Should I be skeptical about rechargeable hearing aid?

@Heather_R said:

This is also where I first noticed that conventional battery options are decreasing and sharing our concerns will hopefully help bring more visibility to this issue so we can continue to have the choices we need.

Have you shared your concerns with any hearing aid companies?

@Neville - I see where the older population might have dexterity issues with batteries. I see and understand why Phonak might make rechargeables for this population. That’s all well and fine - and doesn’t bother me one bit. They can have their rechargeables.

But it should never come at the expense of my own not having any hearing for a few hours while these dumb devices charge. They should always offer a choice - not either/or and discriminate against users who are part of a protected class like myself.

The title of this thread is “Should I be skeptical of rechargeables and I’m starting to think a better question is “What should I consider when choosing rechargeables vs conventional batteries”. When my current fitter first suggested rechargeables to me (before he realized how bad my hearing really is ) I had no idea what the limitations might be and while I can find blog posts and videos weighing on these topics they are almost all put out by people that do not wear hearing aids themselves and at the end of the day I still like to hear from actual fellow users.

While this and other threads on the topic do run long they have helped me reevaluate my own thinking with regards to rechargeables and though I still don’t think they are for me if they ever become available in my HA category unless they improve run times by a lot I am glad they have improved the quality of life for so many others (including my grandma ).

I think I’ve said all I wanted to say on this topic at this time so I’m going to step away from this thread for now but thanks to everyone that responded to my “what ifs” and other questions and gave me some things to think about.

@codergeek2015 said:

They should always offer a choice - not either/or and discriminate against users who are part of a protected class like myself.

They do. Phonak has been picked on specifically because the lumity rechargeable RIC came out first. And yet, there is still a 675 BTE (which not all manufacturers even offer) and a 312 RIC is coming out, maybe the 312 BTE too. There are 13 BTEs and RICs in the Marvel and Paradise line. They have 10, 312, and 13 custom products available. People still get angry because they want their preferred battery to always be the first one out and always in the new line, which I suppose is the manufacturer’s own problem for marketting as if the “new line” is more than a very incremental change from the previous one. There’s no indication that the NEXT line of devices after lumity won’t also have traditional battery options, even though they need to put work into this new huge segment of the market as well as putting time towards (presumably) building a rechargeable custom to keep up with Signia and Starkey and Resound. The manufacturers have to make choices about what they can do when, sure. But traditional battery options are all still available and they aren’t going anywhere any time soon.

No, @Neville - Phonak DOES NOT OFFER A CHOICE. My Naida UP Configuration has ZERO CROS unit. Please, point me to a CROS unit that Phonak provides on the Naida Lumity UP, Naida Paradise UP, and Naida Marvel UP. No rechargeables, no battery.

Bring up any online paperwork from Phonak that shows a black dot in the column for compatibility for the Phonak Naida Lumity UP, that shows this. I’ll wait.

Simple add, especially after 217 replies, why not just use a graphic equalizer and headphones. That’s what I do. I take out the hearing aid, rely on equalization on the computer. This works good enough.

I’m glad that works for you, but I have had the opposite experience. For my carreer I find the rechargeables much better. My meetings almost always last longer than a half hour, so a half hour warning just causes me stress. I have to either leave the meeting to grab new batteries (seeing as I would have them somewhere, but my dress clothes don’t usually have pockets so I didn’t always have them in the room with me) or if I did have them with me it is a distraction to everyone for me to change the batteries while the meeting is happening. With my rechargeables I can see that I have enough battery to last through the day.

But it’s good to know that you are able to check the status of the disposable batteries in the app. In my last HAs there was no way to check the status, so maybe that is a new functionality since my last disposable battery set.

Tik Tok? I don’t live here, thanks.

Phonak had both a rechargeable and a traditional battery CROS. What they don’t have right now is cross-style compatibility, which is very frustrating for me. I’m not sure why you are spending so much vitriol on it, however, given that you said you didn’t like your previous phonak hearing aids and had wished that you could try another manufacture back when you got those, and are now successfully trialing another manufacture that does have that compatibility. Oticon didn’t even have a cros back when you got your phonak set; CROS options have expanded across manufacturers since then.

How long do you get with Phonak luminity 90 Audeo streaming and non streaming?

Phonak claims 16 hrs with 4 hrs of that being BT streaming and 4 hrs streaming from their TV connect.
Strength of receiver (M vs UP), degree of loss, time spent in high noise situations and random chance could all result in different times. My understanding is that you can monitor battery levels with an app so one stay on top of it if one wishes. (Disposables have such a flat voltage curve that it’s hard to monitor)

I understand your frustration @codergeek2015 but unfortunately, we sometimes shoot the messenger! Phonak did release a Lumity Cros, I believe? But, they made the fatal error of making it rechargeable, apparently the battery drain is horrendous, so much so, I believe the NHS refuse to stock it! I am almost certain, they will have went back to the drawing board, so they should eventually come out with a battery version… Cheers Kev

It’s fine guys, don’t worry. I’ll just mute him and he can mute me and that will calm things down.

That’s fine. I don’t appreciate audiologists who are financially-obligated to Phonak, hence why you push Phonak-only. That doesn’t make you an audiologist in my eyes. That makes you a sales rep. That’s all.

A real audiologist allows their clients to try all manufacturers to see what works best for them. And is not just there to line their pocketbook.

Thanks, @kevels55!! I highly doubt that. They haven’t had Phonak NAIDA CROS units since the Bs when I bought into them, and now I can’t get it anymore. So yes, I am angry at Phonak and will be for a long time. I hold grudges.