I have suffered from Tinnitus or "Ringing in My Ears" for years and the medical condition made me suffer substantially. I gave up on finding a medical treatment until I was browsing my ear tinnitus pain relief that I can across an Amazon product that promised tinnitus pain relief through a hearing aid. Then I discovered there were more tinnitus pain relieving hearing aids so I decided to list the top 5 I found online. I was thrilled while doing this as solutions such as pills, supplements and even laser surgery were not on my radar for tinnitus pain relief. Each has its side effects which I researched thoroughly. The Tinnitus pain relief products varied from providing all day relief to devices that would help me control sound to my preferred sound level.
Tinnitus and Hearing Aids
I will be reviewing here five tinnitus hearing aids and their success in relieving tinnitus pain as well as their setbacks. I expect a good tinnitus hearing aid to provide relief for the longest time, all day is possible. I expect to be able to control the volume so when I'm not experiencing tinnitus I can hear my surroundings. I expect it to be super-easy to use. And I don't want to pay large amounts of money for it.
Products Overview
My research instead landed me on one page, Starkey's Tinnitus Technology Products which provide several products five of which I review below.
Pros:
Starkey's Invisible products come with the tagline: "Hearing aids so tiny, no one will notice you're wearing them."
Now, while that is attractive as you won't be exposed to societal stigma regarding wearing hearing aids, I'm interested in how well it relieves my tinnitus as an invisible hearing aid.
The Invisible tinnitus hearing aid features are that it's tailor-fitted to the consumer. It's also advertized to be for light to mild and extreme hearing loss and that as it enters the whole ear, it's completely invisible to onlookers. The technologies they provide are SoundLens Synergy iQ and SoundLens Synergy.
SoundLens Synergy iQ promises, apart from invisibility, a custom-designed deep ear canal fit providing comfort for the entire day. Furthermore it functions by adjusting noise and sounds electronically so your brain can easily get accustomed to new frequencies. This tinnitus hearing aid also comes with a wireless streaming function but you have to purchase one of two or two accessories for that function to perform. The invisible tinnitus hearing aid also advertizes that it's comfortable and adjustable for both loud sounds and smooth sounds. It promises to perform without and malfunctioning such as buzzing or whistling sounds making tinnitus worse, while furnishing an elevated sound experience.
Comparing it to what Amazon's Otofonix Hearing Amplifier offers, it features exactly the same specifications:
And Amazon's Tinnitus Therapy and Sleep Machine nowhere seems to be directly addressing tinnitus hearing aid or tinnitus pain relief and hearing aids, despite its name.
Cons:
SoundLens Synergy iQ with its "Advanced Multiflex Tinnitus Technology" provide tinnitus relief but it fails to state how. There's no price on the product nor an easy way to explore more about the product specifications unless you call a salesperson. The SoundLens Synergy technology provides the exact same features and drawbacks.
Conclusion
The fact that no price is mentioned anywhere is a major factor that would have me think twice regarding even trying this product as I need to contact a salesperson for the price and purchase process instead of electronically.
Also, the product promises tinnitus relief through tinnitus hearing aids but the technology is written almost as an afterthought and there's no description of how it works which will have me thinking twice before purchasing this product.
Pros:
Starskey's tinnitus hearing aid pain relief that is completely in canal only has the small removal handle showing from the ear, which is not aesthetically bad. It's almost unseen, and is also-tailor made for the customer. Completely-in-Canal technology is buttressed by Muse iQ, Muse and Z Series. They a promise that they're designed in a way that will make hearing more comfortable even in loud surroundings though its Acuity Immersion Directionality. The rest is exactly the same as the Invisible Products product description, except for the "Advanced Multiflex Tinnitus Technology" which promises to relieve tinnitus pain, as opposed to the other technologies.
Cons:
However it's not for severe hearing loss, only slight and mid hearing loss. Muse iQ, Muse and Z Series all have the same descriptions and nothing sets them apart.
While they're rechargeable, this feature is only available in the micro RIC 312t style tinnitus hearing aids. The rest is exactly the same as the Invisible Products product description, except for the "Advanced Multiflex Tinnitus Technology" which promises to relieve tinnitus pain, as opposed to the other technologies. How is also missing.
Conclusion
It's easy to write a marketing post promising to relieve tinnitus pain through hearing aids but I need to know how it works which was missing, as well as its price, also missing. I don't feel encouraged to contact the company to ask for more here. Also the fact that it doesn't address severe hearing loss is a significant variable that would negatively color my perception of the product.
Pros:
Starkey's In-The-Canal product advantages seem to be that they're also tailor-designed for my ears, but are for slight to slightly extensive hearing loss with a choice of colors to choose from. It also functions via Muse iQ, Muse and Z Series technology. They're also rechargeable with the feature also only available in the micro RIC 312t style tinnitus hearing aid model.
Cons:
The In-The-Canal product while it fits inside the ear canal, a small part of it will be protruding from the ear's outer canal. This product doesn't have anything new or different from the Complete-In-Canal product, down to its rechargeable wireless feature which is only available in the micro RIC 312t style tinnitus hearing aid model.
Conclusion
All this product seems to have going for it that's different from the previous two is that it's for slight to slightly extensive hearing loss. The repetitive wireless technology and rechargeable batteries offer nothing new. It's highly unlikely that I will be contacting them to ask for further clarification.
Pros:
Now disenchanted, I wasn't expecting much from the next Starkey's Tinnitus Technology Product, the In-The-Ear tinnitus pain relieving hearing aid, and I was right. Its main advantages seem to be simply that tailor-made for the consumer, it's easy to use, is for slight to significant hearing loss with a wide variety of colors to choose from. Same technology is offered here as in the previously reviewed products.
Cons:
Nothing new is being offered from one product to the next in Starkey's Tinnitus Technology Products and this one also has the disadvantage of fitting on the outside of the ear, clearly visible to all, something I found unappealing aesthetically. Again the repetitive technology of Muse iQ, Muse and Z Series technology propped its head here as well, with, you guessed it, rechargeable battery feature also only available in the micro RIC 312t style tinnitus hearing aid model.
Conclusion
While its highlight is that it's for slight to significant hearing loss, there's not much to add here except the repetitiveness of the product features makes me wonder if some of the products reviewed have advantages to being completely submerged in the ear and other have advantages to fitting over the ear, or if it's merely a customer preference that the company is catering to. It's not likely that I'll be phoning in to ask those questions though, since I know my preference.
Pros:
Design-wise the Micro Receiver-In-Canal is an absolute winner, as it's extremely well hidden inside the ear, very easy to use and is for sight to significant hearing loss. Supposedly it's also good for first-time hearing aid users. Technology wise it's the same as the rest of the products offered by Starkey's Tinnitus Technology Products.
Cons:
The technology is the same so are the rechargeable batteries and wireless features and although it fits discreetly inside the ear I need to be told how it works to pick up my phone and make that sales call.
Pros:
The standard version of the Receiver-In-Canal has also got a hidden-n-the-ear design, which I like very much. It's also promoted to have both easy to use buttons and dials. It's for slight to significant hearing loss and there's a multitude of colors to choose from.
Cons:
Despite the fact that I like its design, I find the issue to buttons and dials to adjust not too user-friendly as that implies a chord which means a tangled mess. I'd have to be sitting all day if I was wearing one of these and not have a very active lifestyle which contradicts its selling line of "Perfect for many first-time hearing aid wearers."
Conclusion
Neither the Micro nor the Standard versions reviewed have attracted my attention as I dislike having any kind of receiver in my ear since it could malfunction and make my tinnitus much worse. So there's very little chance that I'll be phoning in to ask about those products, and again, in conclusion the issue of not having prices on products is off-putting in and of itself, in addition to the cumbersome and outdated "call a salesperson" contact mechanism they've set up. Not very user friendly products.