I have one quick question for you: have you ever wondered if the hearing aids available at Costco in the US are actually worth it? In early 2023, Costco, who are the largest retailer of hearing aids in the US, teamed up with tech giants Philips, a household name known for light bulbs and other health technology. Believe it or not, Philips first produced their hearing aids, which were pretty groundbreaking, way back when in the '90s. Yes, the early '90s. However, by 1999, they'd completely disappeared from the hearing technology scene. Well, it appears that the Philips Phoenix has risen from the flames 30 years on, with their family of HearLink hearing aids, offering cutting-edge background noise reduction at a disproportionately low price point, and that's even by Costco standards. So, today, I'll expand on which models and features are available now, if they're suitable for you and your hearing loss, and most importantly, what I love and even what I dislike about them. At the time of making today's video, the Philips HearLink 9040s cost an incredible $1,499.99. That's from Costco's Hearing Aid Centers,
which can vary depending on the state that you're in. This price not only includes the hearing aids but also a desktop charger, a 3-year warranty, plus 2 years' worth of loss and damage protection, and it also includes a whopping 6-month trial period. To be honest, everything on this list makes sense to me, apart from the 6-month trial period. Yes, it's great, but in my opinion,
the hearing aid dispenser that you're working with should be looking for alternative technology way before 6 months if you're having to go back and forth for adjustments. It very simply shouldn't take that long to either get the best out of these hearing aids or for you to get used to them. Now, before we get into the juicy details, it's also worth noting that you need to be a Costco member to be able to buy them, which will set you back around $60 per year. As I do with all of my tech
review videos, let's first of all now take a look at the physical side of things, and then we'll take a good look at what's going on inside these hearing aids. The Philips HearLink is available in four different styles: Firstly, the HearLink MiniRITE T R, which is the Receiver in Canal rechargeable version with a built-in telecoil; the MiniRITE T, which uses a 312 disposable battery that needs changing roughly once every 5 to 10 days; the Mini BTE T R, which is Philips' rechargeable BTE; and then finally, the Mini BTE T, which again uses a size 312 battery. Both BTEs have a built-in telecoil and are slightly larger than the Receiver in Canal style of these hearing aids. Weirdly,
I have no idea why they have the prefix 'Mini' as there's no 'Maxi' version. However, if cosmetics is important to you, then the smallest offering is the Mini R T, and as a result, I imagine will be the most popular of all of the hearing aids that I'm covering today. So, firstly, let's take a look at the Receiver in Canal models, which are similar in shape and size to the majority of Receiver in Canal hearing aids from other manufacturers. To maximize speech understanding in noise, you'll notice twin microphones here and here. These are positioned in such a way to run horizontally and
optimize the detection of sounds from both the front and to the rear. Here, you can see two push buttons, which are essentially soft keys, meaning that they can be programmed to perform a range of functions, such as controlling the volume or changing programs. And then we have the receiver wire, which rolls over the top of your ear and into your ear canal, which can be coupled to your ear either using a selection of generic rubber domes or a custom-made ear mold. As I mentioned
before, the BTE styles are slightly larger than the Receiver in Canal HearLinks, and I'll come on to why you would choose one over the other when we talk about what's going inside these hearing aids later on in today's video. Again, here you'll see twin microphones, a single push button this time, which again is customizable in terms of functions. The behind-the-ear style can be coupled to your ear either using a slim tube and generic rubber tip, or with a standard tubing and custom-made ear mold fitted within your ear. The HearLink 9040s are available in six different colors, which are designed to match different hair colors rather than just being skin-toned. Your hearing
aid dispenser should have a chart to help you choose the right color for you. They're mainly matte nowadays, so they don't tend to catch the light, and they'll blend in for discretion. Discussing the waterproof rating of a hearing aid nowadays almost seems irrelevant, yet the reason why all manufacturers feel the need to boast about how robust their hearing aids are is very simple: They used to be terrible. A drop of sweat when you were working out, or even a particularly humid day, would have previously sent your hearing aid into overdrive. And so, for an active person or somebody that likes to spend a lot of time outdoors or near water, then you'll be delighted to know that these hearing aids have an IP68 rating. This is pretty much the industry
standard now and means that they can technically be submerged in a meter and a half of water for up to 30 minutes, and they should still function afterwards. Now, by no means am I suggesting that you should go swimming wearing them, but at least this rating ensures that they'll break down less often, and they'll be a little bit more reliable than hearing technology of the past. That pretty much covers the physical side of things, so let's take a look at what's going under the hood with the Costco Philips hearing aid. The Philips 40 series incorporates a ton of technology carried over from the previous Philips 30 generation, including the likes of artificial intelligence, sound technology, binaural program or volume control syncing, multi-channel processing, automatic and adaptive directional microphones, and then finally wireless streaming. I imagine
that you'll be delighted to learn that the Philips HearLink 9040s are manufactured by Demant. These are one of the top global hearing aid manufacturers who are better known for brands such as Oticon, Bernafon, and Sonic. As such, the 9040s are built on the same technology platform as Demant's latest hearing devices and have incorporated Demant's industry-leading speech-enhancing AI technology. This table shows the features built into these hearing aids, of which I'll cover the most important and features now. As far as suitability goes, these images show the fitting ranges for the Receiver in Canal models. So, if your hearing loss falls within
the shaded area, then they're technically suitable for you, with the receivers being interchangeable between either a 60, 85, 100, or 105 dB power level. This is nothing that you need to worry about; it's something that your hearing aid dispenser would recommend based on your hearing test results. The behind-the-ear models are a little different, and as you can see here, they have a set fitting range. So whether you have a mild, moderate, severe, or profound hearing loss, these hearing aids can be ordered to suit your degree of hearing. It's also worth noting that the Receiver in Canal models can be coupled to your ears using a selection of generic rubber tips or with a custom ear mold. To have a custom ear mold made, this involves your hearing care provider taking an impression of your ear, and it would normally take around about 2 weeks from start to finish. It's really your hearing loss that determines whether a rubber tip or a custom mold
is the most appropriate for you. And I'm going to give this small yet very important component of your hearing aid quite a lot of airtime today, as believe it or not, the sound of your hearing aid can be completely transformed by changing this component and can have a huge impact on how your hearing aids function. For example, it can affect both the clarity and sharpness that a hearing aid can provide, how full and rich it sounds, how good it sounds when you're streaming sound from your phone, and most importantly, how well it copes in background noise. Your hearing care provider should recommend the most appropriate tip, not just for your hearing test results and anatomy, but also for the hearing difficulties that you face on a daily basis. It's pretty much a given for all hearing aids to have Bluetooth built into them nowadays, and the Philips HearLink is no exception. The HearLinks use 2.4 GHz low energy Bluetooth connectivity,
allowing for connectivity with most modern Android devices and iPhones. But it isn't all cell phones. Philips have a great tool on their website, which allows you to check the compatibility of your phone. If you scroll down the list and select your phone, it will tell you if the Bluetooth features will work or not. If you're not familiar with the advantages of Bluetooth, then you're definitely in for a treat. Right now, in summary, it means that you can stream phone calls, music, and the radio, podcasts, directly to both of your ears from your phone. Philips even have an app called
the HearLink 2 app that allows you to make manual adjustments to the settings on your hearing aids if you want to override the automatic settings. The app gives you access to a volume control; you can switch to different programs set by your audiologist, such as speech in noise, Hi-Fi music, or classroom programs, which I'll go into more detail on later in this video. And with the recent update, there's even the ability to adjust the bass, mids, and treble for both sounds being streamed from your phone, i.e., music, or for adjusting the sound of the environment around you. Saying that, the app is still a little basic relative to other hearing aid manufacturers, so if you're keen on having even more control over your hearing aids, then it may be worth looking at either the ReSound Nexias or Phonak Lumities, which will give you access to a ton of other features, such as step tracking, heart rate monitoring, fall detection alerts, etc., etc. They also have bidirectional Bluetooth, which means you have access to completely hands-free calling, i.e., you can keep your phone in your pocket, and the microphones on your hearing aids will pick up
your voice and transmit it to the person on the other end of your phone. Now, from my experience, there are a couple of important points on this, which oddly it doesn't mention on the Philips compatibility checker. Firstly, it only works with Apple devices, so if you're an Android user, then Phonak and Unitron are still your only options for completely hands-free calling. ! And secondly, whilst this feature sounds great in theory, in practical terms I've had a ton of patients report that this bidirectional Bluetooth isn't the most selective at picking up the hearing aid user's voice. Some reporting that there are a
lot of issues with these microphones picking up too much of the extraneous sounds around them. So sometimes, if phone calls are taken in a particularly noisy place, it can be challenging for the person on the other end of the phone call to be able to hear you speaking. Fortunately, it's possible to toggle this feature on and off in your iPhone settings. So, if it's not working well for you, you can always go back to the old-fashioned way of holding your phone next to your mouth. The final feature that Bluetooth has opened up for hearing aid users is remote support. This allows your Costco provider to adjust the settings on your hearing aid from the
clinic whilst you're sat in the comfort of your own home. I personally don't like to make remote changes too early on in the fitting process, as nothing beats having a patient sat in front of me to get those initial settings just right. And it's way more likely early on that we'll need to look at changing something physical, whether that's the receiver wire length or the dome on the end of the hearing aid. And that's just not possible if we're working remotely. The only other thing that I'm
not particularly keen on with remote adjustments is that the first thing that I would do normally if a patient walks into the clinic with a problem is to examine their ears. Yet, I don't have that ability if I'm making remote changes. So, I can't rule out any ear-related issues such as a poor fit, wax or moisture that might be the root of any of my patients' problems. If you've been
sat at the theater, in a lecture, or even a place of worship, and you've been struggling to hear, then a telecoil could well make a huge difference to your quality of life. If you're not familiar with a telecoil, then I would 100% recommend checking out this video which covers the advantages of having a telecoil built into your hearing aids. It even includes sound files and gives you a real flavor of the benefit that you can expect from using a telecoil on loop system.
When activated, the telecoil allows you to connect wirelessly to a microphone set at a distance, and you should be able to hear the person speaking into that microphone just as if you were stood next to them. You'll likely have seen this sign at various public venues, letting you know to activate the t-setting on your hearing aids. And like I said, it can make a huge difference hearing at a distance in the likes of a lecture, church, or the theater. I'm personally a huge fan of telecoils and if I were you, I'd choose one of the models that has it built in as I've seen the impact that it can have and it doesn't cost any more to have this option built into your hearing aids. So, there's no reason not to go for it. You have two options when it comes to powering
these hearing aids: either disposable batteries or rechargeable batteries. I'd say that I fit around 90% of my patients with rechargeable batteries nowadays. They're way more convenient, you don't have the battery dying halfway through the day, and you're also not throwing away old batteries, which seems a terrible waste if you can avoid it. As the disposable batteries need replacing roughly
once every week. With both rechargeable hearing aids, a three to three and a half hour charge will give you a full day of battery life, with clever circuitry in place meaning that the hearing aids can be left on charge overnight and it shouldn't cause them any damage. The battery life doesn't always last for a full day, however, and Philips acknowledged that the battery life will be reduced the more that you stream. However, even with constant streaming throughout the day, the battery should still last you for a full waking day. The great thing is if you forget to charge them one night, you can still put them in the charger for 30 minutes and this turbocharge should give you 6 hours of battery life to keep you tied over. There's also the option to upgrade your charger
from the desktop charger to a travel charger, which stores up to three full days of battery life within the built-in battery. So your hearing aids can be charged on the go without needing to always be plugged into the mains. This is great if you go camping for the weekend or even traveling somewhere where you may not have access to power. So, you can keep the hearing aids stored in the case and they'll be constantly charging. Who would have thought I could talk about batteries for so
long? I have one final note on the longevity of these rechargeable batteries, which comes down to them being lithium-ion technology, which is the same chemistry that you have in the likes of your mobile phones, laptops, and other portable tech equipment. The downside of this technology is that over time, they become less effective. And it's possible, based on my experience with all other hearing aid manufacturers, that the hearing aids won't last for a full day. One thing that
I really like about the Philips programming software is that, similarly to cell phones, there's a way of monitoring the health of these batteries. And if the battery health is poor, then this can be easily identified, and the batteries can be switched out for a new set. There isn't a lot of tech that you come across nowadays that hasn't utilized artificial intelligence in one way or another, and hearing aids are no exception. The HearLinks utilize artificial intelligence by not following standard hearing aid digital signal processing but by building their own rules and knowledge by sensing their surroundings, and then learning about the situation and applying that learning to improve speech understanding in background noise. The Demant developed sound processing system implemented in the 9040 is called SoundMap 2 Plus, which is essentially the brain of these hearing aids. With the most significant development to SoundMap 2 being in noise control. In the first generation of SoundMap, both speech understanding and comfort
in noise were improved using directionality and noise reduction. And now Philips are boasting three key technical developments. Firstly, a 50% frequency resolution versus the previous generation. Secondly, a fundamental change in how the noise reduction operates, with the
introduction of artificial intelligence-based sound processing. And then finally, the brand new speech clarifier feature that complements the effect of the directional microphones and the AI noise reduction. Yes, it all sounds fantastic and great, doesn't it? But what does all of this mean? Better hearing in background noise is the holy grail for all hearing aid manufacturers. I mean, we've all been there, sat in a busy restaurant, struggling to hear the person speaking in front of us, yet for some reason able to hear someone 10 meters away speaking on a different table perfectly. The 40 series utilizes two different strategies to improve your hearing in background noise. Firstly, looking at transient noises, which are managed with a fast, effective gain
reduction to feed more precise information to the hearing aid AI processor, which Philips calls their AI NR. And then secondly, improvements in wind noise handling, which I will say does come up periodically from patients as an annoyance when wearing behind-the-ear hearing aids outdoors. Wind can rush over the microphones and make it way more challenging to hear conversations. Philips are boasting that these hearing aids will analyze the noise level in each of those microphones and then the SoundProtect feature will then select the microphone with the lowest level of noise for each individual band and adjust their selection over time again ensuring that the cleanest signal is allowed to reach the AI NR. Artificial intelligence tackling background noise is half of the battle when it comes to hearing speech in more challenging environments. On top of
the SoundProtect feature, the HearLinks have the speech clarifier, which enhances and controls how much speech stands out through that background noise. It's constantly balancing between the amount of background noise present and the clarity of speech that it delivers to your ears. Music is an area that's especially important to me with the work that I do in clinic on a daily basis. And if you're watching this and music is also a passion of yours, then you'll be delighted to know that there's a lot that can be done to optimize your hearing aids for music. Now, it's worth noting that it isn't solely down to the hearing technology that you're wearing but also the audiologist that you're working with's understanding of the fundamentals of music and their skills in terms of adjusting your hearing aids accordingly. So if music is important to you, I'd recommend
checking out this video, which I'll link in the description to today's video. As technically, most hearing aids out there can be fine-tuned for better music reproduction, it just needs the right care, the right attention, and the right knowledge from your audiologist. So, the big question is, why can live music sometimes sound so terrible with hearing aids? Now, you have to remember that the main goal of any hearing aid technology is to enhance and focus on speech and to bring it within your audible range. If a hearing aid is therefore detecting sound that doesn't have a speech-like pattern, it treats it like it's interference or noise or feedback coming from the hearing aid, and it can manipulate it, which is technically the opposite thing that you would want to do when it comes to listening to music. Philips have a dedicated program called Hi-Fi Music,
which has two key qualities. Firstly, it has a greater focus on the frequencies associated with music as opposed to just focusing on the frequencies associated with speech. And secondly, it copes better with the dynamic range of music, i.e., focusing on the softer sounds and the louder sounds, which you wouldn't want the hearing aid to do with speech. In theory, this gives greater richness and depth, plus simultaneously maintains the detail in music too. Each hearing aid brand has various accessories to make life easier, where hearing aids alone can't quite cut it, and Philips are no exception. Although the selection is limited, they're still pretty useful. From their
Audio Clip, which is their remote microphone that can help you hear better in a noisy environment, to their TV adapter, which will stream the sound of the television directly to both of your ears, and then finally, the remote control, which is an alternative to using the app on your phone or the button on the back of your hearing aids to adjust the settings. As you can see from today's video, the tech available from Costco is loaded with features. It could well be a great option for you if you've already been fitted with the Philips 9040s, I would absolutely love to hear about your experience with both Costco and this technology, so share with everybody watching this video and drop me a note in the comments beneath today's video. There's no question that choosing the right hearing aids is tough, and it's impossible to know if the tech is right for you. Well, let's just say it was impossible. You no longer need to rely on what the hearing aid manufacturers say about how good their hearing aids are and try to wade through all of their tech talk, as here at HearingTracker, we've teamed up with the HearAdvisor team, who've built a lab to independently test the latest tech that's out there. So much so, that there have been over 50 hearing aids tested
in total, and this video shows the best of the best, along with sound files for you to listen to. So, check it out to see if they're suitable for you, and I'll see you in the next video.
2023-11-30