If you have been diagnosed as hard of hearing, you will be in the marketplace to buy a hearing aid. Have a chat with your audiologist. Ask for recommendations. Professionals will help you choose what is right for you. Hearing aids do not come cheap. You must shop around. There are lots of different models available and this can feel like a minefield. Price wise, analogue aids are cheaper than digital devices. Why is that? Basically speaking, digital aids have a microchip that can analyze and adjust sound. Analogue aids simply turn up the sound. Digital aids can be personalized and there are more features to use. There is a programmable analogue aid available. But it is not as flexible as the digital.

This advanced technology makes the digital aid more costly. The analogue models are becoming less and less popular and some dealers do not sell them because of this. Many hearing aids are categorized by where they are placed. The smallest available is the CIC – Completely in the Canal, placed deep inside the ear canal. Because of its size, the features are limited and its life span is short. It is the most expensive model available and only suitable for those with moderate loss of hearing. Similar to the CIC is the ITC – In the Canal, placed just inside the ear canal. They have more features available and are less expensive than the CIC. The ITE – is placed in the ear bowl. They are the largest of the three and suitable for mild or severe hearing loss.

The disadvantage of the ITE is they can produce feedback and are sensitive to wind noise. A lot depends on the quality of the model and correct placement in the ear. It can be resolved by adjusting the settings. It is best to discuss the problem with your audiologist. They are larger than the other two and have more available features. This is an advantage because they are more adaptable to your needs.

The most common type of unit is the BTE – Behind The Ear. A unit is placed behind the ear and an ear mould is placed in the ear canal. The two are connected by a discreet tube. They are the most adaptable and the most powerful of all the units and are suitable for both adults and children. The disadvantage is, they are large and people find them a bit conspicuous. Some companies offer smaller models than others.

Add-On Features can be very important to some and there are several available. Adjustable settings allow you to swap between one preset and another. For example, a preset could be very useful when entering a noisy environment. Directional microphones can pick up sounds coming from ahead and reduce background noise. These settings can be switch or remote operated. Telecoils allow the hearing aid to be used with a telephone. It must be compatible and normally eliminates cordless and cell phones.

What is the different between a digital hearing aid and analogue aid? Analogue devices make use of a microphone. It picks up sound from outside the ear. Before the sound is sent to a receiver in the ear it is improved. Simply put, the analogue hearing aid ‘turns the volume up’. The digital hearing aid is a more recent and complex technology. A microchip examines sounds that are picked up on the outside of the ear. It evaluates sound and then sends it on to the receiver inside the ear. This is progressive technology and has greater options. Settings are personalized to suit the user.

What consumers want to know is whether the digital aid is the better device. Sound enters the digital and analogue hearing aids the same way. The sound waves do not change when the unit sends them to the receiver. The real advantages of the digital aid over the analogue model are brought about by the way it processes signals.

The analogue hearing aid does have disadvantages. It only has two choices for the user and they are volume up or volume down. If you find yourself in a noisy environment you can turn the noise down. But this means that all sounds are turned down even the ones you do want to be aware of. This may not be what you want or need. Programmable hearing aids are accessible. You can change the settings according to the environment. But they are still limited when compared to the options of the digital device.

The microchip in the digital aid can reduce noise by finding unwanted frequencies in order to eliminate them. This is a very definite improvement on the analogue aid. The digital and the programmable analogue aid use ‘directional microphones’. But the combination of the microchip and the DSP (digital sound processing) is what make it a better aid. The DSP detects relevant frequency levels and allows the microphones to decide on the correct capacity for sound signals. Therefore, microphones work a lot better and exclusively for the user. The microchip also allows more settings to be used if the user requires it. Your audiologist can decide on the frequencies to be eliminated and which should remain.

Digital hearing aids can make their own sounds. Analogue aids cannot do this. Once again it is your audiologist who is the best person to adjust the device. This way you will be sure the adjustments are exactly what you need. Due to this the digital hearing aid gives a precise account of sounds and also improves on the quality. As always, you must see your audiologist before any decision is made. Analogue aids are being used less and less. But the analogue aids are still a lot cheaper than digital aids.