Difference in tech levels/tiers of RIC models, processing speed, battery sizes, for moderate severe flat loss

They all use the same chip/processor and chassis, the difference is certainly that some features are required by busy people who frequent restaurants and bars, business meetings etc, so it’s just things like noise reduction settings/feedback management/wind noise reduction and so on…do you need them? well only you would know, a decent trial between the basic and premium models would be needed for you to know this.
As for brand, well this is very subjective,you could ask what’s the best smartphone, so the one that works for you is the one to have,you asked about Widex but Phonak, Signia,ReSound,Oticon all have pretty good HAs, maybe do a trial between a few and you decide which one is better for your situation, go for at least a size 312 if you like a bit streaming, of course rechargeable is another option (seems all the manufacturer’s are going there) you need your audiology clinic to shortlist some for you, and go from there, the number one issue people have with premium is the cost, so don’t forget to look at Costco for one of the best deals around for premium models.

For some reason, no one has seriously considered them for me. The body looks HUGE and the tube, mold part looks bigger than RIC’s- and look uncomfortable. I have no idea how babies can wear them…

@hilary said:

For some reason, no one has seriously considered them for me. The body looks HUGE and the tube, mold part looks bigger than RIC’s- and look uncomfortable.

Eh, depends on your ear. The molds do fill up the ear, but they are a soft custom fit and should not be uncomfortable. With tiny ears that cannot fit receivers, the RIC wire often sticks out like a wing anyway and so the mold ends up looking sleeker. The body of the hearing aid behind the ear may be close to a RIC if your hearing loss can be supported with just a moderate or power device (and 312 battery). The super power devices certainly are bigger, so if your pinna is small and tight to your head that’s a consideration. A nice thing about BTEs is that the tube is typically stiffer than a RIC wire and so doesn’t flop off your ear as easily. Retention is better. BTEs are very robust. Earmolds also typically provide better low frequency response.

The downside of BTEs is that you cannot return the custom molds, so if you try them and don’t like them you are out of some money. The earmolds should also be replaced regularly.

In regards to processing speed, it’s generally no different from level to level with perhaps the exception of Widex that has a new speedy processing feature that they may be limiting to premium devices right now. Widex claims that this feature provides clearer, more natural sound. Your mileage may vary. I fit a few and then the company ticked me off and I stopped fitting them, so I don’t have a lot of experience with them lately. Back when I fit more Widex I was always pretty happy with their sound quality and their wind noise management. I think they also still have that nice landline phone. I have to go back and check, though, isn’t their “pure sound” option really only relevant for open fits? If you have a flat loss that’s not you.

Baby earmolds are adorable 100% of the time.

@hilary said:

Also BTE ear molds can hurt just as much as RIC ones- they still go into the ear canal- true?

Yes, but RICs are bound by the size of the receiver block which has to fit into your ear. If you have a small ear canal sometimes the power level of receiver you need simply doesn’t fit. I assume that this is the case for you because of what you are saying about the Widex choice. The receiver block on Widex hearing aids is slightly smaller than other manufacturers. With a BTE earmold, there is no receiver block to fit into the ear, just a small tube. A properly fitted earmold should not hurt, although sometimes it can take a remake or two to get it right (particularly during staff change-overs at the manufacturer lab).

@hilary said:

I had very tiny acrylic earmolds, that no one seems to be able to duplicate.

Oticon makes nice little embedded molds, but if your hearing progressed a bit and you now need a more powerful receiver, they may not be able to make the same nice little mold because of physical space limitations (the more powerful receiver is perhaps now too large to fit in your ear inside of an embedded mold).

@hilary said:

I heard that Widex ‘nickle and dimes’ audiologists for every tiny thing- shipping back and forth, restocking fees, etc. But this seems to be my only choice for now.

Depends on the clinic. Manufacturers do more favours for clinics that purchase higher volumes, unfortunately. If your clinician is not a big Widex fitter, they probably do nickle and dime her. Additionally, Widex is a smaller manufacturer and it is probably a lower volume device for many clinics and may therefore get a reputation for nickle and diming EVERYONE. But any manufacturer will nickle and dime you if you aren’t fitting their product regulary. The differences can be a bit outrageous. For example, one manufacturer gives us wax filters at no charge and we pass them onto our customers at no charge. Another tried for a while to give them to use at $6/case. That $1 per wax filter. That tiny little white thing! A DOLLAR! That same company charges us double the repair cost of any other company, and also differentiates component repairs from shell repairs and will charge you double if the hearing aid has a broken wire AND a crack.

@hilary said:

My question now is do the Widex, or other HA models in general, higher tech tiers actually use more battery energy because they have more channels, more programs?

Higher tier hearing aids may have more power hungry features. For example, if you are sitting in a beam forming program all day long you will drain your batteries much more quickly than if you are sitting in an omnidirectional program. If a lower tier hearing aid doesn’t HAVE a beam forming program, then you can’t use the battery on it. In practice, however, most people aren’t sitting in noisy environments for long enough periods for it too make a dramatic difference what the extra noise reduction features are doing. As MDB says, biggest determinants of battery life tend to be gain and streaming. Also, batteries are cheap–how hard is it for you to change them? For some users it’s a huge hassle or physically difficult, for others hearing aid size is more important. If you want to get a #10, steam all day, and go through a battery a day, maybe that’s fine for you.

@Raudrive said:

My understanding about hearing aid levels is most people can not tell the difference.

Depends on the person.