Do all VA audiology departments supply the Ultra version of Spheres or flash it?

I visited my VA AuD yesterday for some minor Sphere tweaks and was told there are no firmware or software updates currently available - and he even double checked the VA site.

David

I loaded the Ultra firmware myself. If your provider has the most recent update of the Target software (the software they use to configure your HAs) they can’t avoid seeing the Ultra update. Target, when it logs into your HAs, has a pop up that says an update is available. Click to download. It took seven minutes. Maybe they haven’t updated Target. The update of Target is trivial and is done from within the Target app.

The VA systems are locked down. Their network may not even be peered to internet. I worked with a different govt agency and access to external sites was primarily by “white listing” rather than defaulting to anything-goes. Our computers were rigorously controlled. Nothing, and I mean nothing, automatically updated from the internet. When updates were throughly tested and approved, it would be rolled out from system management equipment. We were even limited in addons for browsers, etc.

That said, my VA told me to update my spheres if I had the ability.

WH

The value of the data is phenomenal as it is medical health data on millions of people. The VA can’t afford any of the breaches I read about daily. Many of us in the VA have already had data like SSN & etc leaked by other govt agencies. I’ll pass on any more.

WH

I am a retired IT professional and have worked for Microsoft and Dell Computers and other companies doing phone support and field service. I retired as a Microsoft Certified System Engineer Master level and have no plans to touch my on aids. The month after I retired I also retired everything Microsoft, meaning I got rid of all Microsoft software. At this time I have one old MacBook and 2 android tablets, a kindle, and a Fire tablet. I use a Samsung S25FE phone. I spend my time doing colored pencil art, volunteering at my church, the American Legion, and the VA clinics. My research was learning about my hearing loss, but now I am concentrating on keeping what I have left of my vision. My worst fear is going blind and having my hearing getting worse. I don’t take prescription drugs as it is bad news for vision and tinnitus.

Good advice. Why should I switch to Intents? I had P90’s. Why would an audiologist initially recommend a lesser Phonak, rather than Spheres? Because AI Speech chews up the battery life (since the VA does not know of or perform the update to Ultra) or is unnatural? Can it be turned off?

I started using Linux back when it first came available. I believe it was sometime in the 1980s or early 1990s. That was when I had to compile my own kernel. I have used CPM, DOS, UNIX, TRSDos, Linux, Etc. It was all a learning experience and helped me to get the jobs and career opportunities that I had. I started out as an electronics technician, trained to become an engineer then software programs then system engineering. I still love learning but my interests has changed.

The reference to the Intents was my way of being humorous, did you see the smiley?

The Spheres only go into Spheric mode when the aids detect intense noise, so for the most part you won’t even use it.

Most users say they get excellent battery life. I don’t wear Phonaks so I’m no expert, but since they use bluetooth classic, and don’t plan on updating to LE Audio in the near future, there will be more battery power used if you stream a lot. Not nearly as bad as previous models, because the internal battery is larger.

Have you followed any of the dozens of Sphere threads on here? There’s plenty of information available for you which would answer your questions.

I am 78 , I was told from a very young age, that if I didn’t learn something new the day was wasted. I still believe that and it keeps the brain fresh and working.

@WhiteHat said:

Batteries on sphere would be least of my worries unless I worked in that casino 12 hours a day.

WH

Hah, man, if you worked in a casino, with the oxygen they feed in to keep gamblers at the tables all night, 12 hour days would be a snap!

Great analogy, though! Now you’ve got me wanting to watch that great movie “Croupier” with Clive Owen.

Sorry I did not understand the Intents was a joke. So my question was serious one. I have read as many threads as I can in the short time I was under the gun to start looking. I was seriously considering trialing the Intents but the better AI speech outweighs the classic BT and battery life issue (as those are or will be fixable - adding a more powerful AI chip to an Intent is not). OTH good enough AI may be good enough.

I am now wearing the INTENT1 aids and they are good enough about 90 to 95% of the time for me. I am getting the Spheres on the 5th of December because my audiologist Said they are better for my hearing loss.