Oh so much to say…
The button can do just about anything. It can be a mute, a volume control, a program switch, a tinnitus noise generator, etc…
That being said, Nera2 Pros are great hearing devices and they are full automatic. I would not recommend using the buttons unless you find there is some weird anomalous situation where you want to adjust the volume up or down just a touch.
It sounds like she was trying to either dumb it down for you (probably unnecessary) or she is being lazy. I often tell my patients what I just said above. Think of it this way… if had perfect hearing and walked into a loud restaurant, would you tug on your ear and poke your belly button to lower the volume? Nope. Normal hearing people hear background noise. It is part of life. Exposure to noise over time will improve your brain’s ability to filter it. That being said, Nera2 Pros are Oticon’s mid-line device (however, they are better than the vast majority of devices out there)… So depending on how bad an SNR loss you have, they may still not be as good in noise as the Alta2 Pro, Oticon’s best device.
My practice sells Nera2 Pro minrites for $5500/pair. That is a little bit higher than industry average, but we also provide the most comprehensive and top notch service you can get. So $5500 is not totally out of the ballpark, but for that price, she should have been more communicative and supportive to you.
Online businesses like Truhearing give a good initial price, but you don’t get the same level of service as an office like mine. They have the mistaken belief that a hearing aid is like a cell phone. You just buy it and you’re good to go.
Hope that helps a little.