Benefits of Rechargeable Hearing Aids

Have you ever been in the middle of a meeting or dinner, and your hearing aids suddenly cut out? As hearing aid wearers, you may have experienced something similar to this. It is an inconvenience – especially if you don't have a spare pair of batteries with you! At Atlanta Hearing Doctor, we ensure the best fit with your hearing aids, and with time, you will grow so accustomed to wearing them that maybe you'll even forget you have them on. Many hearing aids are equipped with advanced technology, allowing a new level of accessibility for people with hearing loss. As incredible as these innovations are, they also require more energy – which means more batteries! Fortunately, there are options to efficiently and responsibly power your hearing aids.

Traditional Hearing Aid Batteries

Most hearing aids require voltage in the 1 to 1.6 range. The most common hearing aid battery is in the zinc air, and prior to new wireless features, zinc air batteries would last between one to two weeks, depending on usage. For people who use binaural hearing aids (both ears), this means purchasing an average of 100 batteries a year. With new and advanced features, wearers are now going through their batteries much more quickly than before. Sometimes, batteries won't last for more than a week, depending on how often you activate certain features. This means that some hearing aid wearers are spending more money now on replacing batteries. Additionally, an estimated 150 billion zinc air hearing aid batteries are disposed of annually in landfills, which has been found to seep into water systems and comes as a cost to the environment.

While traditional hearing aid batteries will continue to be a reliable source of energy for your hearing aids, there are also new options to consider!

Rechargeable Hearing Solutions

Rechargeable hearing aid batteries have been available for some time, but they have not been used commonly. In recent years, however, hearing aid manufacturers have begun to design rechargeable hearing aids, which benefits the wearer – and the environment! Rechargeable hearing aid stations are easy to operate, and eliminate the regular action of fumbling with small components and hearing aid parts. They also reduce battery waste.

Here at Atlanta Hearing Doctor, we offer rechargeable hearing aid solutions from leading hearing aid manufacturers.

Phonak Audeo B-R

Brand-new from Phonak is the Audeo B-R, powered by the Belong Platform. The Audeo B-R is Phonak's first rechargeable hearing aid, chockful of the best hearing features available. The Belong Platform runs on a lithium-ion battery that allows for 24 hours of hearing on a single charge (of three hours). If you're in a rush, then a 30-minute charge will provide you with six hours of uninterrupted listening. Unlike other rechargeable battery options, Phonak's Audeo B-R battery lasts four years – making it one of the longest lasting batteries available on the market.

The Audeo B-R provides wearers with Phonak's most important features, such as AutoSense OS and SoundRecover 2. Audeo B-R is a receiver-in-canal hearing aid that may be charged on three different platforms: the Phonak Charger Case (charger, drying kit, and protective hard case), the Phonak Power Pack (which is charged beforehand and may provide a quick charge when you need one), and the Phonak Mini-Charger (designed for travel).

Siemens/Signia eCharger

Siemens and Signia, co-branded under Sivantos Group, offer the eCharger for certain models of hearing aids. The eCharger is easy to use: before bed, simply place your hearing aids into the chamber and six hours later, you'll wake up to fully charged hearing aids. The eCharger also offers a dehumidifying function, which removes moisture and keeps your hearing aids dry! Siemens and Signia hearing aid models that are compatible with the eCharger include: Pure (receiver-in-canal), Motion (behind-the-ear) and Carat (receiver-in-canal). These rechargeable batteries require replacement once a year.

Starkey V Fusion Rechargeable Battery

For those who use hearing aids by Starkey, there is the VFusion Rechargeable Battery System. VFusion charges batteries specially designed by Starkey through USB, which provides incredible convenience. When fully charged, VFusion batteries provide Starkey hearing aids with over 18 hours of listening. VFusion's charging process is simple: wearers place their hearing aid batteries in a USB thumb-drive, secured by a magnetic surface. The USB thumb-drive may then be charged through any energy source, from a compatible electrical plug or a computer! VFusion batteries must be replaced once a year.

Are you ready to find a sustainable energy source for your hearing aids? Contact us at Atlanta Hearing Doctor for more information on these options.

Atlanta Hearing Doctor

Reach out to us to learn more about rechargeable batteries. Our friendly team looks forward to hearing from you.