I also wonder if a person with my cinderblock ears would get even 24 hrs with Starkey aids. I’m likely not a candidate for the RT model.
That’s a good point. It kind of reminds me of the early-2000s trend towards “baby” cell phones where they became unusably small for a time because manufacturers were more concerned with showing off how tightly they could pack all the tech than with actual usability.
I love my Lumities, but they could be quite a bit bigger than they are without being any more visible or getting in the way of anything. It doesn’t matter for me because my loss is relatively mild, so I 1) don’t drain the battery as quickly with amplification, and 2) can muddle through without them when they need to recharge. But even though I don’t need it, I’d happily accept a bulkier aid with a larger battery if it meant those who did need it didn’t have to go without.
4 Likes
Size definitely isn’t the issue. Starkey Genesis RIC has a 51 hour battery life and a mini RIC with 41 hours battery life.
I’m trialing the mini’s now and end after a day of heavy streaming with 40-45% left
Thanks for sharing.
I’m mainly venting about how Phonak’s flagship Lumity line is only available in RIC as rechargeable and even then barely a days worth just feels like something isn’t right with this strategy so needed to say something.
1 Like
Good idea. Definitely feel BTE is a big leap up from CIC. Was hoping to keep it somewhat compact still. Just surprising the rest of the product line doesn’t have battery as an option.
1 Like
I have the Starkey Genesis AI mini RIC on trial atm. Claimed 41 hours. After a full day with heavy streaming (3hours calls, YouTube, podcasts etc) I finish with 40-45% battery life still. Far more manageable when it comes to battery life and smaller than Phonak Lumity RIC.
1 Like
It’s there already. Starkey Genesis AI RIC has a claimed 51hours with a mini RIC version claiming 41hours.
I have the mini on trial and after a full day (18hours) and 3 hours of calls, YouTube podcasts etc streaming I’m at 40-45% battery.
2 Likes
I agree. 16-18hours and ending the day in single digits battery life is unacceptable.
I do agree the speech quality was amazing when I trialed them. Had some challenges with aggressive programming settings (felt like a wall would suddenly appear when in loud sound environments) but likely adjustable in audiologist settings.
I’ve been waiting for the Lumity CIC to come out for over 12months.
My 2018 Phonaks CICs have recently had issues so trailing other aids during repairs. Mainly Phonak Lumity RIC and Starkey Genesis AI mRIC.
Honestly battery life isn’t good enough with the rechargble phonaks. Starkey crushed (over double) but streaming quality isn’t there (have reconnected multiple times. Still get a lot of crackling when walking with phone in pocket).
Wife just landed new job with better health insurance. Think I’ll just go Phonak Paradise CIC and pay $2-3k due to insurance coverage. Then in 3 years get new aids instead of the usual $6-7k every 5-6 years.
2 Likes
100% agree. I posted this hoping to get a lot of engagement to show it’s not a limited POV.
And yes it’s a crucial medical instrument that deaf people need to use constantly. It’s not a ‘nice to have’ for many. Unfortunately product managers may be getting the message wrong as older folks who are new to aids don’t want to wear all day etc.
And I tried to keep my examples as realistic as possible as opposed to the long tail one could easily go down.
Will share with some others in a week.
3 Likes
There are other brands with more compact RIC that’s offer over double battery life to Phonak Lumity. Size shouldn’t be an issue. I suspect its chip power usage is the primary impact.
At such a price premium there is massive benefit for doubling battery life for very small cost.
Unfortunately I think others have said it well here. I think someone in Phonak leadership has decided more money can be made selling an additional recharging unit (convenient second location in house and/or battery version for traveling). This has lead to a poor design choice
1 Like
Yes, I also prefer the streaming quality of the classic Bluetooth to the low energy Bluetooth, but hence the battery drain.
Has someone told you that there will BE a lumity CIC? I’m expecting a lumity custom by next fall maybe, but if it’s a rechargeable line to match competitors there’s a chance they’ll leave the CIC out. A lot of the features in the lumity are binaural anyway, which wouldn’t apply. Given that CICs are so defeatured, there may not be a tremendous difference from the paradise CIC.
1 Like
No one has told me but no one has told me it’s not coming.
I just assumed as Lumity is the latest tech that gas new software, chipset etc that it would eventually translate down to custom CIC. Yes I understand it’s not as feature rich as the larger aids but it’s an improvement to the existing Paradise CIC.
1 Like
Conndor:
I had the same problems with the Paradise CROS RIC. I went to that from an Audeo B which is considerably larger that the Marvel/Paradise/Lumity series. I had to return them to get a battery model. I agree that 16 hours is not sufficient and if I charged during the day, I would effectively lose my hearing. I stream a lot during the day.
One solution would be to make a slightly larger model (XL?) with a larger battery. Phonak seems to be trying to see how small they can make the aids at the expense of battery life. I am well past the age of being vain about wearing hearing aids.
Another would be to have the ability to charge while you are wearing the aids. I think one other vendor offers this (Widex?).
An option for you would be to go with a Paradise battery model.
- Doug.
2 Likes
The Starkey Genesis mini RIC is smaller than the Lumity RIC (slim or normal) and boasts 41hours battery. Their normal RIC has 51hours. Currently trialing the mini and ending day with a comfortable 40-45% even after 3+hours of calls, streaming etc. Bluetooth quality isn’t there though as I can’t walk with my phone in my pocket and still stream. Lumity also has better noise cancellation options when streaming.
Honestly think I’ll just go phonak paradise CIC as I just found out our new insurance gives a big discount and upgrade in 3 years (when insurance lets us) vs the usual 5-7years cycle. Maybe battery and Bluetooth quality will have improved enough by then.
If I don’t go that route and stay RIC, I have to keep my Starkey just because of battery life but still trialing speech quality etc. Will just wear my AirPod max headphones as Bluetooth quality is better
1 Like
Your comment about the improved speech enhancement also intrigues me … And FWIW, I also have that same “HIT THE WALL” that comes on whether just with the aids or streaming with the Phonak Roger V2. If sound goes up to much, it’s like my aids just SHUT THE DOOR ON it for several seconds.
That’s when I take a deeeeep breath and just wait for the aids to adjust to normal again. For this reason, I am going in to see my audi in a couple weeks to play around with the MPO vs gain. I’m hoping there’s a “sweet spot” that won’t diminish speech comprehension, but won’t shut the aids down to zero volume for several seconds either.
1 Like
I think it’s just an aggressive switch between different program types.
Ie normal mode then flip to restaurant mode. In the new mode it deprioritizes sound behind and to the side. I literially feel like a wall at 30degrees each side of me has gone up. It’s very disorienting how quick it flips but to its credit the speech understanding is very good. Was at a conference trialing them and whilst I didn’t like the wall aspect, I did like speech quality.
Could be because I’m used to the ‘phonak way’ so when I’ve tried Starkey I’m not getting the same impression. Could also be the stark difference from my 2018 CICs made a great first impression and now it’s not as much as a difference.
Probably could remove some of the programs and/or have a more natural transistion between them (is that possible?) but I didn’t try as the battery life was unacceptable to me.
If the gains are set too far apart in different programs there will be a more noticeable sound difference when the aids change programs.
This is one of the fitters challenges to do properly so the client doesn’t have the shocking sound changes.
1 Like
@Conndor Not sure where you’ve got this idea from, but it is absolutely dangerous and self-centered, I will remind you that you & I and like many others, we live around people and people HoH, and most of them can’t afford a P30 and I am one of them.
So your proposal in nutshell is, “I want a P100 (1) with longer rechargeable battery, because I can afford it and sc*w anyone who can’t afford it”, this is an absolute disgrace in form and content, and in this instance, because Phonak has decided to exclude Audeo Lumity with disposable batteries (2).
Any manufacturer who does these (1) and/or (2) should be named and shamed and driven out of business, this isn’t a luxurious item you want to buy, unfortunately this a necessary item people require for them to “live/be safe” and “communicate”.
HA manufacturers want to provide rechargeable HA, that’s absolutely great, but make sure you propose the same portfolio with disposable batteries; Seeing that most rechargeable HA have limited juice per day, they should make sure that their product meet their consumer’s expectation.
Absolute disgrace.
@Zebras My guess is that’s what @Morgan1946 is referring to, as on this forum there has been much heated debate(s) around rechargeable and non rechargeable HA.
That’s my rant for today.
1 Like
If you want the classic bluetooth streaming but more control over your battery life, and if you are fine with battery changes, which you must be if you are a CIC guy, you could consider the Paradise 13 RIC or the Vivante 312.
But if a CIC makes you happy, stick with a CIC. People malign them for not having all the advanced features, but they have a lot of their own benefits so long as you feel you are still hearing well with them. Good CIC candidates often have very high satistfaction with their devices.
3 Likes