I’m trying to compare Costco HAs: Philips 9040 to Jabra Enhance Pro 10 Mini. The Philips has an AI feature that is very appealing because it seems to self adjust without a phone. This Jabra model, I’m told but cannot verify, has just been released with a similar feature. Is that true and, if not, does the Jabra have features that make it better at a slightly higher $100 cost? Another forum has very detailed info about the Philips, but I haven’t found much about the Jabra
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They’re both good aids. There is no objective way to figure out which is “better” for you. Pick one based on some criteria. If it works, great. If not and they can’t adjust to satisfy you, try the other one.
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I wouldn’t worry about which has AI and which doesn’t, or whether both have AI or not. I would just treat it as a black box and judge it by the results, not by the features. If both are equally good to me and I can’t decide, I would pick the one that’s cheaper, not the one with supposedly more advanced features.
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The Philips is cheaper, but if you add a TV Streamer and a remote mic, the totals are very close. If you’re using CC when you watch TV, I recommend the TV streamer very strongy, unless you don’t watch much TV. In fact, if you watch live TV - news, sports, etc. - the TV streamer will improve your quality of life a lot.
I don’t have the Jabra mini, but I’ve compared the 9040 to the Pro 10, and they each have strengths and weaknesses Jabra is better in battery life and accessories, 9040 in natural sound. The Jabra Outdoor program is great on bike rides, but the 9040 claims to deal well with wind noise, too, and I never checked that out.
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I would expect that an audi would recommend one device over the other based on individual loss and experience programming that model for that loss. Otherwise, kinda like going to the Dr and telling them what med you need. Probably best to let the experts use their expertise.
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Good advice above.
Have you looked to see if Dr. Cliff AudD has a video review of either or both HA?
Also you don’t mention what type of Bluetooth each uses. Classic is most robust and connects to the most types of devices. Next is MFI, but tjat works best with Apple
Those models don’t use classic Bluetooth, only MFi and ASHA for android.
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Thank you for your advice. I haven’t found a review of both, though there is extensive info in a forum here on the 9040 about how AI is used to adjust for different sound environments. The reason AI is of interest is that I don’t want to need to adjust HA with a phone so I will avoid a need for Bluetooth. I have a neighbor who just got the Philips 9040 and she has said that not having to adjust it with her phone is a major advantage over her last HA. If I needed to, I would use my IPad at home, but my cell phone is off and only used in an emergency.
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Bluetooth is also great for telephone calls on your cell phone - it makes the call so much clearer to hear it directly in your ears with BT. Also great for listening to music, videos, YouTube, and Zoom. For TV, it gives you an amazing improvement in hearing, and if you watch a lot of live tv such as sports, where captions are too slow or less accurate, you will really enjoy the BT connection ( with most brands you have to also buy a TV connector device). With BT, you can listen without affecting others so the TV doesn[t have to be too loud for others. Also, you can watch TV with it muted, and you hear it but no one else does - good for a spouse who wants to sleep. A lot of people are surprised a how much they use Bluetooth.
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I think all hearing aids now have a base program that makes some level of environmental adjustments. The term “AI” here is just buzz.
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I saw an audiologist, who I’m sure is very competent. But his recommendations were for basic HAs that form him would have cost 2.5 to 4 times what similar Costco’s cost, and the Costco HAs are highly reviewed. Costco is very convenient for me and it has repeatedly earned my trust, which began over 10 years ago when my needed eyeglass lenses alone from an optometrist cost more than 3 fully framed eyeglasses from Costco. That Costco trust in their HAs increased when I compared their trial period, return, and lost HA policies. Also, my hearing test there felt more thorough than the one given by the audiologist, though the results were the same.
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Very good point about taking into consideration the cost of the accessories as well. One thing to add is that if your TV supports Bluetooth, you can probably use the Philips AudioClip that runs off Bluetooth for your Bluetooth-supported TV as well. This way, you can use the AudioClip for other BT connection to your laptop as well, or any BT supported device for that matter. And it can also be used as a remote mic as well.
The Philips HearLink Adapter doesn’t do Bluetooth connection, only line audio and Toslink (SPDIF) optical out.
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I guess I’m hoping that I won’t need a lot of extras and that an HA is all I need. I watch TV with my wife who has similar hearing loss. The volume we use may bother those with better hearing but the only times we seem to use captions is when characters have strong accents. So far, I can use phones without an HA.
So then what aid did the costco audi recommend?
When i went to costco and they tested me, they wouldn’t even sell me the KS10 (or even allow me to trial) at that time because they said the Jabra would be the only ric aid for my loss and that i would just be back returning the KS10 if they fitted me for it
The first time I went to Costco, after the audiologist test, the Philips was generally recommended before the Costco hearing test. Afterwards, I returned twice for Costco required hearing tests, which could not be given because I had too much wax, and they even took photos of my ear canals to show the wax. After removing the wax, the third time at Costco for the test worked. I was then told that the Philips was good but a new Jabra was just released, which also self adjusted, that I may like, and that I could try all Costco HAs to see which I liked more. I would be surprised if the audiologist could afford to be as accommodating.
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Interesting. Can you post your audiogram? I have the last gen Jabra equivalent. The Resound One 9. I trialed the Jabra’s but couldnt get the adjustment right, and found these aids for $1k from anprivate party and had them programmed by a private audi then bought the equipment to adjust myself and now self tune the way i like.
As far as i know, the Jabra does not “self adjust”, nor automatically change program. There are noise and wind suppression auto adjustments and also directional adjustments that are “automatic”, but wondering where you were informed that Jabra’s “auto adjust” programs? I like mine now.
“because they said the Jabra would be the only ric aid for my loss”
Yeah but you know that’s a load of… there’s no “one” HA that would work on ones hearing loss that no other could, KS10 would of been just as suitable for your level of loss as the ReSound (Jabra) model or the Phillips.
This is why one should take any “recommendation” from any clinic with a pinch of salt.
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I’m not sure how to post the audiogram, but I think it would be called something like standard ski slope. It starts out pretty flat on the left then slopes down fairly fast on the right. My ENT doc, the audiologist and the Costco tech all said that a HA would help me better hear the lectures in auditoriums and in other loud background noise settings I’ve had trouble with. There seems to be much more info about the Philips, including another forum on this site comparing it to Oticon. The Jabra brochure and website are basic and don’t provide much info.
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I belive what the Costco audi meant in only offering the Jabra, was that they didnt have the experience or expertise to fit the KS to my loss, but felt they did have the experience with the Jabra. Ended up they didnt. You can see i now have the exact same aid (except Resound label) and love them. Inmy case, the fitter is much more important to the equation of success than the device…
Just remember that there’s a big Lebowski on a lot of the claims being made by the the clinic’s on how well HAs do in the “help me better hear the lectures in auditoriums and in other loud background noise settings” a big learning curve on getting used to using HAs in these situations, not to mention the fact a lot of further adjustments needed in most cases.
Actually a bit of information on these, use “ReSound One or Omnia” as your search criteria.
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