William Demant Holding Group’s Oticon hearing-aid brand is getting ready to introduce a new line of hearing aids with twice the processing power of its current flagship family and a new set of sound processing algorithms that the Denmark company claims will substantially improve users’ comprehension of speech in noise. Oticon’s new Agil family will be formally launched in March and be shown for the first time at the American Academy of Audiology convention in San Diego in April. The Agil family will serve a broad range of hearing needs from moderate to severe hearing loss and will come in form factors ranging from behind-the-ear (BTE) to receiver in the ear (RITE). Oticon is promoting two innovations enabled by the more powerful processing platform: Speech Guard and Spatial Sound 2.0.
Oticon says Speech Guard is based on a new wireless platform with twice the calculation power of its current flagship Oticon Epoq family. It includes a new processing kernel that it says will preserve signal fidelity–quality of sound, especially human voices–far more effectively than in the past. At the same time, Spatial Sound 2.0, a “spatial noise management system” that “maintains natural acoustic cues.” The platform integrates seamlessly with the Oticon ConnectLine wireless listening system.
“With Oticon Agil,we have virtually improved all the advanced features already available in Oticon Epoq,” William Demant Holding President and CEO Niels Jacobsen said in a statement to investors. “Our almost three years of everyday experience with wireless audiology and connectivity has given us valuable insights enabling us to bring forward a significantly better hearing solution.” Among those insights is the fact that better comprehension of speech based on more natural processing of spatial sound reduces the cognitive “overhead” required to understand speech, enabling hearing-aid users to better understand speech with less stress, Oticon said. The company said it is focused on new research showing that struggles to comprehend speech can significantly increase fatigue and impair performance of everyday activities in ways that lead directly to loss of income.
Every few years the major global hearing-aid manufacturers release their new processing platforms, promising to deliver breakthroughs in comprehension of speech in noise. It’s gratifying to see a major manufacturer linking its new product platform so tightly to new research on how hearing loss directly effects people’s health and incomes.
Dr. Bob G. says
I have been using the Agil aids for about 6 months, and I find them to be remarkably unreliable. I had to have a speaker replaced in the left within a few weeks of use, and the right one required a new speaker within a few more months. Now, the right one is again broken, will again require a new speaker. For so expensive a device, this is NOT ACCEPTABLE in my opinion. It seems pretty clear that after the one-year warranty is out, I will have to pay for these sorts of repairs about 6 times a year. And I will bet it is not cheap. By the way, I am a psychologist, and I take excellent care of such devices, in the de-humidity jars every night, never dropped, never wet, handled with great care. Given my job, I MUST hear what others are saying, and many of my clients are hospitalized medical patients who cannot “speak up.” I fear I may have made a terrible mistake purchasing these.
Mrs Barbara Gilbert says
I have two Oticon Agil Mini Hearing Aids and have had them since September 2010. I am very happy with the sound and quality of these Hearing Aids but I have a problem with the fitting of them the thin wire that holds the Microphone is easy stretched and is not holding the Microphone in my ear for long anymore. I have the Large Dome covers but they seem too soft and do not grip my ear. I am pushing them back all the time and they have fallen off my ears on to the floor on several occassions.
Is there any improvement on the fitting of these aids now and if so can mine be updated.
Jennifer says
I am a longterm hearing-aid user, and have worn Oticon digital for the past 10years, however, as it has now been 10years, and they are not attractive, I was keen to try the new ones, and am now in the testing stages of the Oticon agil. I must admit whilst most of the sounds are the same and some are slightly clearer in the higher pitch – the quality is dreadful. I’ve been wearing them for 2weeks now and am absolutely itching to get back to my old ones, as I think the agil is a step back rather than a step forward. It is gettting incredibly frustrating – is there anyone else having simliar problems? (I especially have difficulty hearing in crowded situations with these agil aids.)
oticon hearing aids newton ma says
I think it is good news for Oticon hearing aid users. If they are already feel comfortable with their existing Oticon hearing aids, this might surpass their old products.
Craig says
Hi!
I am a new user. I just received the Agil.
My loss is Unilateral (right ear), moderate to severe, and (I believe) in the lower decibels.
I am also a first time hearing aid user. I used the Epoq for a week before returning it due to reliability problems (it kept shutting off!). I also had another Agil (after the Epoq) that had to be returned due to excessive distortion.
It is very easy to for me to understand low voices, even where there is a lot of background noises (crowds, cars, etc) and when there are low, droaning background noises (refrigerators, soda machines).
However, with mid-to-high frequency sounds, even in mid to loud volume situations, there’s a considerable amount of distortion and “popping.” My audio and I adjusted for the- cleared the distortion up for abuot two days before it came right back.
I think this is a software issue beucase Oticon tests their porducts a year before they are to be released, so it’s probably not a manfacturing defect.
It also does not have a volume control which is very nice.
Oh – BTW, I have a RITE model.
Matt Perry says
I’m an audiologist in Maryland, and I just ordered my first set of Agils. There are a lot of manufacturer’s announcing new products, since the American Academy of Audiologist convention is right around the corner. It seems like Oticon was able to get their product out a little earlier than most. I was already impressed with the spatial sound features of the Oticon product line, and I’m anxious to see how their new noise reduction algorithm performs.