Starkey Surflink Mobile?

@Doc_Jake said:

that would be news to me… I suppose Starkey might want to keep their biggest customer’s happy first and since Atlanta is huge they might be getting a few. But, if they are going to supply the VA first then you are really going to have a long wait.

I heard that directly from Starkey in one of the many, many phone calls regarding the Surflink Mobile. In fairness, they said priority was being given to their government contracts, which I interpreted to mean the VA. On a related note, how does the Siemens Minitek compare with the Surflink Mobile? Does it need an antenna in the lanyard? Does it utilize the onboard mic for it’s Bluetooth mobile telephone use, or is the mic on the device itself? Are there features that one has that the other doesn’t?

the miniTek does not use a lanyard as an antenna. the miniTek comes standard with the TVLink. the miniTek can pair with 2 BT phones, 2 TVLinks, a long list of BT devices like mp3, pc, etc… plus most any device can be plugged directly into the miniTek. don’t know how very many folks could compare it to the SurfLink mobile since there are very few out in the wild. it uses the miniTek mic for BT phone input… the latest software update to the miniTek will allow a remote mic to be plugged into the miniTek and over-ride the on board mic. work your way though this link and you will know about everything there is to know…

http://w1.hearing.siemens.com/au/04-products/20-minitek/minitek.jsp

I have recently gotten the 3 series from the VA and have had problems with mine. The modes of connecting to the phones were not constant. Giving problems from not working at all to spotty usage to the phone and to the 3 series aids. The streamer is at the shop now awaiting for repair and return.:mad:

Please provide updates. I have been waiting for months for the Surflink Mobile and if it doesn’t work well, I am going to be quite unhappy. My Series 3’s are great, but I haven’t used them for phone or media yet.

From everything I’ve read and heard about the Surflink Mobile, I think Starkey needs to go back to the drawing board and rethink who will be using it, how they will be using it and for how long each day they will be using it. A mobile streaming device that only will last for 2 or 3 hours is crazy; it reminds me of when Mitsubishi Electronics came out with its first laptop computer and forgot to put a battery in it and the people who bought it had a so called portable computer that had to be plugged in! At the very least it sounds like Starkey needs an external battery to see you though the day. I think durability is another issue that needs to be looked at, if it’s anything like their remote it needs to be made more robust ( a friend of mine has gone though 3 remotes in less than one year) or they need to offer an extended warranty.

@Big_Al said:

Yes, the battery life is awful. However, you can plug it during use for Bluetooth streaming, so that helps. However, you can’t simultaneously stream audio and charge. This morning, my Surflink was on for 2 hours and I had a 45 minute phone call and I had to recharge it. You can’t watch an entire football game while streaming without a recharge. The unit is small and very light, but they should have put in a better battery.

Oh no. Thats no good. I was hoping this device might be the answer I am looking for. The precise rep also said there is a new Unitron device coming out that may be better

@seb said:

From everything I’ve read and heard about the Surflink Mobile, I think Starkey needs to go back to the drawing board and rethink who will be using it, how they will be using it and for how long each day they will be using it. A mobile streaming device that only will last for 2 or 3 hours is crazy; it reminds me of when Mitsubishi Electronics came out with its first laptop computer and forgot to put a battery in it and the people who bought it had a so called portable computer that had to be plugged in! At the very least it sounds like Starkey needs an external battery to see you though the day. I think durability is another issue that needs to be looked at, if it’s anything like their remote it needs to be made more robust ( a friend of mine has gone though 3 remotes in less than one year) or they need to offer an extended warranty.

Apparently, Starkey is now offering an extended warranty. However, you have to purchase it through your audiologist, and some of them aren’t offering it. I don’t trust this thing to last beyond one year.

It’s probably only a matter of time before a cell phone manufacturers come up with basically a Streamer built into their products that will be able your cell phone to do what the HA manufacturers Streamers are doing right now and the battery life will be much better. My Oticon Streamers battery wii last about 4 hours if I’m lucky, but it usually dies at the most in oppertune time. The Item that has allowed me to keep it charged when the charger isn’t available is a Tek4 charger I bought at Home Depot.

There’s no reason to expect cell phone battery life to be better in this application. These power hungry applications drain current generation batteries on cell phones too. The GPS app on an iPhone, for example, will drain the battery extremely fast. The golf GPS app will barely last a round of golf (4-5 hrs) when new.

Well, yes and no. The point I was making was that they could have (and in my opinion, should have) opted for a bigger battery. This would have added size and weight to the device, but I think it would have been worth it. They had room to go bigger and get more battery life and they elected not to do that. I am sure people for whom size is more important feel differently.

@Big_Al said:

It sounds like you’re talking about the Surflink Media, not the Surflink Mobile, because the Mobile has the remote in the device. The Mobile does use Bluetooth to stream music (and Bluetooth compatible TV), and does it reasonably well.

I have Surflink Remote Model 100 and Surflink TV box model 200. They don’t say anything on either about whether they are Media or Mobile.

I don’t seem to pair with my Bluetooth phone but have not made a big effort as I really am not interested in phone connection.

TV is really all I am interested and that works pretty well. In fact more that I really need. I can have it on and walk all over the house hearing the TV and even when I got down my driveway to get the paper, I still have TV. For movies its great but I have gotten away from it for the most part.

I got the mobile and so far after learning how to pair it to the proper device … it seems to work as advertised.

Getting 4 - 6 hours out of the surflink mobile unit. H/A battery life about half day shorter.

@bzam said:

I have Surflink Remote Model 100 and Surflink TV box model 200. They don’t say anything on either about whether they are Media or Mobile.

I don’t seem to pair with my Bluetooth phone but have not made a big effort as I really am not interested in phone connection.

TV is really all I am interested and that works pretty well. In fact more that I really need. I can have it on and walk all over the house hearing the TV and even when I got down my driveway to get the paper, I still have TV. For movies its great but I have gotten away from it for the most part.

Yes, that’s the Surflink Media that you have. While the Mobile streams TV as well, mine doesn’t work anywhere near as well as yours does. If I leave the room (let alone go outside), I lose my connections. In fact if I get more than 10 feet away from my device, I lose the connection. So if TV is your only concern, you’re got the right device for you.

@Currently said:

I got the mobile and so far after learning how to pair it to the proper device … it seems to work as advertised.

Getting 4 - 6 hours out of the surflink mobile unit. H/A battery life about half day shorter.

My experience isn’t as good as yours. I have found that I cannot watch an entire football game if I am streaming the TV. And the battery life in my aids has gone from 7 to 8 days, to 5 (however, I stream EVERY day for at least two hours, usually 4 or 5).