Costco Kirkland Signature 6.0

@Goosebumps said:

I have had my eyes on Resound for years and finally ready to pull the trigger on these Costco Signature 6. These will be my first HAs. I need a new phone for my Signature 6 HAs and will need to buy the phone first.

Since these smart phones have such a limited life span when it comes to updating OS compared to computers I really don’t want to invest in a smart phone that only has two years left in it when it comes to OS updates after spending $650.00.

I was thinking about an iphone 6 plus but after asking the question about how long support would be for this 6 plus and voicing my concerns my post was rejected. WOW! So I am NOT going to buy an Apple again if they are that thin skinned about consumers concerns. I read here that someone said that the Samsung 5 can use an app the same way an Iphone 5 & 6 can. This is great!!! So I will be looking closely at the Samsung offerings. I know they have great cameras. I am open to any other suggestions from Signature 6 users on smart phone brands that have apps that don’t need the clicker. Do any of them give guarantees on life span support like Microsoft does gives for Win 7 for example? The iphone 4 I have only lasted about 4 yrs when Apple locked it up so no updates so simple apps can’t even be installed. Ridiculous!

I also have a concern about data usage. I don’t use much cell phone data right now. I use Ting for wireless cell phone service and it is GREAT. My Jan bill for two phones was 38 dollars and Feb is 36 dollars. Consumer reports ranks them very high. I was with Tracphone but that was not so great. Ting is so much better on so many levels. The people who made Tucows are behind this new carrier and they are good for folks who do not use a ton of data. I pay 3.00 for 500mb data for two phones. I pay 3.00 for 100 text messages for two phones. I pay 6.00 for each phone. I pay 9.00 for up to 1,000 minutes for two phones and then another 9.00 for another 1,000 minutes if I go over. Their support is excellent too. From the posts here it sounds like if I am at home I can take the phone off of data and just wirelessly stream from a tv to HAs with my wireless router? But if I miss place my HA at home then the gps will not be monitoring the aids. If I am out and about does the gps really eat up much data for these HAs? I love the fact the gps will help you find lost HA. I also read it will track and save settings of your favorite haunts and then automatically adjust the aid when you go there next time? Are there any other brands that also have the better app where you don’t need the clicker?

I would love to hear the pros and cons of these other cell phone brands and models when using these HAs. I have waited 8 yrs to afford this and need to be very careful with how I approach this. I hope to have the phone and HAs for several years. Thanks for any insights you can provide : )

Goosebumps: I have used Samsung phones with Android OS for over 10 years. Android publishes updates to its operating system several times a year, always free and always compatible with your equipment. Occasionally an app needs to be updated by its owner, but because Android gives their app makers plenty of time to get ready, there have been very few problems with their updates.

I am still in trial mode with my KS6s. I purchased a streaming accessory for $210 that works between my cell phone and the HA. Other than the need to carry another device and keep it charged, it works well for my purposes. I like the streaming capability; it makes phone use a pleasure rather than a chore. However, I can still work with a landline phone; somehow the HA picks up the sound and gets it into my ear, though it is not as clear as the streaming from my cell.

I also had to purchase custom ear molds for another $80. The standard domes did not create enough bass tones for me to be able to hear well.

The key to good hearing with any hearing aid is the persistence of the user in making the audi tweak the settings for optimal performance. It is a trial and error process and is complicated by the users difficulty in communicating what he is hearing to the programmer.

Good luck

@Musician_72 said:

May I ask if you have problems understanding the phone right now?

Well for the most part but there are times when the iphone 4 is just awful. Even my husband who has good hearing hates them. So I would like to get a better phone for that and I am sick of being locked out of simple apps that Apple won’t let install on it. Yes I could jail break the phone but chose not to.

Here is a good break down the iphones for those who are curious:

Speaker Volume Comparison: iPhone 6 Plus Vs iPhone 6 Vs Every Other iPhone...

iPhone 6 vs 6 Plus vs 5s vs 5c vs 5 vs 4s vs 4 vs 3GS vs 3G vs 2G speaker volume compared on video. Here are the complete details. Find out which iPhone is the loudest to date.

After looking at a comparison to the outputs of several generations of iphones the 4 is the worst! I got it thru Ting for 87.00 brand new. Not sure which direction I need to lean towards. It’s going to have to be either a Samsung or iphone. I just got two good emails back from Resound and found out more important info:

"[FONT=arial black]Currently our developers are working with Android manufacturers to figure out a solution regarding the inability to stream directly from their phones to hearing aids, however we do not have a timeline for when a solution will be available. For now Android phone users have the option of using the Unite Phone Clip + accessory to stream audio such as phone calls or music to the hearing aids. Otherwise, the use of the Kirkland Signature Choice App for remote control purposes can be done directly without a separate accessory with the Samsung Galaxy S4, S5, S6, and Note 4."

[/FONT]Then a follow up:

"As new iPhones come out there may be unexpected features that may make it so our developers add different functionality to the Kirkland Signature Choice App, in this case we would not support such an update to earlier versions of the iPhone that do not have those added features. In this scenario however, the app would still work and would not limit any functionality from your end. Otherwise we would support app updates for older versions that have app compatibility. If for some reason there was an issue with the Choice App you would still be able to pair and control the hearing aids from the phone itself since the pairing process is built into the iPhone operating system itself so you would still be able to stream and there is a Native iPhone app built in for controlling the hearing aid volume and programs.

In the case of having a supported Samsung Galaxy Android phone the Phone Clip only provides streaming functionality otherwise the hearing aids directly pair with the Kirkland Signature Choice App and that app has all the same functionality as the iPhone app. The Phone Clip itself provides simple volume control and program change features, the remote control accessory you mentioned has those same features as well but has a visual display to be able to see those changes and does not have the Bluetooth streaming capability. The Choice app has the advantage of being able to also adjust bass and treble, save Favorites, and use the Finder feature to locate your hearing aids if they were lost.

The Phone Clip accessory does not require any regular updates. If a firmware update were to come out it would generally for newer models of hearing aids but if the Phone Clip did need one for your hearing aids it would have to be done at a Costco with their Hearing Care Professionals."

So it sounds like even if apple locked down their phones and prevents OS updates they still have their own pairing software that will work to connect to the HAs. But it doesn’t sound like they have any guarantees from Apple to let the locked down phones to access new updates from Resound. After reading many reviews etc it seems like there were lots of bugs with the android app at the beginning of 2015 and updates were having to be written. Seems like they rolled the app out before they really vetted it.

Perhaps Resound was able to pair up with Apple in a real way since Apple may have already had a pairing software for their phones? Samsung and the others don’t. No telling if android makers will make it a priority and that may explain why Resound has no idea when or if streaming will happen for androids? So maybe Apple is not a bad apple but ahead of the curve and Resound decided to roll it out with them. Maybe instead of haranguing Resound we should be pointing a finger towards Samsung and the rest of the androids to provide basic disability type app for streaming to HAs? Just guessing here.

One downside to the clip from what she said is that if the phone clip needed a firmware update you would need to take it to Costco, I guess flash the bios? Surprised the clip isn’t able to be updated via a connection to computer via usb.

So they have a clip as a router of sorts to stream the phone to the HAs for androids. Now if you do not have a Samsung phone that will accept the android app you will use the remote to make adjustments.

They really could make this much more clear. With android it doesn’t sound like their app has the gps ability to track a lost HA. It sounds like the android app can save settings but not sure it will automatically switch over when you go back to your favorite haunts? Also the remote most likely doesn’t have the ability to track lost HA either. It may also not know to switch settings automatically when you go to your favorite spots. I think I could have made an excel sheet that would have been much more useful in comparing android to iphone than what Costco and Resound provides.

I wonder if anyone has checked out and compared the specs on the Samsung speakers that can handle the apps, as far as speaker loudness, for those of us who may not need to stream. I need to track that down.

@hshachter said:

Goosebumps: I have used Samsung phones with Android OS for over 10 years. Android publishes updates to its operating system several times a year, always free and always compatible with your equipment. Occasionally an app needs to be updated by its owner, but because Android gives their app makers plenty of time to get ready, there have been very few problems with their updates.

I am still in trial mode with my KS6s. I purchased a streaming accessory for $210 that works between my cell phone and the HA. Other than the need to carry another device and keep it charged, it works well for my purposes. I like the streaming capability; it makes phone use a pleasure rather than a chore. However, I can still work with a landline phone; somehow the HA picks up the sound and gets it into my ear, though it is not as clear as the streaming from my cell.

I also had to purchase custom ear molds for another $80. The standard domes did not create enough bass tones for me to be able to hear well.

The key to good hearing with any hearing aid is the persistence of the user in making the audi tweak the settings for optimal performance. It is a trial and error process and is complicated by the users difficulty in communicating what he is hearing to the programmer.

Good luck

Hi Howard. Well I read a lot of reviews on the android apps and I have to say they rolled out the app before it was vetted. Lots of update issues at the beginning of 2015 from what I could find. I can hardly wait to test out the streaming to see what it is like ; ) but may not need it. So you have problems hearing the phone with the HAs in. Interesting. So you can have custom molds to make the sounds better which sounds like a good investment and option for some. Good to know. Yes the audi tweaker seems to make a big difference. But can’t you tweak it yourself too or are the tweaks they do different from what you can do with the remote?

I do not know if anyone has mentioned it yet or not, but for droids or iphone you can use an Equalizer App for in-call EQ. You will not likely need your Ha to use a cell phone. Just set to the boost/attenuate to your hearing. Volume+ is a good one for Androids and works great.

Most new Cell phones have a feature called Bridge where you can link your phone to TV, stereo, video games etc… Use ear buds and EQ on your cell phone for streaming and save yourself several hundred dollars buying useless limited gagets from HA manufactures to stream to your hearing aid.

What is really interesting this will make a lot of folks here real mad. ITS FREE and costing you nothing to try. Even if you like and keep ITS FREE.

@dereckbc said:

For just the phone use to make and receive calls, there is nothing to stream or strain on the cell phone battery. You use the phone like every other normal person. The EQ App mimics your hearing aid frequency response.

I just got my Costco KS6. I did not opt for the Phone Clip because I just use the EQ App like I have for the last few years for the phone. When I get a call or make a call, I just use the phone like any normal person even with the HA left in my ear and it still works. I do not need the $200 Phone Clip. You got nothing to loose to try it. You don’t like it, delete the App. Streaming is just additional perks.

Someone here just told me that Costco is giving away a free battery charger or the phone clip. I wonder if you can get one for free from Costco since you just got yours. I think he got his about 10 days ago. But it sounds like you don’t have to fiddle with the clip if you use the EQ App which is one less thing to keep track of. Yes your are right nothing to lose on that one. So what model of phone did you use with your KS6?

@dereckbc said:

For just the phone use to make and receive calls, there is nothing to stream or strain on the cell phone battery. You use the phone like every other normal person. The EQ App mimics your hearing aid frequency response.

I just got my Costco KS6. I did not opt for the Phone Clip because I just use the EQ App like I have for the last few years for the phone. When I get a call or make a call, I just use the phone like any normal person even with the HA left in my ear and it still works. I do not need the $200 Phone Clip. You got nothing to loose to try it. You don’t like it, delete the App. Streaming is just additional perks.

My LG G4 has a built-in setting called “Hearing Aid Compatibility”. I have it checked and can hear calls extremely clearly without downloading another program. It’s not telecoil because it doesn’t activate mine. Whatever it is, though, it work perfectly for me.

Goosebump, I 'm not so sure about Apple locking the phone down for upgrades. Again, if the chipset isn’t powerful enough to handle the new OS, you would not be able to upgrade the OS. Think 286-SX and Windows 7, no way. Even the video chipset would not handle it. Ditto the cell phones. Androids are no better, you hit the ceiling on their specs and that’s it. As for Android verses iPhone … I have 3 kids, two had iPhones and switched to Samsung … and are anxiously waiting for their upgrade period so they can switch back to the iPhone, they do not like the Samsung after having iPhones. The third kid has an iPhone 6 Plus … and hates the sound of it, he has T-Mobile and knows it is their cheaper service causing his problem with people understanding him on it. How? He also has an iPhone 5, company issued, and it works great … and is not T-Mobile or other cheap service. He’s a network engineer, ergo a good iPhone.

I have the Phone Clip+, I use it strictly at work as I spend a lot of time on the multi-line work desk phone. I have a Jabra Bluetooth adapter plugged into the desk phone and it streams directly into the Clip+ and the Clip+ clipped to my shirt lapels is the mic for the phone. It works beautifully. With my iPhone though, the KS6’s are not fully hands-free. The sound streams directly from my iPhone into my aids … with an option to stream to one side or the other or both. The iPhone itself has a built-in app that allows me to select the streaming mode and to also control the volume individually to either side and also to Bluetooth and hearing aid mics. That app also works with the Clip+ and the Jabra allowing me full control of the incoming volume from either source. Phone calls on the iPhone are not fully hands-free as I said. The sound goes directly into the aids, but you must speak into the iPhone mic. The iPhone can be sitting in your lap and does not have to be right in front of your mouth. The Phone Clip+ resides in my office, right now with me at home it is plugged into the charge cable overnight and lasts the full work-day on the phone. The Phone Clip+ costs less than half the Phonak iCom, is better designed, and works much better … and I am happy to say that my company paid for it in full as I needed it for work. The aids were all mine though, but $1,799 beats the Trax 42 $2,900 (I think it was) especially as it was out of my pocket. When in my car, I use the Bluetooth of my Alpine head unit to talk to Siri. I can hold a conversation with her, tell her what music to play, ask her to read messages and reply to them, and tell her to call a number or one of my contacts. Pretty cool to ask her where the nearest bagel shop is, have her call it for me and order a bagel and cream cheese to be ready to pick up at the time she tells me I’ll be there.

My kids swear at their Android phones, I swear BY my iPhone. Before breaking down and getting the iPhone 5 a few years ago I only had dumb cell phones, clamshell types without any smart features. Despite being a total techie for years, I was out of the loop cell-phone-wise.

Neil

@Ansextra said:

My LG G4 has a built-in setting called “Hearing Aid Compatibility”. I have it checked and can hear calls extremely clearly without downloading another program. It’s not telecoil because it doesn’t activate mine. Whatever it is, though, it work perfectly for me.

That is really helpful info. Having a list of phones with this capability would be useful to this forum unless they all have them? Something tells me they may not all have this feature. Just before I hit the sack last night two things came to mind. First with the remote and clicker you won’t know if there are any updates for them since they are not online so two points go to phones with app for these hearing aids. I consider not having automatic updating features with clicker and remote a bad strategy especially after reading the poor reviews when the android app rolled out. The only reason I am digging into this before hand is I will be able to return the hearing aids to Costco but I probably won’t be able to return the phone. So breaking this all down before hand is critical and deciding if a clicker and clip is better strategy for me over which phone is also key. I am leaning towards the iphone at this point based on several factors. As you know I am not an Apple fan. But so far based on what I found out it has a huge advantage. Also having the phone before I get the aids will allow me to learn and adjust when fitted for the HAs. I have a feeling I may be tweaking with the settings to find the sweet spot for both my ears and maybe as I get used to them I may want to turn things up or down as my ears adjust to this new sound.

@Neilk said:

The third kid has an iPhone 6 Plus … and hates the sound of it, he has T-Mobile and knows it is their cheaper service causing his problem with people understanding him on it. How? He also has an iPhone 5, company issued, and it works great … and is not T-Mobile or other cheap service. He’s a network engineer, ergo a good iPhone.

Slightly OT, but your son should be able to port over to Verizon if his 6 Plus isn’t locked to T-Mobile.

@Neilk said:

Goosebump, I 'm not so sure about Apple locking the phone down for upgrades. Again, if the chipset isn’t powerful enough to handle the new OS, you would not be able to upgrade the OS. Think 286-SX and Windows 7, no way. Even the video chipset would not handle it. Ditto the cell phones. Androids are no better, you hit the ceiling on their specs and that’s it. As for Android verses iPhone … I have 3 kids, two had iPhones and switched to Samsung … and are anxiously waiting for their upgrade period so they can switch back to the iPhone, they do not like the Samsung after having iPhones. The third kid has an iPhone 6 Plus … and hates the sound of it, he has T-Mobile and knows it is their cheaper service causing his problem with people understanding him on it. How? He also has an iPhone 5, company issued, and it works great … and is not T-Mobile or other cheap service. He’s a network engineer, ergo a good iPhone.

I have the Phone Clip+, I use it strictly at work as I spend a lot of time on the multi-line work desk phone. I have a Jabra Bluetooth adapter plugged into the desk phone and it streams directly into the Clip+ and the Clip+ clipped to my shirt lapels is the mic for the phone. It works beautifully. With my iPhone though, the KS6’s are not fully hands-free. The sound streams directly from my iPhone into my aids … with an option to stream to one side or the other or both. The iPhone itself has a built-in app that allows me to select the streaming mode and to also control the volume individually to either side and also to Bluetooth and hearing aid mics. That app also works with the Clip+ and the Jabra allowing me full control of the incoming volume from either source. Phone calls on the iPhone are not fully hands-free as I said. The sound goes directly into the aids, but you must speak into the iPhone mic. The iPhone can be sitting in your lap and does not have to be right in front of your mouth. The Phone Clip+ resides in my office, right now with me at home it is plugged into the charge cable overnight and lasts the full work-day on the phone. The Phone Clip+ costs less than half the Phonak iCom, is better designed, and works much better … and I am happy to say that my company paid for it in full as I needed it for work. The aids were all mine though, but $1,799 beats the Trax 42 $2,900 (I think it was) especially as it was out of my pocket. When in my car, I use the Bluetooth of my Alpine head unit to talk to Siri. I can hold a conversation with her, tell her what music to play, ask her to read messages and reply to them, and tell her to call a number or one of my contacts. Pretty cool to ask her where the nearest bagel shop is, have her call it for me and order a bagel and cream cheese to be ready to pick up at the time she tells me I’ll be there.

My kids swear at their Android phones, I swear BY my iPhone. Before breaking down and getting the iPhone 5 a few years ago I only had dumb cell phones, clamshell types without any smart features. Despite being a total techie for years, I was out of the loop cell-phone-wise.

Neil

Hi Neil, well when I talked to someone at Apple, as I said before, they told me the phone had the capacity to handle io9 but I am locked into io7. Just saying… Yes they do lock the ios down when they want to sell newer models, google it and you will find endless posts on this. Yes I get the whole chipset thing. So you are using iphone 5 and one kid is using iphone 6+ and that kids doesn’t like the sound from it. Have you tried his phone with your HAs? I liked the idea of having a bigger screen with iphone 6+ but if the sound is not great then I will want to look at other models since I have already gotten burned on the iphone 4 crappy sound. To prove my point I had posted a great link that has a video where they show the db of each iphone side by side which is very helpful. I have tried to track down something similar of the Samsungs but couldn’t find it but from the bits I could find it sounds like their db were much lower by a lot. That is a deal breaker for me right there beyond the other negatives I have come across so far.

Love how you interfaced your HAs with other devices to make it all work for you at work and in the car. This sounds like it took some time to figure what all works best for your situation.

So I thought the clip was only for the android but now you are saying it can be useful in conjunction with the iphone or is that clip an iphone clip?

My service Ting allows me to buy the phone outside and bring it with me. They also sell models directly too and the prices are competitive and sometimes very competitive. I have found that their reconditioned units were all new. Here Verizon type CDMA works best but Ting will also do the GSM coverage as well. I had many years ago tried T-Mobile but the coverage was awful and I tired quickly of their empty promises of upgrades to my area. I will come back to this post to experiment with what you have done to see how I can better integrate things with my HAs. Thanks for breaking it all down of what is possible.

[quote=doubledown;135979]goosebumps,
regarding your health issue, be aware many antibiotics and over the counter medications (aspirin, neosporin, ibueprofin) are ototoxic.
http://www.nvrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Drugs-that-Cause-HL.pdf ignore the advert in the doc

Yes I already know to avoid those things but didn’t know there was a link to toxicity to the ears. Interesting. DD I am having a hard time dealing with your posts and attacks. I am not sure if you think I am naive and you think I need to know about stuff with posters here. I am a big girl DD and I will carefully weigh and verify everything, plus our mileage will vary too. I have to say that when I read your attacks on Neil it really discredits you and what you have to add to the discussion. I think if you stuck with the facts and not made personal attacks it would help your arguments. I really think you should move on if you can’t keep it on point with your postings. Calling someone a psycho is out of line. I wonder if you have mental health issues that provoke you to post as you do since everyone here seems very tired of your posts. I would welcome any insights you have on this but keep to the facts. As far as your statement about iphones I will have to disagree with you on the high cost of apple in some cases. Know that I am not a fan of Apple at all, but there are clear advantages with the iphone that I have found out so far. Right now if I wanted to get an iphone 5 like Neil has I would only pay 237 for a refurbished one. It will probably be a new one since my last 3 refurbished units have all been new via Ting. Here is a link to support my point:
https://ting.com/shop/Apple-iPhone-5-Refurbished
I can buy a phone anywhere as long as Ting supports it so I probably could get one even cheaper than the Ting price. I am surprised you haven’t been booted or suspended my admins to the forum when you make personal attacks like that. I don’t have time to waste doing a posting slug fest with you on this forum and I feel others are really sick of your diatribes. You may very well have some good points but no one is going to take you seriously the way you are posting here. I certainly can’t.

@hshachter said:

The app, which is called Choice, lets you control volume in each program, even separating the volume for the left and right HAs, and adjust treble and bass. It also lets you switch between programs and allow you to save the custom settings based upon location. I haven’t tried this last feature yet. As an aside, ALL APPS have glitches when first released, no matter how thorough the testing beforehand. Since I only downloaded Choice in the last month, most of these glitches have been fixed. I have not noticed any significant problem other that a two or three second delay in establishing the connection between cell phone and HA.

The hearing aid professional at Costco has a wide range of settings that can be applied. However, I have not found any documentation of what these settings are. If any of you out there can refer me to a programmers document, it would help me to communicate my needs to the audi.

So the android app does use it’s gps to track your HAs, if it can track settings for location. Does it also help you track a lost HA? This is a good point if true. I do think since I will be new to HAs there is a good possibility I may lose one and not know it since my hearing loss is not so bad. I lose earrings and well I can see the possibility of losing a hearing aid too and being able to track it down and find it sounds like a good feature. Yes I agree that all apps may have glitches but all the more reason why it is important to have a phone that is being supported and not locked and can run updates when they do come out. This is true of android and iphone. Yes I will ask the technician on Saturday what documentation there is for range of settings for both the android and iphone apps. I think that is a good point. Many have pointed out here that the audi makes a huge difference in getting HAs set up well. If you aren’t luck enough to get a good audi then having that documentation to guide the audi or changing it yourself would be very helpful.

I just stumbled on this announcement . . . Well here is the first look at the iphone 7 or iphone pro depending on what they decide to call it. They will not have a headphone jack so these phones will pair with their wireless headphones. I wonder if working with Resound helped them with their to approach wireless headphones? It could mean they will have ongoing support for pairing for devices since it will be a basic function of the phone.

Apple's iPhone 7 WILL dump the headphone socket

The latest leak from nowhereelse.fr shows a case with no headphone socket, but in their place stereo speakers.

@doubledown said:

goosebumps,
regarding your health issue, be aware many antibiotics and over the counter medications (aspirin, neosporin, ibueprofin) are ototoxic.
http://www.nvrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Drugs-that-Cause-HL.pdf ignore the advert in the doc

neilk,
and by your logic, no audiologist can ever recommend any aids as most of them do not even wear them.

no wonder you got so upset whenever I try to get people to try out products better than the ks6. you put so much money into apple products that you are making it your life’s goal to convince others to buy this aid so you can justify your own purchase. you keep touting the cost of the ks6 but you ignore the amount of money you’ve spent on your apple products!

you won’t even post your audiogram! everybody else does why don’t you post yours? you posting under multiple aliases like a psycho?

DD, you are so far off-track it is unreal! You have no business posting in a forum when you have no experience with the product, and only want to push much more expensive products based upon specifications only, and you constantly ignore how others may feel about the product that you still insist on putting down. Hearing aids are personal choices, they are extremely good for some, maybe not quite as good for others. Why can’t you get that into your head? The imaginary statement about my logic saying that audiologists cannot recommend aids, I don’t even know where you came up with that from as I never said as much or anything even close to it. Is that what you are, an audiologist? If so, you need more education and a better understanding of people. To constantly post negative remarks about a product you do not use in a board that is dedicated to that manufacturer’s products is insulting to those who do like that manufacturer’s products. You like to insult people, is that it? YOu say that you have Phonak’s in your sig, go back to posting there where people might appreciate your posts, and stop insulting those on other manufacturer’s boards. People who want information on other products can certainly go look in those boards if they desire.