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Sam's Club Hearing Aids

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Has anyone purchased or tried one recently? I tried one briefly this morning, but I’m not sure about it. I’m wondering if it is worth purchasing and trying for a month or so. I am also checking out Costco and may do the same thing there.

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In reply to @fuhgettaboutit

This member is a Costco audiologist. He could have provided useful information but chose not to. If they are a good representation of Costco hearing profesionals, I would avoid Costco.

I do not have a Costco in my area and my Sams Club stores do not have hearing centers, so I cannot help further.

@fuhgettaboutit said:

Very interested in this info as well. Who is the manufacturer? What is the pricing?

— Updated —

Very interested in this info as well. Who is the manufacturer? What is the pricing?

— Updated —

This member is a Costco audiologist. He could have provided useful information but chose not to. If they are a good representation of Costco hearing profesionals, I would avoid Costco.

I do not have a Costco in my area and my Sams Club stores do not have hearing centers, so I cannot help further.

@fuhgettaboutit said:

Very interested in this info as well. Who is the manufacturer? What is the pricing?

— Updated —

Very interested in this info as well. Who is the manufacturer? What is the pricing?

Sam’s Club hearing aids are private-label aids manufactured by a relatively unknown company called General Hearing Instruments. They may have good aids for all I know, but they are not one of the “big six” manufacturers and you won’t find many people knowledgeable about them. Costco, on the other hand, sells aids manufactured by 4 of the 6 largest manufacturers—Oticon (Bernafon), Phonak, Resound (KS-5), and Seimens (Rexton)—at very good prices, with a very good warranty and trial period. And many people have reported good service—though, as always, it will depend on the skills of the individual fitter you work with. You will have to decide for yourself, but, if I were paying for my aids out-of-pocket, I would be going to Costco.

@prodigyplace said:

This member is a Costco audiologist. He could have provided useful information but chose not to. If they are a good representation of Costco hearing profesionals, I would avoid Costco.

Being a hearing aid fitter at Costco does not mean you know about obscure private-label products that you don’t sell. I think that’s a very unfair assessment.

Yes it was unfair and I wonder how prodigyplace’s ox is being gored by fuhgettaboutit’s assistance here. Something not quite right about the animosity he receives from some around here.

@greghahn said:

Something not quite right about the animosity he receives from some around here.

I think ultimately that we’re in a transitional period in which providers like Costco are shaking up the market and making many people at least uncomfortable; for such people fuhgettaboutit not only personifies their discomfort, but does it in an abrasive way they can’t ignore. I can understand that, especially since he’s been more than a little impolitic. He’s very dismissive of the experience and skills of audiologists, and some are offended that he seems to think that fitting hearing aids can be reduced to a matter of Real Ear Measurements.

Edited

I am sure there is a point here; I just don’t see it.

All the party was expressing in this thread was an interesting in knowing that info.

Yes, they are the Liberty brand. I tried them briefly in the store and they seemed o.k.

The Sam’s Club representative is very knowledgeable, whereas my Costco rep is awful. At Costco, I tried Rexton and the Kirkland 5 and didn’t care for either. That makes me think it is the audi (fitter).

— Updated —

In reply to @rasmus_braun

I tried the Sam’s Club Liberty Hearing aids in the store. The was very knowledgeable and thorough. The aids amplified the sounds beyond what I would call normal and seemed to produce a very tinny sound. The Phonak Brio 312T at Costco seemed to amplify in a way that resulted in a more natural hearing experience. Remember that I am new to hearing aids without much experience.

— Updated —

I tried the Sam’s Club Liberty Hearing aids in the store. The HIS was very knowledgeable and thorough. The aids amplified the sounds beyond what I would call normal and seemed to produce a very tinny sound. The Phonak Brio 312T at Costco seemed to amplify in a way that resulted in a more natural hearing experience. Remember that I am new to hearing aids without much experience.

In reply to @The_Latinist

@The_Latinist said:

I think ultimately that we’re in a transitional period in which providers like Costco are shaking up the market and making many people at least uncomfortable; for such people fuhgettaboutit not only personifies their discomfort, but does it in an abrasive way they can’t ignore. I can understand that, especially since he’s been more than a little impolitic. He’s very dismissive of the experience and skills of audiologists, and some are offended that he seems to think that fitting hearing aids can be reduced to a matter of Real Ear Measurements.

I have never dismissed the skills of audiologists nor have a I reduced hearing aid fittings to simply . I have stated that REM is a vital part of the puzzle. A fitting is a rehabilitation plan that includes extensive counselling among many other things, as mentioned in my previous posts. As for audiologists, my main gripe is I feel prices that some charge are too damn high…

If that is not your intention, then perhaps you should consider how you present yourself. Listen, I’ve got no problem with you, and I’ve appreciated your input, but I understand why others have a problem with you. Don’t you notice that you elicit strong negative reactions? There’s a reason. You are dismissive, and you do come off as very reductionist and, to be blunt, arrogant. I can’t speak to what’s in your heart or mind, only to the impression you give even to a layman like me without your experience or knowledge. Imagine how you come off to those with more education and knowledge than you.

Edited

To get your point across in an industry that has been carefully crafted to gauge the consumer, one must be assertive & blunt if they are to educate the public on the TRUTH. The other thread has 16 thousand + views; hopefully it helped at least one person make an educated decision on how to address their hearing impairment without losing $8000.00. I know I would have loved to see that years ago before my family & I spent $30k+ over the years on “groundbreaking new hearing technology”.

I also appreciate fuhgettaboutit’s “no nonsense” replies. Doc Jake certainly is colorful and candid with his replies as well. I also am a layman with no prior experience other than ringing in my ears and having to ask people to repeat what they said. I have gotten much valuable information from this forum and I thank us all for sharing it. Our personalities are as different as our hearing losses. Many of us have gone to audiologists with private practices and many to large chain stores. The bottom line seems to be that hearing aid technology is fairly equal across the large manufacturers’ lines. Being that most all of us seem to have to pay out of pocket for hearing aids it would seem to me that we should all be happy to be given the information about price and technology. We can then make our own decisions about the expertise of the audiologist or hearing aid dispensor and weigh it against all we have “learned” here. I say “tell it like it is” and stay civil.

I went back to the site to look a bit more. They may be premium quality. They better be. Their best is almost twice the price of the KS6. I also note that replacement RiC are $75 and 6 domes were there for $27. So, it isn’t anything like the Costco warranty/services that come with their aid.

Guess I have to say I don’t care if they are among the best. It isn’t as good a deal.

Thanks for this info - I am convenient to a Sam’s club so that is my first thought of a place to go. I wish there were some comments from people who use the actual products.

AJA,

I tried on ’s made by America Hears, branded as Assure, and sold through Meijers, a chain of stores in Ohio and Michigan. I have had two audiologists tell me Meijers and SAMs get their HAs from the same manufacturer. When I tried them on in the store I noticed a little bit of feedback. Since then I have purchased Phonak Brio’s from Costco. I paid considerably less at Costco and feel like a I received a much more advanced technology. Wherever you choose to shop make sure you understand the length of the warranty, the cost of follow-up care and adjustments, the deductible (if any) for replacement of lost aids, and the cost for replacement parts. Personally, I believe you will be hard pressed to find a better selection or a lower cost than what you will find at Costco.

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