Hearing Aid Update
I have written about my experiences with Costco’s Kirkland Signature 6.0 hearing aids in past issues of Kibbles & Bytes. Several of you have asked for an update and as my 90-day return window closes soon, I thought it would be a good time. Long story short, I am not returning them. Recent updates to the iOS 9 beta software have corrected the problem where they would not pair with my iPhone so I have full functionality of the Bluetooth connection.
Let me go back a bit and talk about my journey to adopt these Costco hearing aids. I was noticing that I was having trouble understanding some speech on TV, especially British accents and I decided to get my hearing checked. I have a friend whose hearing was so bad that you could talk about him without him noticing and he was too vain or lazy to get help. Well, I wasn’t going to be that way so I visited an audiologist and discovered that I had hearing loss mostly in the high frequencies. I am going to go on a bit of a rant here as there seems to be some sort of insurance exploit with audiologists. I was quoted over $7500 for hearing aids that were manufactured by the same company that supplies Costco. Costco sells them for $1799.99. When I asked the audiologist about the price difference, the only response I got was that she could not discount them because of “insurance” i.e. they want to maintain the high prices that some insurance companies pay.
As I was researching, I found that there are really only three companies that make high quality digital hearing aids and only two of them had worked closely with Apple to implement Bluetooth connectivity with iPhone and iPad. One of these companies, ReSound, makes the Kirkland Signature 6.0 and the Kirkland software, too. Surprisingly, when I called Costco, not only was the hearing testing free but instead of the $7500 it was $1800 and included free checkups, adjustments, warranty and accidental damage.
The first night when I got home from Costco, I was amazed at all the sounds that I was missing. I could hear the brook bubbling, the songbirds singing and the wind in the leaves of the trees. Oh yeah, I could also understand British accents on TV. I am definitely a success story, hearing aids have restored some part of my life I was missing. I never thought that the signs hearing loss would be so subtle and gradual. It ends up being a loss of the connection and interpretation that your brain makes from the sounds it can hear. So, as you lose some of those sounds that connection is broken and doesn’t get better unless you deal with it.
I do not have to do much adjustment to the hearing aids but the Kirkland app for my iPhone is front and center. It utilizes Bluetooth to connect to them and also the GPS function to know where they are. This can be handy as it then knows when I am in the office, when I am at home and can adjust the settings automatically.
It also has a “find my hearing aid” function so that in the unlikely event that they are lost you can find them. In addition to this location-based setting, the app allows you to adjust volume, bass and treble and monitor battery life. But there is more, you can set “favorites” which are basically hearing aid settings that are tied to GPS locations. So instead of having to adjust my hearing aids when I get to the office, it knows I am there and adjusts them.
Apple also have a built-in hearing aid app which is accessed by triple-clicking the home button. This app also allows you to adjust volume, monitor battery life and change between presets.
But there is more. Since I am connected by Bluetooth I can stream the sound from my iPhone to my hearing aids. This comes in very handy with everything from answering phone calls (the audio comes right to my ears, but I do have to use the iPhone microphone), listening to music or watching the Cubs game. There are add-on devices that would also allow you to stream TV output but I don’t need that.
This all sounds pretty good and it is but there are some items on my wish list. ReSound has an app for the Apple Watch that has not quite made it to Costco and that would add even more functionality to the hearing aids. Battery life is okay but depending upon how much you stream, you may be replacing batteries twice a week. They are about $0.20 at Costco so that isn’t too bad. Costco can set various programs for you i.e. noise, outdoor, party, etc. which make settings automatic. I use noise at the office because the air handlers sound really loud in the background otherwise but that setting is also useful at restaurants with a lot of background noise – it makes the microphones on the hearing aids more directional. I would love to be able to manipulate these settings without visiting Costco and save other programs, however, I really only use three…normal, noise and off.
Costco is a competitor for Apple products but I can wholeheartedly recommend the Kirkland Signature 6.0 if you are noticing some hearing loss. With a free hearing test you will know for sure and they let you try them out and walk around the store a bit during your visit.