Dear Phonak, your Lumity battery isn't good enough

@Um_bongo said:

Genesis RIC RT

I also wonder if a person with my cinderblock ears would get even 24 hrs with Starkey aids. I’m likely not a candidate for the RT model.

That’s a good point. It kind of reminds me of the early-2000s trend towards “baby” cell phones where they became unusably small for a time because manufacturers were more concerned with showing off how tightly they could pack all the tech than with actual usability.

I love my Lumities, but they could be quite a bit bigger than they are without being any more visible or getting in the way of anything. It doesn’t matter for me because my loss is relatively mild, so I 1) don’t drain the battery as quickly with amplification, and 2) can muddle through without them when they need to recharge. But even though I don’t need it, I’d happily accept a bulkier aid with a larger battery if it meant those who did need it didn’t have to go without.

Size definitely isn’t the issue. Starkey Genesis RIC has a 51 hour battery life and a mini RIC with 41 hours battery life.

I’m trialing the mini’s now and end after a day of heavy streaming with 40-45% left

Thanks for sharing.

I’m mainly venting about how Phonak’s flagship Lumity line is only available in RIC as rechargeable and even then barely a days worth just feels like something isn’t right with this strategy so needed to say something.

It’s there already. Starkey Genesis AI RIC has a claimed 51hours with a mini RIC version claiming 41hours.

I have the mini on trial and after a full day (18hours) and 3 hours of calls, YouTube podcasts etc streaming I’m at 40-45% battery.

I agree. 16-18hours and ending the day in single digits battery life is unacceptable.

I do agree the speech quality was amazing when I trialed them. Had some challenges with aggressive programming settings (felt like a wall would suddenly appear when in loud sound environments) but likely adjustable in audiologist settings.

I’ve been waiting for the Lumity CIC to come out for over 12months.

My 2018 Phonaks CICs have recently had issues so trailing other aids during repairs. Mainly Phonak Lumity RIC and Starkey Genesis AI mRIC.

Honestly battery life isn’t good enough with the rechargble phonaks. Starkey crushed (over double) but streaming quality isn’t there (have reconnected multiple times. Still get a lot of crackling when walking with phone in pocket).

Wife just landed new job with better health insurance. Think I’ll just go Phonak Paradise CIC and pay $2-3k due to insurance coverage. Then in 3 years get new aids instead of the usual $6-7k every 5-6 years.

@Conndor said:

crushed (over double) but streaming quality isn’t there (have reconnected multiple times. Still get a lot of crackling when walking with phone in pocket).

Yes, I also prefer the streaming quality of the classic Bluetooth to the low energy Bluetooth, but hence the battery drain.

Has someone told you that there will BE a lumity CIC? I’m expecting a lumity custom by next fall maybe, but if it’s a rechargeable line to match competitors there’s a chance they’ll leave the CIC out. A lot of the features in the lumity are binaural anyway, which wouldn’t apply. Given that CICs are so defeatured, there may not be a tremendous difference from the paradise CIC.

No one has told me but no one has told me it’s not coming.

I just assumed as Lumity is the latest tech that gas new software, chipset etc that it would eventually translate down to custom CIC. Yes I understand it’s not as feature rich as the larger aids but it’s an improvement to the existing Paradise CIC.

Conndor:

I had the same problems with the Paradise CROS RIC. I went to that from an Audeo B which is considerably larger that the Marvel/Paradise/Lumity series. I had to return them to get a battery model. I agree that 16 hours is not sufficient and if I charged during the day, I would effectively lose my hearing. I stream a lot during the day.

One solution would be to make a slightly larger model (XL?) with a larger battery. Phonak seems to be trying to see how small they can make the aids at the expense of battery life. I am well past the age of being vain about wearing hearing aids.

Another would be to have the ability to charge while you are wearing the aids. I think one other vendor offers this (Widex?).

An option for you would be to go with a Paradise battery model.

• Doug.

I think it’s just an aggressive switch between different program types.

Ie normal mode then flip to restaurant mode. In the new mode it deprioritizes sound behind and to the side. I literially feel like a wall at 30degrees each side of me has gone up. It’s very disorienting how quick it flips but to its credit the speech understanding is very good. Was at a conference trialing them and whilst I didn’t like the wall aspect, I did like speech quality.

Could be because I’m used to the ‘phonak way’ so when I’ve tried Starkey I’m not getting the same impression. Could also be the stark difference from my 2018 CICs made a great first impression and now it’s not as much as a difference.

Probably could remove some of the programs and/or have a more natural transistion between them (is that possible?) but I didn’t try as the battery life was unacceptable to me.

@Conndor said:

I think it’s just an aggressive switch between different program types.

If the gains are set too far apart in different programs there will be a more noticeable sound difference when the aids change programs.
This is one of the fitters challenges to do properly so the client doesn’t have the shocking sound changes.

If you want the classic bluetooth streaming but more control over your battery life, and if you are fine with battery changes, which you must be if you are a CIC guy, you could consider the Paradise 13 RIC or the Vivante 312.

But if a CIC makes you happy, stick with a CIC. People malign them for not having all the advanced features, but they have a lot of their own benefits so long as you feel you are still hearing well with them. Good CIC candidates often have very high satistfaction with their devices.

Your letter Beautifully echos my sentiment
except 1 additional point I’d make… I feel like I won’t seriously consider rechargeable until it has has long cycle life…and yeah your 2-days is probably a good number…
BUT i would also add very fast recharge rates. I need to get a significant boost…as in many hours of added life…in just a short time on the charger…
I have a cell phone that can charge maybe a days worth in maybe 20 minutes. I don’t know the exact numbers, but it’s in that ballpark.
and bonus if a dedicated charger isn’t needed…such as wireless induction. That way, when life happens and you’re not at home, you can pop them on any charger for a few minutes to finish the day.

and one more point of anxiety. I once had a loaner pair that was rechargeable when my Marvels were being serviced. After I laid in bed, I had to get back up to double check that they were seated properly in the charger…maybe I jostled them a bit much when I closed the lid and disengaged the flakey little charge contacts!!! It would be a nightmare to get up in the morning only to find they hadn’t charged…and it’s gonna take maybe hours to get them charged