“Cheap Hearing Aids” What You Should Know

There are a couple separate ways to interpret the term “cheap hearing aids”. For anyone on a tight budget, it means “affordability”. But we’ve all heard the phrase “You get what you pay for”, and in this case, the word “cheap” suggests low-quality hearing aids.

Regrettably, distinguishing between an economical purchase and an item of negligible value is often tricky. When it comes to hearing aids, this couldn’t be more valid.

The saying “you get what you pay for” is especially relevant with hearing aids. This means weeding out the devices that are priced in the “too good to be true” range, not automatically opting for the most costly choice. Companies marketing cheap hearing devices frequently leave out essential details about their products that consumers should be aware of.

Cheaper hearing aids are basically only amplifiers

Cheap “hearing aids” typically offer limited functionality, primarily amplifying or decreasing overall volume. When you merely amplify everything, the sounds you want to hear better are amplified but so are unwanted background sounds you don’t want.

The purpose of having a hearing aid is totally defeated if it also amplifies unwanted sound.

A modern state-of-the-art hearing aid, in contrast, does a lot more than just turn the volume up. It minimizes background sound while expertly managing sound and enhancing clarity. Real hearing aids mimic natural hearing with great accuracy and are custom programmed to your specific hearing needs.

Hearing aids vs. PSAPs

There are stringent rules about what an advertiser can call a hearing aid as written by the Food and Drug Administration.

Unfortunately, many personal sound amplification products PSAPs are falsely advertised as hearing aids even though they only amplify sound.

There are lots of legit and reputable providers that comply with proper marketing. But you may find some uninformed salespeople or products on Amazon or eBay that deceive consumers into thinking that these devices meet the definition of a hearing aid. You might even find some that claim that they are approved by the FDA when that’s actually false.

For most kinds of hearing loss they won’t be effective at all

The majority of individuals who lose their hearing will gradually lose particular frequencies of sound before others. You may have a difficult time understanding a little kid or a woman, for example, but you have no issue understanding a man with a low voice.

A cheap hearing device usually results in total volume amplification. However, if you have trouble with particular frequencies, just boosting the volume proves inadequate. And turning the overall volume up could result in additional damage to your hearing because the frequencies you don’t have trouble with will be booming in your ears.

High-quality hearing aids provide a solution by being programmable to make up for the loss of particular frequencies. They offer a more personalized hearing experience by shifting frequencies you can’t hear very well to frequencies you hear better.

Feedback can be a problem

You won’t get a custom fit with cheap hearing aids. A feedback loop is frequently the outcome of poorly fitting hearing aids. The microphone picks up the sound from the speaker in your ear as it jiggles around. This will result in a deafening screech.

They normally don’t have cellphone support

When people are looking for a budget-friendly device, they frequently sacrifice functionality like Bluetooth capability. When considering phone connectivity, the lack of Bluetooth is a significant obstacle. Attempting to amplify a cheap hearing aid while on the phone leads to capturing not only the caller’s voice but also the sounds of your ear, lips, clothing, and hair rubbing against the phone, making it even more challenging to hear the person on the other end.

More sophisticated hearing aids are digital and utilize Bluetooth connectivity to connect directly to your phone. This advanced feature ensures that when your daughter talks on the other end, her voice is sent directly into your hearing aids, enhancing clarity and overall communication.

They were never meant to treat hearing loss

This could come as a shock because so many people think otherwise. These amplifiers were never intended to treat hearing loss. They were designed to amplify sound for individuals who have fairly good hearing.

If you have very mild hearing loss then cheap devices might help a little. But they won’t be of much help for people who actually need hearing aids.

Finding quality, affordable hearing aids

There are many ways to get hearing aids affordably. Insurance or other third parties might cover them. You can also find financing possibilities, leasing plans, and more affordable brands. If you think you have hearing loss, start by getting checked out. Call us today for a consultation, we can help decide what’s best for you, depending on your amount and type of hearing loss, and make sure you land a pair that won’t break the bank!