If A-Rod Can Carry A Purse, I Can Too!
Remember that Seinfeld episode when Jerry decides to get rid of his over-stuffed wallet and start using a “European Carry-All”? Everyone calls it a purse, and he insists it’s not (“It’s European!”), even though it is. A couple of months ago, I finally got tired the trade-off between stuffing every spare pocket with all my hearing gear (and eventually having to wear a sport coat and overcoat with yet more pockets, even in warm weather) vs. packing it all in my business briefcase that is too big to carry with me everywhere I go. Read more
Okay, It’s Time To Get A Portable Bed-Shaker. Any Recommendations?
When my family toured Washington, D.C., in 1964, we stayed in a Holiday Inn where one of the beds was equipped with something called “Magic Fingers.” My brother and I scraped together two quarters and shoved them into the sliding arm that dropped the coins into a metal box above the headboard, and the entire bed started vibrating. Read more
Bluetooth Bandwagon Builds Momentum, But Where Are The HOH Products?
Every week it seems we hear of another new product for hard-of-hearing (HOH) consumers utilizing the Bluetooth wireless communications standard. In addition to my post last month on Sound ID, I’ve recently discovered that Starkey Laboratories, Micro-Tech Hearing Instruments, Sonomax Hearing Healthcare, and Gennum Corp. are also getting into the act. And I’m sure there are more. My only comment on all these efforts is, “Sounds great, guys, but when will we actually see (and hear) the products?” Read more
Go America is Going Places
I’d heard of Go America in the go-go days of the dot-com boom, but back then it was just one of a million hot new suppliers of wireless data services for handheld computers. I never knew about its Wyndtell subsidiary, which focused exclusively on providing telecommunications services for deaf and hard-of-hearing people. Read more
Sound ID Has A Sound Idea
Sound ID is a Silicon Valley start-up that is finally breaking down the barriers between consumer electronics and the hearing aid industry. It is developing a Bluetooth-based product that will make it easier for everyone — consumers with normal hearing and hearing-impaired people alike — to understand voices on the other end of their cellphones in noisy environments. Read more
Why Don’t They Lock the ‘Off’ Switch?
Here’s a small gripe. I recently bought a SoundWizard personal microphone and amplifying system from Hi-Tec. It’s a very cool multi-purpose device. It’s got two 3.5 mm plugs for your neckloop, earpods or headphones. Read more
