Costco Hearing Aids - opinions

[NotUrsula]

My concern is being out for the day and having one die and being without my hearing aid all day.

If you're familiar with AirPods, the charging works the same way; the case contains a battery. You recharge both the aids and the case at home and take the entire case with you (It's small enough to use as a keychain). If they die on you, you can take them out at a point in the day when you're not needing to converse and let them charge for 20 minutes or so.

 

[Meriweather]

DH has had Costco ones......and they worked well.
They replaced lost or broken ones free one time.
Well, he's had them twice and just keeps losing them
Their batteries were great and very inexpensive.

 

[Dan Murphy]

he's had them twice and just keeps losing them

 

[tvguy]

If you're familiar with AirPods, the charging works the same way; the case contains a battery. You recharge both the aids and the case at home and take the entire case with you (It's small enough to use as a keychain). If they die on you, you can take them out at a point in the day when you're not needing to converse and let them charge for 20 minutes or so.

Not familiar with airpods but just with my mom's hearing aids. She carried batteries and even at age 88 she could change out a dead battery in less than a minute. I think she would have been frustrated with having to wait 20 minutes.

 

[NotUrsula]

Not familiar with airpods but just with my mom's hearing aids. She carried batteries and even at age 88 she could change out a dead battery in less than a minute. I think she would have been frustrated with having to wait 20 minutes.

Yeah, my audiologists tell me there are some people (mostly the elderly) who still want disposable batteries, but the mfrs are mostly changing over to wireless recharging, so full-featured models with disposable batteries are getting very hard to find. I'm in the process of replacing mine, and I will be absolutely thrilled not to have to deal with disposable batteries. (For whatever reason, I've always had issues with the batteries in my aids holding a charge; generally if I use them all day, (leaving the hinges open at night to break the power draw) they almost always die a few minutes after I put them in the morning. Happens with every brand and model I've ever had.)

The thing about hearing aids is that, just as a general rule, if you are retired you have a wider choice of price ranges and styles, and can skip a lot of features if your living situation doesn't require them. If you're still working full-time in an office envirornment and need features compatible with that, you're going to be needing to veer toward the higher end. Those are designed more to appeal to younger people, which tends to mean smaller size and rechargeable-only.

The most common size now is a behind-the ear that is about 1/3" by 1", with a small clear wire and bell that curls down into your ear. Audiologists tell me that as the size of most aids gets smaller, older users have more issues with changing out batteries because of the manual dexterity required.

I've worn aids for 20 years, and I'll still be working full-time for at least 8 more, so I need aids that have every bell & whistle available, and as we use more and more technology in the workplace, aids need to keep up; now I need aids that I don't have to take out to make a zoom call or answer the phone on different devices, that won't generate feedback in close proximity to a whole slew of electronics, that won't put me to sleep by greatly magnifying the sound of the overhead A/C vent, and that won't drown out other noises if I speak or chew when I have them in. (Without vibration sensitivity adjustment, attending a lunch meeting is the nightmare from hell, because if you're eating you cannot hear anything above the sound of your own chewing.)

 

[tvguy]

Yeah, my audiologists tell me there are some people (mostly the elderly) who still want disposable batteries, but the mfrs are mostly changing over to wireless recharging, so full-featured models with disposable batteries are getting very hard to find. I'm in the process of replacing mine, and I will be absolutely thrilled not to have to deal with disposable batteries. (For whatever reason, I've always had issues with the batteries in my aids holding a charge; generally if I use them all day, (leaving the hinges open at night to break the power draw) they almost always die a few minutes after I put them in the morning. Happens with every brand and model I've ever had.)

The thing about hearing aids is that, just as a general rule, if you are retired you have a wider choice of price ranges and styles, and can skip a lot of features if your living situation doesn't require them. If you're still working full-time in an office envirornment and need features compatible with that, you're going to be needing to veer toward the higher end. Those are designed more to appeal to younger people, which tends to mean smaller size and rechargeable-only.

The most common size now is a behind-the ear that is about 1/3" by 1", with a small clear wire and bell that curls down into your ear. Audiologists tell me that as the size of most aids gets smaller, older users have more issues with changing out batteries because of the manual dexterity required.

I've worn aids for 20 years, and I'll still be working full-time for at least 8 more, so I need aids that have every bell & whistle available, and as we use more and more technology in the workplace, aids need to keep up; now I need aids that I don't have to take out to make a zoom call or answer the phone on different devices, that won't generate feedback in close proximity to a whole slew of electronics, that won't put me to sleep by greatly magnifying the sound of the overhead A/C vent, and that won't drown out other noises if I speak or chew when I have them in. (Without vibration sensitivity adjustment, attending a lunch meeting is the nightmare from hell, because if you're eating you cannot hear anything above the sound of your own chewing.)

My mom got two weeks from a battery, and growing up in the depression she refused to change them until they died. But she was retired. My neighbor has fancy ones that he controls from his cell phone. His Ring doorbell also rings in his aids. Last year he was out of town for Halloween and he had to go in and turn off the Ring Door bell link since every time someone came to his front door, it ran in his aids. LOL.

 

[maxaroni]

My DH did not get his at Costco but got the Jabra Enhance 300 and loves them. His were $1900, other Jabra Enhanced were less expensive. Our neighbor got his at Costco and said that Costco has another Jabra Enhanced model and he got those. My DH went with the 300 that has a 3 year warranty. He has had o trouble with recharging them, the case has enough charge for 3 full charges but has never needed to charge during the day. He wears them all day and charges at night. He has had 2 zoom calls with Jabra and can call at anytime, if he has an issue. Very satisfied.

 

[disneyseniors]

A very interesting comment. My mom wore hearing aids with batteries that you changed. When the battery died, she replaced them in less than a minute and was on her way. My concern with rechargeable hearing aids is you are without them while they charge.
Any others have experience with rechargables, they seem like a bad idea in the situation I described. The hearing aids my mom used batteries that lasted about 10 days, and cost $3.40 for a package of 6 which would last her about a month so they weren't expensive.

I have the rechargable type of hearing aids, and I just put them on the charger at night before bed. Then they are fully charged for the day. I love these and have had no problem with them.

 

[tvguy]

I have the rechargable type of hearing aids, and I just put them on the charger at night before bed. Then they are fully charged for the day. I love these and have had no problem with them.

I guess that works for many. I just know too many people who wear hearing aids that the flexibility that being able the change the batteries gives them. And as well all know from our cell phones and tablets, eventually those batteries won't take a charge anymore and the whole device is useless.

 

[NotUrsula]

I guess that works for many. I just know too many people who wear hearing aids that the flexibility that being able the change the batteries gives them. And as well all know from our cell phones and tablets, eventually those batteries won't take a charge anymore and the whole device is useless.

I can't answer for the Costco OTC models' warranties, but the hearing aids I get from my ENT are warranted against component failure, including the batteries. They will send them back to the regional service center to get a new internal battery; usually takes about 4 days.

Also, for those people who have issues with losing aids; rechargeables can help with this because you get in the habit of putting them away properly on the plugged-in charger each time you take them off.

FWIW, one of the key habits that must be reinforced if the user wears glasses and RITC (receiver in the canal) HAs is that taking off your glasses will require a different motion than the one you've been used to; you need to learn to take them off with two hands with your fingers on the earpieces, pulling them forward and down so that you can make sure by touch that the earpieces of the glasses don't snag the aids and fling them off. I find that putting on the aids first and then the glasses is by far the safest way to manage wearing both simultaneously, because the RITC HAs are really lightweight, and if the wire is sitting on top of the eyeglasses' earpiece it's easy to lose one without noticing when you take your glasses off. (Or you can get some little silicone doo-dads from Amazon that clip your aids to your glasses, so that whenever you remove your glasses your hearing aids will come off with them. I don't use those because I usually wear contacts, so the glasses I'm removing are not glasses that I wear every waking moment; they are either sunglasses or "cheaters".)

 

[NotUrsula]

BTW, there was a story in the Washington Post this week about the reasons that people don't get hearing aids, & why many who do have them don't regularly wear them. Dexterity required for handling is a prominent reason (along with cost, of course)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2024/02/25/hearing-aid-use-advice/

 

[Turn the Page]

I have no personal experience with Costco whatsoever but was recently chatting with my aunt who said they were absoultely wonderful for hearing aids and glasses both.

I'm not sure if it was just price or service or what exactly made her say it but she was adament. You need hearing aids, go to Costco.

As always, YMMV.

 

[NotUrsula]

I have no personal experience with Costco whatsoever but was recently chatting with my aunt who said they were absoultely wonderful for hearing aids and glasses both.

I'm not sure if it was just price or service or what exactly made her say it but she was adament. You need hearing aids, go to Costco.

As always, YMMV.

Reports do vary, and some people have reported getting settings with Costco that don't match their audiogram.

Just to be sure, I say go to an ENT and while there have a full hearing exam done by an Audiologist. Request a copy of your audiogram, and then when you go to Costco make sure it matches.

 

[NotUrsula]

Could happen, I guess. I think my hearing aids have more stamina than I do. I run out of steam before they do and am back home. Also, I’m sure that is a greater concern with very severe hearing loss. I personally don’t like to keep them in at all times. It just seems healthier to let the ears have air flow periodically. I wear them when visiting with people or watching television.

Actually, it isn't healthier (though I admit I'm guilty of it, too, sometimes, because my skin doesn't much like plastics. My ENT prescribes Hydrocortisone drops for my ear canals to prevent itching, which helps immensely.)

Wearing the aids all day is better for you because hearing is a use-it-or-lose-it function in your brain. Your auditory cortex neurons begin to atrophy when you are not hearing enough to adequately stimulate them.

 

[disneyseniors]

BTW, there was a story in the Washington Post this week about the reasons that people don't get hearing aids, & why many who do have them don't regularly wear them. Dexterity required for handling is a prominent reason (along with cost, of course)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2024/02/25/hearing-aid-use-advice/

I know what you mean. I was all "thumble fingers" when I got mine and I just could not fit them into the ears. My husband had to put them in for me. But within the week I was putting them in like a pro. If I can do it, anyone can. I have arthritis of the fingers and sometimes they feel like big sausages,LOL, but I am able to do it. As far as the cost, our insurance paid over half of it and we were able to pay the remaining amount. If we had to pay the whole price, we would have to think about it. I am really glad I have mine.