Question: I like my hearing aids, and while I love the features, I would prefer to NOT have to carry my remote around everywhere I go. Will I ever be able to use my smart phone to access some of the features of my hearing aids?
This week marked the 26th annual Symposium for my association, AHIP; an event I attend every year for many reasons, but the most important of which is to see where the technology is going in the field of hearing and hearing aids. The event coordinators are very good at picking up some of the best speakers and presenters in a variety of different backgrounds, both directly and indirectly related to the industry.
On average, each manufacturer releases new products twice each year; generally there is a Fall Launch and a Spring Launch, and all of those products which were just released were front and centre of the exhibit halls, (some do launches more often, but the interim launches are generally for smaller market segment products like super powered hearing aids or specialized products like C.R.O.S./Bi C.R.O.S. instruments). I enjoy that part; I don’t always get the opportunity to see every product that every manufacturer puts out. Scheduling conflicts are the main reason, and I will often send some of my staff to one seminar while I attend another, then swap notes. But this doesn’t give you the entire picture, particularly if you’re like me and prefer “hands on” learning. Seeing screenshots of programming interfaces is not the same as flicking through the pages yourself and finding all the relevant adjustments. Add to the fact that the technology is getting more and more complicated and requires more and more pages, you have the problem of getting to know all the capabilities of a particular instrument, when you have 50 others waiting to be learned. It’s overwhelming sometimes, but it’s a big part of our job.
But this is a chance to look into the future and see what’s coming four years, five years and sometimes even ten years down the road. I have written before that a large portion of the cost of hearing aids goes into the research to keep the technology moving forward, and this is what I meant.
As our target market demographic changes, we have the need to keep up with the things they are used to. Designs in software and programming are becoming more and more geared to the technology we are already linked to. Several newer hearing aids can replace the matching remote control with an Android application, which means one less thing to carry around and having a convenient way of accessing the features of your hearing aid with the one piece of technology most people carry with them every day. Soon there will be iPhone apps, and some rumors that Blackberry will also have an app for the same thing. It’s becoming apparent that as users of hearing aids get more and more tech savvy, the hearing aids will have to follow suit. I am surprised, a little, that it has taken them as long as it has, because statistics show that the more that hearing loss is accepted younger people, the more they will be long term users and they demand more from the instruments than people who lived most of their lives with landlines. I know several people now who ONLY have cellular phones, (smart phones), and don’t bother connection a land line. I found it interesting that Android would be the first platform to be released, I would have thought the Apple platform would have been out first, but apparently Android is now the best selling platform, primarily because it’s available on more of the smartphones on the market.
As I found out this week, these are just the beginning. For those who require help with their hearing the future is quite bright, and I look forward to passing this technology on to our patients. I’m excited about it and I think that excitement will be passed on once these technologies are available, which shouldn’t be too far off. I will use this forum to pass on this information as soon as it becomes available, but if you would like you can always call and ask us about it. Don’t be too surprised when I have a hard time containing myself! 😉