What is the best discreet hearing aid?

When it comes to hearing aids, everyone is different. Some people want bold and bright colourful hearing aids and other people want something that is discreet as possible. If discreet is what you want out of a hearing aid you might be asking, ‘How do I find the best discreet hearing aid?’ There are a number of discreet hearing aid options available and it is important that we find the option that is not only discreet but also meets your hearing needs.

One option for discreet hearing aids are ones that sit in the ear canal. These are the completely in the canal aids (CIC’s) which usually fill the canal out to the entrance of the ear canal. There are also the invisible in canal aids (IIC’s) which sit even deeper and further in the canal. These types of hearing aids are generally custom made to fit the shape of your ear. Exactly how they sit in your ear will depend on the anatomy of your ear and how big your ear canal is. The bigger and straighter your ear canal, the more likely it will be possible to fit the electronics required for the device into the ear neatly. Some people’s ear canals are quite bendy or narrow meaning this type of technology is not suitable for everyone.

Further, while this type of hearing aid is good for making use of the external part of your ear and how it naturally contributes to your hearing, there are some features of hearing aids that just don’t fit in these tiny little aids. For example, they generally do not have wireless connectivity meaning you can’t take advantage of the capacity some hearing aids have to act like wireless headphones and connect to devices such as your phone. as of yet, these IIC’s and CIC’s are not available in a rechargeable option meaning you do need to be able to change the small batteries in them every few days. Therefore, it is important to discuss this style of hearing aid with your hearing specialist in the context of your hearing loss, communication needs and ear anatomy to see if they are a good option for you. But what if IIC’s and CIC’s are not an option for you, but you still want something discreet?

Another discreet style of hearing aid that is the receiver in the canal (RIC) type. This style has some of the electronics sitting behind the ear and the speaker (receiver) sits in the ear. The two parts are connected by a thin wire. The part that sits behind the ear comes in a range of colours that can blend with your hair or skin colour. RIC hearing aids have more flexibility in terms of who they are appropriate for and what features they contain. They fit a wide range of physical ear shapes, come in rechargeable options, and can fit lots of features in them including the ability to connect to your phone for wireless streaming to make phone calls and listening to music easier.

The type of discreet hearing aid appropriate for you will depend on your hearing loss, ear anatomy and communication needs. Just make sure you let your hearing specialist know that discreet is important to you.

If you would like to know which discreet hearing aids are best for you, book an appointment to see one of our hearing specialists at Hearing Aid Specialists SA today and we will be able to discuss the options with you.