What about China?

Interesting that MANY years ago, Japan had a so-called “waterproof” hearing aid on the market. Might have been RION. Here are the Top 5 players in Japan44 today - some familiar names.

Yes, it’s surprising that China doesn’t have more of a presence in the HA market - whether high end or OTC. Now, if Mr Xi needed them, things could change.

Interesting - I had never heard of Rion. Seems like they are only available in Japan.

RION | Products : Audiological Equipment16

In this section, we will introduce hard-of-hearing/ support systems used in schools and lecture halls, as well as support products used in everyday life.

People who like color might get jealous here:

Out of curiosity, I took a look and there’s several major manufacturers within China. As an example Goodmi is one and have an English website. They sell thru Alibaba and prices seem extremely cheap unless I’m misreading something. Some you have to buy bulk, others you can buy just the one piece. Prices are so cheap, I wonder though ?

That’s a fair observation. The market is indeed dominated by the major Western brands for advanced, programmable hearing aids.

From my perspective within the Chinese industry, the core strength of many manufacturers here currently lies in reliable OTC products and providing OEM/ODM manufacturing for global companies. The deep clinical expertise and brand recognition of the “Big 5” is something we are still building towards.

There are several manufacturers driving this segment in China, including the publicly-listed Jinghao (www.jhhearingaids.com47), along with others like Goodmi, Austar, and Earmate. Most are primarily known for their OEM/ODM services for the global market.

What if you hear little or nothing, will they reproduce the same!!!

I have been a professional pilot since 1974, and I have been mystified as to why the Japanese, in the 1970s, could produce a portable radio with 50 different bands for $50, but avionics, (aviation transmitters and navigation receivers), made in the U.S. were a fortune by comparison. I would say, if the Japanese ever entered the market prices would fall, but they never did enter the market. However, the reason was the FAA, (Federal Aviation Administration). They had, and still have very strict regulations that avionics have to pass. The Japanese manufacturers decided it was too small of a market to spend billions of dollars to meet those regulations then to earn small change in profits. I think the hearing aid companies are in the same situation. To meet the FDA, (Federal Drug Administration), regulations aren’t worth the limited market potential. I do suspect the Chinese will enter the over the counter hearing aid market like gang busters.

I think @YunxinZheng made a really good point:

@YunxinZheng said:

The deep clinical expertise and brand recognition of the “Big 5” is something we are still building towards.

It requires a whole ecosystem of people, knowledge, software, firmware, chips, manufacturing, distribution, service & support.

That’s not something that happens overnight and unfortunately it looks like those manufacturers which @YunxinZheng mentioned are still nowhere near what the “Big 5” can offer.

The Chinese have their own internal hearing aid market, I researched it a few years ago, they have their own major hearing aid manufacturers, lots of outlets in the major cities & towns, just like the west really, there isn’t any shortage of audiology dispensaries, I have little doubt that their own home-brew aids, will be as good, perhaps not as good as Oticon or Phonak at the moment, but the Chinese tend to clone everything, after they tear down the components, so eventually they may well be better than these 2 companies, who knows? The more I buy Chinese goods, the more impressed I become, at one time, “Made in China”, was a prerequisite for poor quality or shoddy goods, nowadays it all about quality at affordable prices, their hearing aids will be the same, I would imagine? For instance, in the last couple of weeks, I have bought a lot of stuff that originates from China, the quality build is now exceptional, I had been planning a new solar power system, with battery backup, and a new hybrid inverter, I looked at Tesla Wall 2, but baulked at the price, Tesla’s Grade A prismatic battery cells will most likely be made in China by Eve, so really it’s only the Tesla name you are buying! The new Tesla Wall 2 at 13.5kw (I believe) costs around £5.5K here in the UK, I can buy 3 x Fogstar 48v 314ah 16.1kw smart batteries, that equates to 48.3kw, for the price of a single Tesla Wall 2, 6 years guarantee and 10 years support, they also use Eve Grade A cells, these Fogstar battery units, are made in China, but assembled in the UK, and guarantee 8000 cycles!!! If you want to assemble your own, Fogstar will send you the full kit, for around £200 cheaper for each unit, I was so impressed with the quality build, I immediately ordered a second battery, if need be, I will order a 3rd battery next year? The Chinese were planning to go global with their hearing aids a couple of years ago, but something happened…I have no idea what, but that idea might just be on the back burner, so it may happen at some stage? Cheers Kev

Hi Peter, there are 16 x 3.2 Prismatic Grade A cells, made by Eve, they are top notch batteries at 8000 cycles, in each of my 2 units, a RK BMS (Battery Management System) this keeps every cell within 1 or 2 mili-volts, keeping the entire battery balanced, I believe 4 temperature sensors, RJ 45 and other com ports, Bluetooth monitoring, these batteries communicate directly with the Solis 8kw hybrid inverter, and any other Fogstar battery that’s hooked into the system, its state of the art stuff, I can monitor and alter any settings, from anywhere in the world, if I have an internet connection! It will even give me historical data for comparison, it’s very cleaver stuff…It will kill the inverter electricity production in 0.4 mili-seconds, in the event of the grid going down, switching to the backup system in the same timeframe, leaving your essential loads still operating! Cheers Kev​:wink:

Somehow I have been under the impression that there aren’t very many audiologists in China, if it’s even really a recognized specialty. So you’d HAVE to have a strong OTC market. It seems from some of my patients that there may still be a heavier stigma towards hearing aids there? I’d be interested to know.

You’re joking, right? China’s population is 1.4 billion. You would think that’s a lot of potential hearing loss patients.

@Flyboybob said:

I do suspect the Chinese will enter the over the counter hearing aid market like gang busters.

And here they are … Top 5 OTC Hearing Aid Manufacturers in China92