Skip to content
HearingTracker
Log in

NHS hearing aids in 2025

14 replies1.6k viewsLast reply

Link to this topic
Reply

Anyone have up to date info on what the latest Oticon and Phonak hearing aids are?

From reading previous posts, i gather -
Oticon Optim = Opn S2
Phonak Nathos Nova = Bolero M70

The Optim has three models, , miniRITE and miniRITE-R
The Nathos Nova has two models, M and PR

I’m assuming the above are the latest, as i cannot find anything else in the catalogue -

Welcome - NHS Supply Chain Online Catalogue114

Welcome

I also noticed that the Phonak NHS website is no longer available, but an Oticon one does exist (which i believe did not previously), but Oticon has not updated it to add the Optim models.

I may be interested in trying the Optim, anyone had any experiences with this hearing aid?

7 people in this conversation4 min readJump to latest

My dad got the Oticon Play PX 1 hearing aids from the NHS, so that they worked with his Android phone. Oticon Optim only work with iPhone unless you get the connect clip.

I got the Oticon Xceed 1 Play UP from the NHS.

My friend who lives 3 hours from me, got the Phonak Nadia L70 SP from the NHS.

The NHS catalogue is an interesting melange - I note that various Roger On devices are in the mix as are L-70 . A lot of what was very spendy kit too, like Roger X receivers, also pops up which my employers bought for me several years ago through our equivalent to Access to Work.

That said, I’m guessing some NHS Boards prefer to dispense older HAs where they can because they have lots of stock or just for cost reasons. I’m in NHS Lothians and have a pair of Nathos Nova M HAs (Bolero M70) in the battery flavour which just about fit the bill for my hearing loss. Via this forum I added Roger licenses so they are useful for doing Teams calls for work (and using Roger devices in meetings).

My KS10s do even better and the added functionality is much nicer.

I believe we only have the Genie 2 unlock code for the Engage but not the Optim, correct?

I will try to get the unlock code for Optim.

Edited

The last NHS hearings I got were Nathos Nova (Bolero M70), however I do know a chap with profound loss who has been given an Naida, with an UP receiver. I don’t know the exact model though, although I know his previous one was a Naida M70 SP.

I wonder if the default option is M70 Bolero or maybe there’s scope to access something more recent? Should I have laid it on thicker about my work needs etc?

I think it’s more to do with your . If it fits within the Bolero M70 fitting range, that’s likely what you’ll get. The fitting range with thin tubes is lower than the fitting range with thick tubes.

Just came back from my NHS appointment, first one i had in many years.

Ended up with the Optim with the slim tubes, i will probably keep these as backup. I wanted the miniRITE but she said they don’t have them, which is strange because they are available on the NHS, but i guess only certain departments get them. I returned my old Nathos CRT W, which will go to charity.

Was also offered the Bolero M70.

I mentioned i self program and showed my current OPN 1 miniRITE, she said i could probably program the Optim myself for small adjustments since i have the software and fitting device, but she had no idea they were locked, i mentioned that a code is required to unlock them but she wasn’t comfortable giving this… oh well.

Optim with slim tubes is what I have also. I haven’t got the code for Optim either. Hopefully someone will post it at some point.

In reply to @nazlink

Hey Nazlink,
Did you ever get to the bottom of this?
I’m on a mission.
Suspect that my Optims are Ready - and I want to enable that.
Oticon rep (called them on Wednesday) told me that the latest firmware update would enable it.
Unable to get that from my Audiologist - they’re still on Genie 2 v24. Bound by IT so it’ll likely take months….
But I suspect that that won’t even do it.
I wonder if you’ve had any joy in hacking your and experimented with the firmware.
I’m curious to see if my firmware could be updated and whether that would unlock the Auracast potential.
Can see why they’d not be keen to have that common knowledge.
Tech support at Oticon did call me back subsequently saying that it’s only the Intent range (and maybe Zeal?) that “have Auracast” and that Bluetooth LE is “a different thing to Bluetooth ”.
But as far as I understand it, Bluetooth LE Audio (which is the baseline for Auracast enablement) is baked into the latest Bluetooth LE standard….
Any updates on your mission?

Hi Karina, unfortunately i have not been successful in getting the code thus far, but yes it would be so much easier for people like us to make simple adjustments ourselves within a few minutes, instead of booking an appointment that’s weeks away, save ourselves and the NHS time and money!

Agreed.
It seems like we are being treated as patients as opposed to customers - you can tweak bluetooth headphones via apps etc. I suspect the enablement is a hot potato. Instead of being a routine update to an existing tech (i.e., Bluetooth) it’s a commodifiable asset. I suspect there’s a lot of politics going on behind the scenes. The sniff of monetarisation for/from the early adopters.
And I’m no conspiracy theorist!

I think this has the latest:

NHS Hearing aids19

Under Sussex last year I got the Oticon Sage Minirite T, battery and .

They don’t however do Phonak, so not sure there.

A few years ago I received from UCLH: Nathos Nova PR, and before that Bolero V50-P with Cross II

Related discussions