Specsavers Hearing Aids

ripplyuk

I know two people who had an NHS hearing aid and both hated it so much they refused to wear it after a while. Apparently the sound from them is terrible and they can't tell where the noise is coming from. One said it was like listening through a bad phone connection.

Eventually one of them got a hearing aid from hidden hearing. It cost over £2000 (they had a payment plan) but she is delighted. She is only on a state pension and is very thrifty so the fact that she paid this amount shows how much difference it made to her.

Other friend is struggling on without any hearing aid!

I'm sure any of the big companies could supply a better hearing aid than the NHS!

Kess

Hear-Hear wrote: »

It's not re-branding.

Sorry, I didn't mean to use the word re-branding. What I meant was I'm surprised that Specsavers can get hearing aids designed and custom-made to their own specification for a lower price than simply purchasing the manufacturers' ready-made standard products.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure I'll be ordering a pair on Saturday (probably the Specsavers "completely in canal" models at just £1095 for a pair) so I'll let people know how I get on.

constantworrier

Kess wrote: »

Sorry, I didn't mean to use the word re-branding. What I meant was I'm surprised that Specsavers can get hearing aids designed and custom-made to their own specification for a lower price than simply purchasing the manufacturers' ready-made standard products.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure I'll be ordering a pair on Saturday (probably the Specsavers "completely in canal" models at just £1095 for a pair) so I'll let people know how I get on.

Any updates Kess ? Thanks

RancidM

if people want to spend money on in-canal aids for cosmetic reasons then that is their own choice, but it is unfair to say that NHS units are less capable.

Kess

constantworrier wrote: »

Any updates Kess ? Thanks

I've ordered a pair of Specsavers "2 star" In-The-Canal aids (£1095) - which the audiologist said are made by Siemens - plus an optional remote control (£99) to allow me to adjust volume and select between different programs.

I'll be collecting them next Saturday. :T

RancidM wrote:

If people want to spend money on in-canal aids for cosmetic reasons then that is their own choice, but it is unfair to say that NHS units are less capable.

Actually I've been very impressed by the capabilities of my NHS aids (also Siemens models). They have all sorts of neat capabilities, like a wireless link that allows the aids to communicate with each other and coordinate their operation. From a technical and performance viewpoint they're probably at least as good as the Specsavers one's I've just bought.

Kess

A quick update...

I've collected my new hearing aids today. They are the Specsavers "2 star" completely-in-canal models (the smallest that Specsavers do). They fit well and are far more comfortable than the NHS models, which tended to irritate my ear canals. The sound quality seems good so far.

I also opted for the optional £99 remote control, which turns out to be a Siemens EasyPocket http://hearing.siemens.com/Global/en/products/wireless/easypocket/easypocket.html. It allows me to adjust the volume and select between different preset settings.

The deal also includes a 4-year supply of batteries and a £69 voucher off my next pair of glasses.

So far I'm happy and would recommend the Specsavers products.

DipsD

This has been such an informative thread for me. I am trying to persuade my (80+) mother to go for a hearing test and am slowly making progress. Unfortunately she has a horror of wearing any aid as all she can think about is the huge, old style hearing aids which her father wore, which was obviously a very long time ago, but feelings and fears run deep and are not rationale in their very nature. I also think she believes that a private hearing aid would be far too costly for her, but he figures you have quoted are not any where near as much as she's been thinking.

So, thank you for sharing your experience, much appreciate it.

carebabe

in connection with my work i have attended courses to help staff in social care understand issues surrounding hearing loss. the course presenters were mainly persons with hearing loss themselves. they all said that the hearing aids supplied by nhs today were as good as what was available privately.

constantworrier

Kess wrote: »

A quick update...

I've collected my new hearing aids today. They are the Specsavers "2 star" completely-in-canal models (the smallest that Specsavers do). They fit well and are far more comfortable than the NHS models, which tended to irritate my ear canals. The sound quality seems good so far.

I also opted for the optional £99 remote control, which turns out to be a Siemens EasyPocket http://hearing.siemens.com/Global/en/products/wireless/easypocket/easypocket.html. It allows me to adjust the volume and select between different preset settings.

The deal also includes a 4-year supply of batteries and a £69 voucher off my next pair of glasses.

So far I'm happy and would recommend the Specsavers products.

Thanks for the update Kess

Kess

Hi DipsD,

I'd suggest you encourage your mother to try the NHS first. Their behind-the-ear hearing aids are certainly smaller than the old ones she remembers, and far more technologically advanced (the sound quality of my NHS aids is as good as my private ones). And of course they're free.

If she finds they are still too bulky then she can still go to Specsavers. However the CIC type of aids I've got might be too small and fiddly for a pensioner to handle.

Kess