both models were when using a handset and tilting the HA you could hear the person in both ears. Sound quality is great with the HAs automatically adjusted to improve the sound quality in each listening environment. 2-way audio where the HAs mics pick up and stream voices directly back to the iphone and ipad models hands-free.