My Phonak M90 purchase from eBay

Were they more money than the $1500 per pair that Costco charges for the basic equivalent of the M90 312?

1 Like

No.
My wife has the KS9 aids and I have trialed them around the store. The price was close. I felt the Phonak M90 RT aids were a pretty good deal.

3 Likes

I paid just shy of $2,600 for the pair. I didn’t know that Costco had rebranded Phonaks, and still don’t know if they have the equivalent of M90 rechargeable. Had I known that, I likely would have been willing to pay the extra $400 and gone that route.

So you got Marvel 90s for less than $1500? That is a great deal. I have a feeling that the angry among us are disgruntled dispensers or audiologists.

2 Likes

The KS9s use 312s and aren’t rechargeable. They also can’t use the Marvel 2.0 programming or use Roger devices. They have recently introduced a Telecoil version. Additionally, they don’t have the tinitus feature. So, a bit crippled. But they are M90s at their core with the same number of channels and the same presets. One uses Phonak Target to program them - which I do using a NoahLink Wireless.

Thank You so much. I did go to drcliffaud and found and audiologist that is about an hour drive away but only 15 minutes from my part time job. I will phone her to see what she is willing to do and what hearing aids she can program. about 15 months ago I tested a pair of Oticon OPNs at a local audiologist but the price was $4,500! But I knew when I tried them that they were a major step up from my Audicus Claras. Now, those same Oticons can be had for under $1,000 on ebay.

I will keep you posted. Thanks Again!

I think you’re misunderstanding. The $1,500 Costco price isn’t per aid but for the pair. However, they are lacking some features of the M90s and rechargeable is one. They only come in 312 battery model. Other features they don’t have is telecoil, tinnitus masking, and remote programming. I have the KS9s, and since I don’t care about any of the missing features, I may not be remembering every one.

Yep, I definitely misunderstood. I really like the rechargeable feature. My Q90s used 312 batteries, and it seemed they would go out at the most inconvenient times.

I also have tinnitus, though I’m not using that feature yet. One of the things on my list to ask the audi. I would have been tempted by those.from Costco, but If I can find a good audi, I think I’m going to be satisfied with what I’ve got.

Many of us here make at least some of our own adjustments, successfully.

6 Likes

Do they not have the tinnitus feature or can it be enabled?

I recommend DIY programming. I have worn hearing aids for over 30 years, the past 3 years that I have been programming myself have been the most satisfying. I too bought my current pair from eBay, saved over $2000 from what a local Audi wanted.

2 Likes

He is, so am I and many others here. The research and sticktoitiveness required for DIY is a piece of cake compared to many of the other things I’ve done over the years. I heard the same woe-be-you negativity a thousand times in my life. It gives me a chuckle every time I take on something new, and increases the satisfaction when I meet the challenge.

BTW, there have been times I’ve spent more to do something myself than it would have cost to hire someone. (not the case with hearing aids) But it’s tough to put a price on satisfaction, a concept that naysayers seem to have trouble understanding. Since they never tire of giving me their advice, here’s mine for them - put the time into something useful and positive instead. That’s a low bar that could be hurdled by say, basket weaving. Just be prepared to hear that you shouldn’t have risked it. :slight_smile:

8 Likes

I was just looking out for you. Do you have that in writing?
If you want to tell me the serial numbers I’ll look see what the factory has in the database…
let me know I’ll give you my email so you don’t have to post it open on here.

He has Target, should be able to check warranty himself.

ok thanks for the heads up

The only thing I have in writing is what they put on the eBay listing. When I buy the Noah wireless device, I’ll check the warranty. This is what they wrote on the warranty portion:

Condition

Brand New and sealed. The set was manufactured in 2019. We can open and set initial fitting program with install the Receivers upon your request.

Warranty

We will get you a totally 3 years manufacturer warranty (repair) by Phonak Korea branch which includes 1 year international manufacturer warranty (repair).

I’m sorry but it sounds a little fishy. I am still offering me to check the ser#.
Under the colored(red or blue) window under the aid.

Buying used hearing aids off eBay carries some risks. They have improved their customer satisfaction stance in recent years. It is still possible to get taken, though. I looked at listings for a while before I bought aids. I have bought 2 sets on eBay and both were exactly as advertised. One, some Audeo V90s, came without receivers, so I bought a pair of medium power receivers for a very reasonable price. I wanted to try Sound Recover 2 when it came out, so I found a pair of B50s for a small fraction of their original price. They showed to still be in warranty according to Target. Of course, the Phonak warranty only applies to the original purchaser, but I at least knew these were recent aids. I have done my own programming practically from the start, and won’t look back. All the local Audiologists won’t touch aids they didn’t sell. That, and they charge very high prices for any and everything they touch. I was fortunate to get the VA to order me some Marvels, which I have reprogrammed 12 times at latest count since getting them in September. I am going back to the VA soon and let them see what they can do. If I don’t like it, I will just restore them back to where they are right now. There are so many advantages to self programming, I don’t see why more don’t do it. It isn’t for everyone, and I fully understand that. Buying aids off eBay isn’t for everyone either. But, if you do your homework and are patient in looking at whats available and the prevailing prices, you can save a ton of money. There is a fairly big learning curve connected to hearing aids. It is fairly complex, really. But with time, anyone can learn the ins and outs. This forum is an excellent source of information.

4 Likes

In my case, they were new HAs, not used, but obviously a person could still get taken. But you’re right, eBay is working harder at customer satisfaction.

In my case, when I paid for them, sales tax was added. I connected eBay, and they confirmed that HAs are considered medical devices, and sales tax should not have been charged. That was a little over $200 for this purchase. It took a couple of weeks, but they refunded the money. That will pay for my Noah device.

hparsons
Thank you for your time for posting your experience! all your descriptions were very informative! especially about how hearing aids are tax exempt on ebay, I never knew that, I’m too thinking about purchasing m90 on ebay and love to hear people experiences. I was quoted 6k for a pair on m90 and
I prefer going thru the ebay and program them on my own.