WOW! Lots of questions. My first response would be: GO BACK to your audi and make this a “punch list” for your appointment. Seriously, these devices are sold to us, and then we’re left to muddle through all the real-life scenarios. That’s not acceptable.
I can tell you that Phonak’s BT Classic and LE Audio were developed expressly for robust BT connectivity while also delivering a low-powered solution that doesn’t drain the battery life. However, I think I’ve read that the Apple iPhone IS problematic with myPhonak. Perhaps others will chime in. Maybe try a new Android phone?
I’m no computer geek, but my guess is that you may have connectivity issues due to some issue on your cell phone. Something is not compatible with the phone app. Perhaps it’s your phone’s OS, or some other app that “wakes up” and interferes with the hearing aid app. There’s no reason I can think of why gardening, or bending over should interfere with a phone’s streaming.
I’ve never seen anyone here mention about the phone app warning about volume - that’s another matter to bring up with your audi. Did that person help you install the app initially? It is completely unusual and unacceptable that the phone app simply won’t connect with your aids! That may be a programming issue your audi can solve.
You should not require the internet for the phone app to work. It’s like an app that’s resident on your phone much like an app on the laptop. It’s not like email where you need the internet to pass messages back and forth.
If you can’t get a level of service and fixes from your audi, it may be time to either look for a new one or consider a different brand. Many audis specialize on just 1-2 families (Oticon & Phonak, or Phonak & Widex, etc.,) which makes it much more of a challenge for us to get aids that are set up correctly from the get-go.
As for the wind noise while streaming, your audi should be able to turn down the ambient noise when in streaming mode. It’s on a scale so that you can decide how much to let in. F’instance, when streaming TV, my dear hubs talks and asks questions non-stop, so I feel like I need some ambient noise coming in. But ideally, I’d have ALL ambient noise turned completely OFF when streaming to get the maximum benefit of audio going directly to my aids.
I hope you get more replies here AND some help fixing these annoying issues. Keep us posted.