Phonak - Turn off Last accessed program on hearing aid button

I just got Phonak Sphere i-90s. My audiologist set up the program button to have two setting on long press - automatic and sphere.

However, I have now learned the hard way that if you ever try out one of the three other preset programs on the MyPhonak app, the last one you used gets added to the long press on the HA’s. I now have three programs to scroll through, including the last one I played with that I have no use for as it was no help. (And since I didn’t realize this, I got very confused when doing long press and ended up in a program I didn’t realize and though Sphere was doing nothing.)

My audi was confused as she had only set up the two programs. Researching this, I found this was an “enhancement” to MyPhonak app in 2021, although how the app works has changed since then so there is no Push button on the app. What is myPhonak Memory? - Ask the Experts 27950

I can’t find any way to change this in the app; all the app does it let you delete a program. (I was able to take the program, modify it and save it as a new one. Then the third program button push was this new program, and when I deleted it, I was left with only the two program button pushes from my audi setup. )

But this means that if I ever try or use any other programs, the third button push will be back.

Does anyone know of any way to turn it off this “enhancement”… can it be done in Target by audi?

I just want to have auto and sphere as my two button settings on the aids; if I ever want to use other programs which would likely be rare, I want to select them on my phone for that single use.

I am just so surprised that there would be no way for the user to turn off this “enhancement”. I’m not even sure how much of an enhancement most people would consider this; a real enhancement would let us chose via the app which programs we want on the aid beyond those set up by the audi.

Thanks in advance for any insight!

You need to get your audiologist ro make the changes in the fitting software.

If you created a program on the app go to devices in the app and then hearing aid programs (likely at the top of the list of options) select the program and you will see an option to delete it.

Thanks, I can delete a program in the app. What I can’t do is stop the last accessed program from automatically being added to the long push button on the hearing aids. So if I ever select one of the additional programs on the MyPhonak app, it gets added to the hearing aid button and I now have three. I am hoping there is something in the audi’s Target software that can turn off this unwanted “enhancement”.

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SusL, if you been here a while, you will know that I for one, certainly feel your pain. I am a DIYer, curiosity got the best of me, and I just peeked into it.
Not sure that this feature is a Fitting Software option. I have not fully explored the hated Phonak App on the phone, but perhaps that is where it is controlled if that is controllable. Maybe I am missing something. I would think it would be on this screen, I captured below. In the second screen you see is the flyout menu with option to remove linked program. Perhaps that is what you may be referring to.


Do you often use the Phonak phone App, and if so, do you use it to control TV streaming, or BT streaming. My long running issue is the fact that touching the Stream volume, instantly UNmutes the mics, even if you want them to remain muted, which usually you would want NOT to change.
This is a real nuisance. I will be sending Phonak an email on this shortly which I will also post here.
You may have a valid additional issue I will want to include in my complain.
Sadly the general consensus on this forum is that such complaints are for naught.
So they don’t want to bother speaking up. But I do and will.

The only way I know is to delete the program in the app. If it is one of the pre-installed programs it will be permanently deleted unless it is reinstituted in Target by your audiologist. For example, if I select Restaurant, it will remain in the long push rotation unless it is deleted. Once it is deleted it will no longer be in the “long push rotation.” It will also no longer be an option on your app after it is deleted.

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Yup, I do believe there is no way to stop the behavior of adding the last used program to the HA long press from the app. I have looked pretty hard at every setting.

I was hoping maybe the audi has some way to turn off the behavior in Target. But I found some pics of Target and while limited, didn’t see anything obvious.

There is the work around I figured out, but what a pain. Why not give us the control of the option? Or at least a way to turn off a program the option has added to the HA button.

I believe you are right. Since I don’t want to delete the programs my audi added (at least yet) since I can’t add them back, I set up a custom program and deleted that. But that pretty much means I won’t be trying these std programs to see if they help my hearing.

My Phonak spheres are brand new, so I am just trying out the app at this point. I don’t do streaming so have not run into that problem. But as a programmer and app designer at one point, I continue to be flabbergasted at the lack of usability testing to see how real life people use technical devices. Or to just stop and think through what tool/app behaviors people are likely to want, and to give people options. I found a web page from 2021 when Phonak talked about this new “enhancement” that had been added to MyPhonak; you would think someone might have thought that not everyone would want this. It came as a complete surprise to me…I don’t go out a lot anymore so don’t have a lot of opportunities to try out Sphere and AI in these HA’s to see if it helps me hear better. So at my class, I had no idea that I had ended up outside of Sphere and just thought it wasn’t much help.

I actually read the user guides for my ha’s and the app. Nowhere does it mention this happening. I thought my ha’s were broken. I only found out by searching the internet and found an FAQ from Phonak… why not put this in the user guides? There are more pages in the app user guide about using the Health stuff that I have no interest in than using the app for hearing.

Please do include this in your complaint. Once I hear back from my audi that she has talked to the rep and there is no solution, I will do so too.

Thanks for looking.

That is a good argument for getting a Noahlink Wireless and being able make some basic program changes to the hearing aids. :grinning:

Exactly. You can save the AuD’s efforts, experiment and then restore her settings.
Curious how she would work around this.?

And with your tech savvy experience, this should be in your wheelhouse.
The Noah Wireless units are so inexpensive now… I think. And like has been said, an old one works fine, you don’t need the v2

That’s an interesting idea. I don’t have any interest in learning the complexities and technical terms for setting up hearing aids, so had really dismissed that idea, especially after looking through some postings in the Fitting Forum; there are some real experts there. And I am now retired and getting rather tired of the amount of time I spend on making technology work (phones, computers, tablets, kindles, routers, cloud backup software… on and on) for myself and family members I support. The stuff keeps breaking.

I did find a step by step guide to target 10 on the internet and looked through it for a setting for what I wanted. But pretty much skimmed the rest. I did not realize it was possible to save and retrieve my audi’s fitting and then play around with some other settings based on that as a separate fitting. I did pay for a year of unlimited visits, so want to use her expertise, and do not want to mess up her settings.

I will think about that for possibly some fine tuning. My big issue right now is that I got custom molds to take advantage of sphere in loud, and less than a week in, I’m not sure they fit the way I want… not far enough in. My audi said they could be remade if not right.

You’ve made me think. Maybe I could play with some settings not available in My Phonak app while ignoring everything else, and not mess up her settings. Thanks!

Definitely redo the molds.
You will probably get to keep the existing ones. What could they do with them.
You know the speaker cable just pulls straight out of the hearing aid. Use a blunt nosed small player around a rubber pad or piece of paper.

Possibly try the titanium. I been wanting to order a second set. I have the c shells.
Problem is I cannot locate the length options. Posted about that. Misplaced it. I see the order form. I think they have like five different
lengths.

Want to clarify that I cannot say I fully understand the issue.
Possibly by removing both programs from switch control.
OR deactivating switch control.
Or assigning it differently. You might be able to break the cycle.

Since I don’t fully understand the problem, I cannot say that once playing in your own sandbox, and then choosing to RESTORE the AuDi’s version, may not also restore the functioning you don’t want.

IF nothing else, you could make screen shots of each AuDi screen and then tic your version likewise. I am just adding this, so you won’t feel frustrated, if restoring the AuD’s version restore ALL including the undesired.

I had posted a month ago, about surprise over having lost Phonak App modified programming or program naming ( complained about by others here too ) during some Target fitting changes. Don’t recall details. Possibly a new session Not changing the whole account, I know that.

Ultimately the hearing aids are to be a tool to assist life, not to take over life… so with all my other interests, daily… somethings I have to look up anew when needed.