United States 2/23/2010 7:00:00 AM
What is the best hearing aid for you?
openfit.com offers user programmable hearing aids at great prices
Digital hearing aids are a vital part of life for many people, especially when they get older. Best of all, hearing aid prices have come down recently allowing those that need them to get them.
However, not all hearing aids are the same. The type of hearing aid you need would depend on your lifestyle and the degree of hearing difficulty that you're experiencing.
There are some digital hearing aids that can fit completely inside the ear canal so that they are barely visible from the outside. The main benefit of these is the way they look. They are very discrete, of that there is no doubt.
However, these hearing aids are mostly suitable for people with mild or moderate hearing loss. These in the ear hearing aids are sometimes more limited because their limited size prevents many of the more advanced hearing aid features, such as dual microphones and telecoils. The hearing aid market has improved way beyond the completely in the canal hearing aid capability. Another type of hearing aid is one that fits partly into the ear canal (ITC). This style is barely noticeable, but will maintain the important features that many people look for in the latest digital hearing aids. Some of these hearing aids come with a remote control that can help you control the volume and other advanced features of your digital hearing aid.
There are also digital hearing aids that fill the whole ear (full shell) which will do the same job as the ITC hearing aid, but usually uses a larger hearing aid battery, thus giving longer battery life. These are not as discrete as the previously mentioned hearing aids.
The last conventional style hearing aid is a BTE (Behind The Ear) which is the traditional hearing aid fitting. These are fairly large hearing aids, sitting on top of the ear with a tube and a mold sitting in the ear. These are the most noticeable hearing aids, but for some people with severe or profound hearing loss, they may be the best digital hearing aid choice.
The newest and most exciting development in hearing aid technology is the open ear hearing aid, incorporating RITE (received in the ear) technology. These open ear digital hearing aids are incredibly discrete, wonderfully clear sounding, largely problem free and very light and comfortable. These open ear hearing aids usually comprise of a tiny ‘pod' sitting on top of the ear, which houses most of the components and the battery, a small thin wire running from this into the ear, and a soft rubbery dome which houses the speaker unit and conveys the sound directly to the ear using a snug and comfortable fitting.
Hearing aids are comprised of three components: the microphone(s), amplifier and speaker. The microphone is the part of the hearing aid that picks up the sounds that are emitted around you. The amplifier helps to increase the volume of the sound so that you are able to hear it. The speaker component of the hearing aid relays the enhanced sound to the ear so you can hear it at a level tailored for your individual hearing loss.
Openfit.com is an online hearing aid store that sells the best hearing aids on the market at wholesale levels. Call us at 1-888-858-4750 or email us at sales@openfit.com. We don't sell cheap hearing aid, we sell high quality hearing aids at wholesale levels!