Jabra Enhance v KS10?

Yeah these are Oticon’s cousin, so no problem there, Costco notoriously locked their respective HAs, although much older platform’s now from ReSound and Rexton, K6 and K7 and as @jay_man2 has mentioned. A real pain for those that want to go the DIY path.

Does Costco lock HA’s, or is it the manufacturer? I mean, why would Costco mind if you bought from them and never showed up again?

It’s a good question, hard to be sure, the manufacturers make the HAs for/ and supply Costco, the manufacturers also supply Costco with the software to provide programming for those HAs, does Costco ask for this to be done? maybe, or they work together for this to happen, look at it this way,who has the most influential interest in this, Costco or the manufacturer?

I think if this was truly the case, then they wouldn’t be “locked” in the first place, they most definitely want you going back to them, for after sales service, but in saying that, it does seem like “locked in” to Costco is not so popular now, judging by the models being sold at the moment that aren’t locked.

So I can’t say for any models other than the two I’ve tried as obviously they have locked them before. I find it odd since they don’t actually get any more money from you as if you went somewhere else for adjustments it would be cheaper for them, but oh well…

I’m going to be sticking with the jabras and am glad the smart fit software works - I just have issue with their numbering scheme, but that’s just me :grin::grin:

I have been wearing the KS10 for 4 months and love the sound and streaming from my iPhone music app. BUT, for some unexplainable reason, phone calls are a near disaster…they can hear me-I can’t hear them, chime interruptions, static, inadvertent lowering of volume, etc. I have talked 3 times to Sonova/Phonak techs, as well as Apple Care. I’ve had lots of advice, but nothing seems to fix the problems…so I have ordered the Jabra Enhance to replace the KS10. I was told that the Jabra is made for iPhone and will work better with phone calls, but will not stream music as well unless the phone is kept very near the hearing aids. The KS10 would stream very well from within my pants pocket. If they both use bluetooth, why is that??? I remember my old Resound acted the same way…I had to hold the phone in my hand to keep a solid streaming connection.

I’ve had the KS10 for about a week now, and phone calls on Bluetooth have been flawless, as they were for my KS9s. Never a complaint about callers not hearing me. I did see this Phonak Marvel 90 R Bluetooth Problem and Fix (changing a setting in the MyPhonak/Easyline app) as a possible fix to your problem, particularly with iPhones. My Pixel 4a (Android) has not had a problem with the KS9 or KS10.

I returned the Jabras after three weeks, because I preferred the Phonak approach to Bluetooth streaming, both in terms of audio quality and in terms of connectivity to laptops as well as phones. Jabras use Bluetooth LE for streaming, while Phonak uses Bluetooth classic. Jabras have much better battery life. My Jabra’s Bluetooth had its own frailties. There’s a discussion of the Jabras, including Bluetooth, here GN launching a Jabra branded M&RIE product at Costco

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I so wanted to like the ks10. They just didn’t sound as good - felt like the philips and jabra have a much bigger dynamic range. But that’s just my hearing - I know everyone hears differently.

I have tried both the Oticon and the Marvel (old version of the KS10) and I found the connection for music and phone calls to be a lot better on the Made For iPhone (Oticon) Aids. I’m sure the Jabra should work the same way.

EDIT - Altho I just read this, so now I’m not sure. GN launching a Jabra branded M&RIE product at Costco

I will say that the jabra does a decent job of streaming. It does sometimes have one ear drop out then back but not that often. It sounds ok, although as I have open domes the bass is a bit wanting. However I accept sound that I know others would find sub par - so ymmv…

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I will agree here. On most phone calls, I can keep both Jabras working if I have the phone in my hand while walking, one or the other will drop off if I put the phone in my pocket, but return when I remove it. As for streaming, it’s been a wildcard for me, sometimes it only works in one aid no matter what I do until I reboot the phone. Using a Pixel 4a at the moment.

I started wearing a Jabra Enhance Pro M&RIE from Costco about a month ago. I have noticed 3 issues.

  1. It does not maintain the selected program. It spontaneously shifts out of my custom programs to the default All Around.
  2. The sound is too tinny. Even turning the Treble all the way down in the Jabra App doesn’t resolve the issue. Watching TV can be painful.
  3. Costco is overbooked and understaffed. Multiple phone messages get left unanswered. Responses to support requests on the APP are useless canned responses. I am very unhappy about the support experience I have had since being fitted. After a week of calling I finally got through today and got an appointment. I may just return it.

@sabergermd The fact that costco is often overbooked I agree is a major negative. My suggestion (although unrequested :wink: is to make several follow up appointments, maybe a week apart or so, all at once so you have upcoming appts.

Switching out of the other programs is odd - I don’t have that at all. And I suspect the tinny sound can be adjusted somewhat, but it could be just not the right HA for you…

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Is this when you use the App to change to your custom program, or do you use the buttons on your HAs.

This is a very common issues with new users,but easily adjusted within the software, so it’s a programming issue.

Why not consider DIY, this way no need to waste your time and getting frustrated, it’s easy enough to do, use the search button from right here on hearingtracker to find posts about your Jabra HAs.

DIY? I don’t have the ability to program the HA outside of the available user settings in the App or resolve manufacturing defects. This is not a matter of user settings.

No well you may not have that ability at the moment, but if did, and you wanted to go that way it would be a lot easier then the hassle of jumping through all the hoops that your dealing with now.

Sure, you leave manufacturers warranty issues up to them through you audiologist clinic.

Actually it is,not within the App but within the software,as you say they sound to “tinny” so this is the higher frequencys that need to be adjusted, sometimes a bit more lower frequencies can also solve this, so this is why I suggested possibly going the DIY way.

Also do bear in mind that sometimes it’s just a matter of getting used to the way they sound, as in over time you’ll come to like the way are, it can take weeks/ months for some people.

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There is a difference between being helpful and pedantic.

Maybe your on the wrong forum, seems strange that you would add to this thread but don’t want anyone to answer your “unhappy” concerns.
These are minor issues that can easily be fixed, you state you want to return them because of these concerns, I offed some solid solutions to help you enjoy your Jabra’s (ReSound)

BTY I’ve been called a few names in the past, but been called “pedantic” is a first ; )

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I went for my appointment today to resolve the issues mentioned:

  1. No help for the sudden switch from Custom Favorite to Button Controlled All Around. I was referred to Jabra as an APP related issue.
  2. The sound quality on the All Around was markedly improved by switching from omnidirectional to M&RIE. I don’t know why that wasn’t set that way from the start as my receiver is M&RIE. I also had her add Music and Phone.
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Posting my experience in case it might be helpful to others considering these 2 hearing aids. This is not the ‘final word’ on anything, since different people will have different experiences.

I first tried the Jabra, being quite hopeful in terms of what the M&RIE would add, along with its streaming capabilities. This actually pushed me to upgrade my prior Galaxy Note 8, to the Galaxy S21 Ultra, in order to have the ASHA capability required for streaming with the Jabra.

In terms of streaming functionality, I was very disappointed, even after a couple of fitting sessions, along with directly contacting Jabra’s tech support people.

  • I like to listen to podcasts while out walking, and if I put the phone in my left pocket, the right would lose connectivity, and vice-versa.
  • Even when a ‘good’ connection was present, there seemed to be a timing issue between Left and Right such that I heard the podcast, music, or the other person’s voice during a phone call fluctuate randomly between being ‘central’ as it should be, or hearing things simultaneously from each ear separately, which it obviously shouldn’t be.
  • Bass tones for podcast, music, and speech, were extremely poor such that it was just too thin and unacceptable.
  • In terms of the hearing aid itself, it was fine, but at least in the time I had them, they didn’t seem to do much more than my prior Widex Unique 330’s.

So I returned these, and am now using the KS10’s. I had my 2nd session yesterday which tweaked a few things, but overall, these are dramatically better in terms of streaming:

  • Connectivity is much stronger. Mine are configured with the BT receiver in the Left aid, and if I put the phone in my right pocket, I’ll occasionally get a drop-out, but if I put it in my left pocket, it’s solid.
  • The left/right are also always solid, with the sound image always central.
  • Bass is dramatically better for music, podcast and voice. Now these do not compete with a decent set of headphones, but I wouldn’t expect them to. But the sound is much fuller than I had with the Jabra’s.
  • The hearing aid itself is working well, and I like the App better than Jabra’s, in terms of functionality and stability. The main downside is that it takes 15-20 seconds for the App to connect to the hearing aids, and that connection times out fairly quickly.

Some who have iPhones report much better streaming performance with the Jabra’s, so my using Android may be partly responsible. And it is always possible there’s something different about my S21 Ultra, although it is one of Samsung’s ‘flagship’ phones right now.

So I’ll be sticking with the KS10’s, and hopefully I can get the basic hearing aid functionality improved even more over time, so they’ll be better than my Unique 330’s. They’re probably at least as good now, possibly slightly better, but after only 2 weeks, there’s probably additional tweaking that can be done to improve it further.

Hope this helps others who are considering these.

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Thanks a bunch for your review! I appreciate your note re: iPhone. I am among the iPhone users who swapped KS10s for Jabras. While I liked the “sound” of the KS10s, made-for-iPhone connectivity is phenomenal – so much so that I spent extra $ for the Jabras. The delay in connecting to the app is a few seconds – and virtually zero if you make use iPhone’s “Settings” to make adjustments.
I found the KS10 connection with the Phonak TV connector very marginal at best, while with the Jabras & Resound’s TV connector I can be in a different room & the connection doesn’t drop. And when I get out of range & it does drop, it immediately reconnects when I’m back in range.

Being able to multi-task while watching TV is a must for me, and using KS10/Phonak TV Connector was intolerable. Anybody need a Phonak TV Connector???

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