The real frustration is when all a patient/customer needs is someone to facilitate sending the devices to the manufacturer for warranty repair, battery replacement, etc. Finding an audiologist or hearing aid dispenser to assist if your original point of sale is out of state, out of business, etc, should not be difficult. Yet it can be.
A local clinic attached to a university in Illinois previously wanted a $500 “new patient transfer fee” to send in a Phonak device that was clearly not functioning. I ended up sending it to Arizona - original point of purchase - so they could send it back to Illinois for the repair. Then sometimes they can get Phonak to send it directly to me, sometimes it has to go back to Arizona and then to Illinois.
I’ve recently switched to Sphere devices. So yesterday I took my old devices to a different local provider who I’ve used for updated audiograms and minor things (new ear molds, or tube and earhook supplies before I moved from BTE to RIC). They took my Lumity devices and a damaged Roger On with no question and are sending them in for warranty battery replacement and the Roger repair. I would gladly pay for the shipping but was told not to worry about it.
Particularly with a non-prescription device that is the Roger On, there’s literally no way for a customer to obtain warranty service for this consumer electronic device without finding a willing hearing care provider to assist. And this won’t ever get resolved while the impacted user base is relatively small.
Yeah, that doesn’t make sense to me either. They could break it down. Shipping, handling and admin fee. Textbox checks when it’s back from repair to make sure it’s within spec. Assessment and fitting fee only if the manufacturer can’t restore your settings or you want to be sure things are up to date. Either they don’t have the pricing structure in place or they’ve decided they’re too busy for small beans, I suppose.
I like unbundled. But it seems like the market drives towards bundled, which in a strong way is influenced by patient behaviour and clinic competition.
That seems fair. But the discussion gives me an excuse to put in a plug for Connect Hearing. Early in July, I was on a 1,600 mile road trip to London, Ontario, when my left i90 Sphere gave out. I couldn’t hear a sound out of the device, either from the environment or from streaming. I had thought of bringing spare wax traps on the trip, but foolishly did not (I wear cShells). I searched for authorized Phonak HCPs in London and found Connect Hearing was one of two and was a chain owned by Sonova.
The HCP sitting at the front desk simply asked me if my Spheres were under warranty. I said they were. She disappeared with them for a few minutes, announced she had cleaned them both. I asked to buy some Cerustop filters. She gave me three packs of eight and asked if they would be enough. When I asked what I owed her, she said the service was gratis.
As people have noted with Costco providers, each location can be different. However, since I purchased my Spheres online through Direct Hearing, I plan to investigate Connect Hearing in San Antonio, TX, for any future warranty service. The audi who sold me my first two sets of ReSound hearing aids, although she also handles Phonak devices and made my cShell molds, said I should deal with Direct Hearing (and mail my Spheres to them) for any warranty service.
Edit_Update: Seems Connect Hearing is undergoing a brand name change to AudioNova…
Thanks @threluja . I have recently purchased some Infinio Spheres. I am pleased yours are working out for you.
Also thanks @JordanK for this long and inspiring post. I will confess that this post helped to influence my decision to buy a pair of Phonak Infinio Spheres for myself. I am having some setup teething issues that I hope are human audiologist related rather than hardware related…but it’s only been 10 days for me. Understand speech - yes. Sounds good - no
Well, I did have Phoneak (the middle level) and with it being used with a Cros, I had to return them, due to hardware issues with the cros and my phone.
I am now on a Signia set, which I’m still trialing! the Hearing aid itself is now back being repaired. I’m at the point I’m ready just to resort to not being able to hear at all.
But I do have to thank @JordanK for his insight with everything!
You are most welcome! I am just about at my 1 year anniversary with the Sphere’s and they are still groundbreaking. I’ve got my 1 year appointment with my audiologist next week and there is not much I want changed. The Spheric AI mode is a game changer for me and it has allowed me to comfortably go back into noisy environments without getting stressed out before hand. I’ve had zero issues other than the occasional Bluetooth drop off (which I think is caused by radio band congestion/interference) and a bit of feedback in my right ear when the receiver works it’s way out of my ear while I am eating, etc. I may finally ask the audiologist about moving from heavy double domes to custom (titanium??) molds or something like that.
The one thing that really bothers me is all the people on this forum who are not getting the same results that I am experiencing. I feel like there are quite a few crappy audiologists out there who don’t take the time to properly learn the platform and who are cutting corners during trials and setup. Many leave out REM testing or only provide a 1 week trial before pressuring the users into buying. There are probably a whole bunch of people who are walking away from the Sphere’s (and other high end hearing aids) without getting the benefit of this new technology. It’s very frustrating to read these stories because I know many of their complaints can be ironed out by a skilled audiologist.
Just be patient and keep going back to get your hearing aids dialled in properly. It’s worth the effort.
besides not being able to modify if the fit isn’t right on there’s the feedback issue. Ye you can modify the programming for it but then chances are you’re taking away clarity so best to have remade. Again waiting on top of I find Phonak does feedback more than some. JMHO
Hello all, considering that my biggest complaint about my hearing loss is be able is being able to hear conversation in noisy backgrounds, I am seriously considering moving from my Widex Moment 440s, to the Phonak Infineo Sphere i90. But I’ve heard conflicting views as to whether I would get any benefit since I wear a standard type ear tip, not anything that’s completely occlusive. Is this correct? If so, meaning I would not get any benefit unless I wore occlusive/ completely sealed ear tip, with the Phonak Acti-Vent be a good ear tip to try?
Unsatisfactory performance is real. It’s been my problem with two of my previous audiologists who worked on my Phonaks.
It’s a fatal flaw
These are medical equipment. Being hard of hearing is a real disability
Some providers are experienced, skilled and passionate about their work. Those are the ones who help
I went to Peel Audiology for 8 years. They were passionate about the business side. They employed recent graduates from University of WesternOntario. Those new staff didn’t have the experience I needed. My hearing aids were worse and worse with time. At 6 years they sold me new ones. They were a disaster T
3 times I was nearly hit by fast diesel loaders on construction sites.
The industry needs improvement. And they need to stop marketing hearing aids like used cars. Yes. There are many good used car sales people.
Others want more frequent sales and fewer call backs