On The Starkey Labs Drawing Boards: New Xperia Brand Of “Instant-Fit Custom” Hearing Aids Will Integrate Wireless Feature Set

Sources at the Starkey Laboratories 2012 Hearing Innovations Expo in Las Vegas report that company representatives today provided a glimpse of a new Xperia brand of “Instant-Fit Custom Hearing Aids” that will integrate Starkey’s popular Wi-Series wireless technologies featuring Bluetooth phone connectivity, TV audio and MP3 streaming, and other communication direct into the hearing aids.

The new hearing aids feature an innovative in-the-canal (ITC) design which has a removable earbud that fits in the ear canal, with a housing for the processor unit that sits in the concha of the outer ear.

The unit looks like a custom hearing aid but can be fitted for most ears. And, rather than an old-fashioned half-shell or full-shell design, it bears more of a resemblance to a contemporary Bluetooth earpiece or high-tech earphones.

A big selling point apparently will be the same Starkey wireless capabilities now found in company’s very popular open-fit on-the-ear Wi series, including pairing with the Starkey Surflink remote streamer for communication direct to the hearing aids with multiple peripheral devices and binaural wireless communication between the left and right hearing aids.

There was also talk of a broader line of in-the-ear products to come, including a completely-in-the-canal (CIC) SecretEar hearing aid with the same complete wireless feature set.

Starkey has raced to compete with other major manufacturers in delivering wireless functionality following major announcements over the past two years by Widex, ReSound, Oticon, Phonak and others. Starkey sources say the Wi Series wireless feature set has proven highly popular with audiologists, who have asked for the same functionality in more form factors, especially in-the-ear custom-style products.

Founding Member Of N.W.A. Rap Group To Move Sonomax Into Consumer Hearing Markets As Creative Director

Sonomax, once a somewhat staid manufacturer of ear plugs and hearing protection solutions for industrial users, has recently moved into the heart of the consumer audio business with its sculpted eers self-fitted custom earphones.

Now, the Canadian company is showing it’s all in to the consumer market with the appointment of K. R. Nazel–a.k.a. Arabian Prince, the West Coast music pioneer, DJ, producer and founding member of the groundbreaking rap group N.W.A. and Stones Throw label–as the new Sonomax Creative Director.

Sonomax is another example of a company with great hearing-enhancement technology that is figuring out how to reach a larger audience with products designed for a broader market of consumers. And Nazel isn’t just a figurehead. He has jumped right into both the marketing and product design:

“I listen and work on music everyday, so I wanted the sound and fit that I use on stage, and when I DJ to carry over to eers™. I have used custom in-ear monitors for years, but there has never been a cost effective solution for the general public until now. Custom in-ear monitors can take weeks to make and cost a thousand dollars or more, but with the SonoFit™ system and eers™ custom earbuds, the general public can get a one-of-a-kind custom fit in just 5 minutes right out of the box for less than 25% of the price.”

The SonoFit system enables you to create a custom set of ear buds at home, without going through an extensive process with an audiologist or ear mold maker.

Starkey Laboratories Research Shows ‘Invisibility’ Is One Of Top Five Factors In Consumers’ Hearing Aid Choice

According to new market research, “invisibility” is one of the top five factors customers consider when buying a hearing aid, according to a presentation by a senior Starkey Laboratories executive yesterday at the 2012 Starkey Hearing Innovations Expo in Las Vegas. The research (Chart 1) reveals that consumers are less interested in what brand of hearing aid they are buying than other factors such as: 1) price; 2) sound quality; 3) form factor; 4) visibility/invisibility; and 5) customer service.

More than most other major global hearing aid manufacturers, Starkey Labs has focused development and marketing resources on the invisible hearing aid market over the past two years. Now the presentation by Dennis Van Vliet, Au.D., Starkey’s Senior Director of Professional Relations, explains why: the prized Baby Boomer market segment is far more receptive to “invisible” high-tech solutions than the previous generation of hearing aid users. In addition to the cosmetic appeal of a hearing aid no one knows you are wearing, today’s techno-savvy Boomers, who are attracted to high-tech gadgetry in general, are fascinated by the tiny new hearing systems that can pack more power and performance into a tiny package that sits deep within your ear canal than the huge behind-the-ear models that were the norm only a few years ago.

I’m not at the conference but received a copy of the presentation, which is packed with interesting new information, including a fascinating comparison (Chart 2) between consumers above 65 years old, who are generally averse to technology and less interested in fashion and an active lifestyle, versus Baby-Boom generation consumers aged 41 to 64 who are overwhelmingly interested in new tech solutions that fit in with an active lifestyle. My take on the data is that the Boomers are not put off by the “stigma” of being seen wearing hearing aids so much as attracted to slick new well-designed products that combine superior form with high-tech function.

Starkey’s “invisible” product line now includes the entry-level AMP hearing aids and its high-performance Soundlens products, both of which sit deep within the ear canal. Starkey’s Xino product family is a on open-fit, behind-the-ear, receiver in the canal (RIC) product that is so tiny it is also marketed in the “invisible” category. Starkey has marketed the AMP system aggressively as a first-time solution for users who would not otherwise want to wear hearing aids.

I’ve gotten comments on my previous posts about Starkey’s invisible hearing aid marketing campaigns from readers who say the company is playing into stereotypes about hearing aids as something to be ashamed of and something to hide from others. I’m sure there are plenty of consumers out there worried about the lingering stigma of having to use hearing aids, but I think something else is going on in the market as well. I like to think tech-savvy Baby-Boom consumers are attracted more to the positive aspects of well-designed hearing products that push the limits of miniaturization and performance than to the fact that they are afraid of being seen wearing hearing aids.

Richard Branson Gets Hands-On With Hearing Aids On Starkey Hearing Foundation Mission To South Africa

Media mogul, airline magnate, and high-altitude explorer Sir Richard Branson got hands-on with hearing aids on a recent Starkey Hearing Foundation mission to South Africa that the jet-setting celebrity philanthropist called “one of the most rewarding weekends of my life.”

“Seeing kids who had never been able to hear or speak doing so for the first time. Old men completely deaf dancing with joy at suddenly being able to hear again. Incredible,” Branson said in a post on his Virgin Companies blog entitled “Giving the Gift of Hearing.”

William Austin, founder of Starkey Laboratories and the Starkey Hearing Foundation, led the mission, which set up 500 hard-of-hearing South African citizens with hearing aids.

The Most Important Hidden Benefit Of Next-Generation Hearing Aids Is Noise Reduction, Not Amplification

It’s important to get the right levels of amplification in your hearing aids, especially in speech frequencies. Indeed, improved clarity of speech and high-frequency sounds is the first thing you notice when you are fitted with a good new pair of hearing aids. But an equally important feature–even if it’s one you never notice–is how well they reduce noise through digital (0r dynamic) noise reduction (DNR).

Everyone knows hearing aids amplify sound. But hearing-aid wearers also know that amplifying all sounds, including unwanted background noise, often makes it harder, not easier, to hear what people are saying. In fact, straining to understand amplified voices that compete with amplified background noise is one of the leading causes of hearing-related fatigue, which can be bad for your health.

The good news is that hearing-aid manufacturers have been steadily improving a combination of technologies over the past decade to deliver a big step increase in noise reduction. New sound processing software with sophisticated DNR algorithms are making full use of powerful digital signal processors (DSPs) to virtually eliminate background noise, such as air-conditioner fan noise in the conference room or road noise in the car, making it much easier to understand what people are saying. And much-improved directional microphones further shield you from unwanted noise while focusing on the voices of the people you are facing.

Taken together, these improved technologies make it much easier to understand speech in noise. That’s what I’m finding in my current search for a new set of hearing aids. I’ve recently been trying out two pairs from Liberty Hearing, a provider of hearing aids to Sam’s Clubs, and I’ve been wowed by the improvement in noise reduction over my previous four-year-old set of hearing aids.

When I stepped out into mid-day traffic in Manhattan, I switched on the “Noisy” program setting, and for once I didn’t feel assaulted by the traffic noise. When I took a ride on the Amtrak train, all the rumbling and track noise disappeared, and I could suddenly hear conversations of people three seats away. At home, a ventilation fan in the hood above our stove that usually drives me absolutely crazy seemed silent. And for the first time in years, I didn’t have to turn off my hearing aids when my wife and daughter turned on the blender to make smoothies.

And while the new hearing aids still don’t eliminate all the background chatter in a noisy restaurant, it’s easier to hear my dinner companions than with my previous hearing aids. Perhaps most important, I’ve been very aware of a reduction in the stress of wearing hearing aids. Because the new hearing aids are reducing the noises that I previously had to put up with to hear other people’s amplified voices, I am am experiencing far less hearing fatigue.

All the major hearing-aid manufacturers promote their digital noise reduction algorithms, and I hope to try out many of them. There’s an excellent review of the Starkey IQ sound processing software’s DNR feature on Steve Claridge’s HearingAidKnow site. Starkey IQ doesn’t just eliminate all the noise in gaps between a speaker’s words, but also reduces noise between syllables, which he is a big help in understanding speech. For more information, go to the Healthy Hearing overview of digital noise reduction authored by hearing-aid technology guru Mark Ross. He wrote it several years ago but it is still the best layman’s summary of DNR I’ve seen.

In the meantime, if you’re shopping for a new set of hearing aids, be sure to ask about their noise reduction feature. When you try them out, take a walk out on the street or through a crowded cafeteria. In addition to noticing all the new sounds you hear, you may also be pleasantly surprised at everything you don’t hear.

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