3 ms·

Wearing smaller hearing aids isn't just about the look of them, they are actually much more comfortable and the designs of the in-the-ear piece of the aid lead

Wearing smaller hearing aids isn't just about the look of them, they are actually much more comfortable and the designs of the in-the-ear piece of the aid lead to better sound quality and a more natural sound. As technology improved the in-the-ear piece could become more 'open' in that it didn't have to fill the whole ear to avoid feedback, could be a soft tip that wasn't molded to an individual's canal and allowed in some unprocessed sounds that didn't travel through the aid. It's so normal today to see people with something in their ear, usually Apple buds, and because hearing aid manufacturers have realised it's a smart move to stop marketing them as medical devices as such and positions them more as cool-tech hearing enhancers, I think the stigma of hearing loss and wearing hearing aids will soon be a thing of the past.

skybrian 9y ago
Do you have personal experience with in-the-ear hearing aids? I'm curious how they avoid feedback. (Also, falling out.)
- ShannonAlther 9y ago
  > (Also, falling out.) More or less the same way headphones do.
  - zeroer 9y ago
    Not very well?
- Kluny 9y ago
  They're shaped to your ear canal. It's mostly surface area and friction holding them in. They really don't pop out that easily. A motorcycle helmet will do it, though.
- rhubarbcustard 9y ago
  Yeah, I've been wearing various different models for about 30 years, I'm 42 now. I've been blogging about is for about 13 years now, what started out as a blog has turned in to more of an informational site type of thing: https://www.hearingaidknow.com/ https://www.hearingaidknow.com/ Modern hearing aids mostly avoid feedback by having a cancelling algorithm built in to the software - they are very effective these days and you would barely ever hear a squeak. But also, there's a type of hearing aid called receiver-in-canal/ear (RIC or RIE) which has the sound output in your canal and the microphone in a small unit behind your ear and because they are far enough apart feedback does not occur. I'm wearing GN ReSound Linx 3D RICs at the moment, they are amazing tech, I can remote programme them from my iPad and stream phone calls + music directly through my hearing aids. As someone said in another comment it is friction holding them in, a moulded aid in the canal does fit snuggly, which is what I have, but for less severe hearing losses many people wear a round one-size-fits-all flexible rubber tip in the ear, it does press against the canal enough to hold it in place but is super comfortable. I've never once had a hearing aid pop out of my ear and I've worn them doing all sorts of sports activities.

skybrian 9y ago

Do you have personal experience with in-the-ear hearing aids? I'm curious how they avoid feedback. (Also, falling out.)

ShannonAlther 9y ago
> (Also, falling out.) More or less the same way headphones do.
- zeroer 9y ago
  Not very well?
Kluny 9y ago
They're shaped to your ear canal. It's mostly surface area and friction holding them in. They really don't pop out that easily. A motorcycle helmet will do it, though.
rhubarbcustard 9y ago
Yeah, I've been wearing various different models for about 30 years, I'm 42 now. I've been blogging about is for about 13 years now, what started out as a blog has turned in to more of an informational site type of thing: https://www.hearingaidknow.com/ https://www.hearingaidknow.com/ Modern hearing aids mostly avoid feedback by having a cancelling algorithm built in to the software - they are very effective these days and you would barely ever hear a squeak. But also, there's a type of hearing aid called receiver-in-canal/ear (RIC or RIE) which has the sound output in your canal and the microphone in a small unit behind your ear and because they are far enough apart feedback does not occur. I'm wearing GN ReSound Linx 3D RICs at the moment, they are amazing tech, I can remote programme them from my iPad and stream phone calls + music directly through my hearing aids. As someone said in another comment it is friction holding them in, a moulded aid in the canal does fit snuggly, which is what I have, but for less severe hearing losses many people wear a round one-size-fits-all flexible rubber tip in the ear, it does press against the canal enough to hold it in place but is super comfortable. I've never once had a hearing aid pop out of my ear and I've worn them doing all sorts of sports activities.