Specsavers Hearing Aids

Mine is Phonak Audeo M70-R from Boots, so not sure if that is similar. I also couldn't always hear the conversation properly when there was a lot of background noise, especially at a restaurant or something. And when the family got together I sometimes missed what the grandchildren were saying. I'd say the hearing aid has definitely helped, but I'm due to go back and have them readjusted now.

As for the technology, there is no technology except fix them over your ear, then place them back in the case to re-charge them. I was given a piece of kit to make them work with my TV but haven't yet even tried that. Just lazy! I really should use it, so maybe that will involve some technology in setting up. To be honest, I stopped using the hearing aid when we went into lockdown nearly two years ago, and haven't really got back into using it. I even forgot to wear it when I saw the grandchildren! I'm hopeless.

Chestnut - my friend uses hers to listen to music on her phone whilst out walking, no wire needed. I'm looking forward to that! I know you have to download an app in order to use the aids to their full advantage but nice to know it's not compulsory!

Is that nhs NotToOld. ?

No, private, silverlining.

Ah, ok thanks,

I doubt I'd listen to music as I like to be in the comfort of home and I have some old but expensive headphones for the best sound. But I really should link it to the TV because I'm sitting there using sub-titles with no hearing aid on. Sometimes I use the old but expensive headphones to get sound clarity. I've been so lazy!

My friend has NHS phonic ones. She gets free batteries and all maintenance is done at the audiology department of the ENT. She too listens to music and any phones she makes she says she switches her hearing aids to a setting that allows her to hear via a device.

* phone calls she makes*

The cost of private hearing aide is extortionate. NHS ones are just as good and free.

Has anyone tried both NHS and private hearing aids? I was given NHS ones but they cause irritation inside my ears. They also just seem to amplify all sound and although my hearing is not great I don’t like loud noises!

I have private hearing aids , they did irritate my ears to start with but that seems to have calmed down .
It takes a while to get used to the louder sounds and for your brain to sort out and identify the sounds you need and filter out some of the background .
No hearing aid is perfect , but I no longer need the subtitles on the TV !

aggie

I have private hearing aids , they did irritate my ears to start with but that seems to have calmed down .
It takes a while to get used to the louder sounds and for your brain to sort out and identify the sounds you need and filter out some of the background .
No hearing aid is perfect , but I no longer need the subtitles on the TV !

Thanks aggie. Will keep trying.

Well I have little trust in the NHS on the subject of hearing since they told my old dad he was completely deaf in his left ear. He then had a private test which revealed he did have some hearing in that ear.

DH has 2 NHS aids and they are constantly breaking of malfunctioning. He gets them fixed for free and batteries but I think he should get some private ones. He says they are too expensive because his mother had two private ones which never seemed to work properly and they were about £7K.

I’m not keen on spec savers for hearing aids as they always try to check my ears every time I get new glasses or go for an eye test because,of course, they make money every time. I don’t have a hearing issue but they still push it and seem quite put out when I refuse their ‘free’ check. If I needed hearing aids I would go elsewhere.

BigBertha1

DH has 2 NHS aids and they are constantly breaking of malfunctioning. He gets them fixed for free and batteries but I think he should get some private ones. He says they are too expensive because his mother had two private ones which never seemed to work properly and they were about £7K.

£7,000 is an astonishing amount to pay for a hearing aid. Mine were digital from Boots in 2019 and cost £2,645. They take great care to tune them into your ears and give free follow-ups to ensure they are still working correctly. To pay such a colossal amount would include follow-ups and checks, so she should have taken them back if they didn't work, and got her money back if they didn't. You don't pay that kind of money for a faulty device.

Bossyrossy

The cost of private hearing aide is extortionate. NHS ones are just as good and free.

I totally agree

I have nhs hearing aids. I certainly wouldn’t pay for private ones. The nhs ones are often the same as the private variety - perhaps not Bluetooth admittedly. Before anyone spends thousands on private ones I would give nhs ones a chance. My husband had his 4yr old nhs ones upgraded for new model just last year.

I only went for private hearing aids because it was impossible to get on the list for the audiologist

I lost my hearing during the first lock down. Was quite traumatic for me. Severe, bordering profound in one ear and moderate on the other. I managed to get in to royal Surrey’s fabulous team shortly after they opened back up and came away with one hearing aid. No choices about anything but was very grateful to have something. It’s quite bulky, not bluetoothed and you need to change the batteries manually. I can’t really make any changes to settings either. But I was grateful to hear more things, however painful it was hearing running water, crumpling paper, windy days, walking on gravel etc. was also forever fiddling with the bit in my ear as it felt huge. I was previously not one to wear ear buds to listen to music etc so not used to this feeling of something in my ear at all.

So I went to spec savers a few months later. I first had a pair of phonak. Wow. Huge difference. Much smaller, flesh coloured and smaller piece inside my ear. So more compatible AND I could make adjustments according to my environment , batteries are rechargeable inside the hearing aids but I was still uncomfortable with the bits in my ears. Audiologist changed them to advance ADV861R and I am in heaven. The app on my phone means I can make so very many adaptions /filters for various environmental changes. And I can filter out background noise in a noisy restaurant, wind buffering - I could go on and on

As it’s bluetoothed, i have it hooked to my Fitbit. I can answer the phone on my watch, hear it in my ears. I listen to podcasts (helps drown out bad tinnitus days), my car is bluetoothed too so I hear in my ears but my voice is into the car phone speaker. It is amazing and has changed my life. I just put them in a little charging case when I sleep and they’re fully charged that last me over 24 hours. The little case itself holds a charge for 3 or 4 days. Looks like an apple ear bud charger but is black.

Best thing is the piece inside my ear is very small and does not bother me at all.

Whomever said that hearing aids are the same as the nhs ones and just as good has not experienced these hearing aids. I’m very grateful for my nhs one but it is not anywhere near the same thing as the pair from spec savers. I do wear my nhs one if I’m doing something slightly risky where I’d be anxious of getting my spec savers wet or fall out (I did paddle boarding this past summer, canoeing another day - that type of thing).

Interesting post Yogamum. I have just finally connected my Phonak hearing aid to the TV and it's brilliant! I shall start using my hearing aid again at home now. I thought it would be complicated and I wouldn't have the right connection (I don't have a Smart TV) but I just plugged it into the headphone socket and away it went. I love it!

Oh, well done, Chestnut! Glad you got it sorted.!

Thanks for the positive reviews on the Specsavers ones, which is very encouraging. Mine are costing £1995, which is a goodly sum but nothing like the higher prices mentioned above.

Just came back to say I now have my Specsavers hearing aids and they are very good, well worth the money. This morning I went for my first walk with the aids connected by Bluetooth to my phone, so I was able to walk along listening to a podcast or the radio. Brilliant! They are very easy to put in and do not fall out easily although you do have to take care when putting on or taking off a mask. They do not irritate my ears and I can forget I am wearing them, they are so comfortable. The app would not download to my phone while I was at the shop but I have since downloaded it at home. It was very easy to connect it to the hearing aids and now I can adjust the volume on my phone, as well as on the actual hearing aids, if I want to. I have to see the audiologist again tomorrow for some more instruction on what the app can do. If you are not keen on using the app, you don't have to. It just gives you access to extra features. Perhaps I should add that there are other purveyors of hearing aids!

I just wear a pair of bog standard NHS hearing aids from Specsavers. They work, I forget I'm wearing them, they're free and the batteries are free. I have an annual hearing check and I'm due a new pair at the end of this year. What's not to like?