Started trial with Phonak Marvel M70 and Roger Select iN

Hearing Aids
#1

I started a trial today with Phonak Marvel M70s. My current pair of aids is Phonak Virto v70. So far I think I like the Marvels. I hear my wife, TV and things in general better.

I am also trying a Roger Select iN and we intentionally went to a noisy restaurant we visit on occasion. It was music trivia night and the music was loud and the speakers were behind me. With the select on the table and aimed at my wife I could hear her and carry on a conversation. I was amazed. I could also hear the waitress over the music even without using the Select.

The My Phonak iPhone app seems to be a little quirky.

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#2

What do you mean by “quirky”?

#3

I use an iPhone and I can go to the My Phonak app and mute the aids. When the iPhone locks the aids unmute. If I hit the home button to enter my password but don’t the aids mute, but for only the short period while the password screen is active. If I do sign in the aids mute again automatically until the screen locks again. The aids are muted only as long as the iPhone is open. I realize these are trial aids and I can most likely have a program setup to mute the aids like I do on my current pair of Phonaks, but I’m surprised the app won’t keep the aids muted until I unmute.

The app won’t stay in auto sense unless I disable the Bluetooth which is irksome to me. I answer the phone and use the aids to speak to the caller, but I want the Bluetooth off except when I answer the phone. On my current pair of aids using the ComPilot II I can select the program I want to use and not hear the iPhone except for phone calls.

About one out of four times when I open the app it won’t find one or both of the aids and I have to turn the Bluetooth off and then back on to find the aids.

#4

Second test with the Roger Select today. I met my daughter, son-in-law, and grandkids at what turned out to be a very noisy restaurant. The setup was a little different from the last place I went to and the Select worked well. My daughter sat in the corner diagonally across from me and I could hear her. The background noise was a little different from last time. Today is was more silverware and dishes noise, but I wasn’t sitting wondering what the conversation was all about. I think the background nose wouldn’t have been as bad if I had molds, which, I’m used to, instead of the open domes.

And the aids also work well, Marvel M-70s, I could hear my wife in the car.

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#5

I trialed the Phonak Marvel M90’s with batteries for the last week. I decided to switch and try the rechargeable this week. Why? On the rechargeable you have a battery meter that tells how much battery power is left (like on my Oticon OPN2 with batteries). On the Phonak M90 with battery, there’s nothing like hearing the freight train notification that your battery is low at a bad time. I’m also trialing the Roger Select this week. The Roger Select connects effortlessly with the rechargeable aid, if you have battery powered, the audi has to use a “boot” to program the aids to connect to the Roger Select…at a $500 additional charge.

Let me add, I suffered SSHL in my better ear just before Christmas. I have nerve damage (since childhood) in my left ear. I discovered that when I put my left OPN in my left ear, I could hear well enough to communicate stream TV, radio, and talk on my iPhone. However, I was losing speech recognition and they seemed too quiet. Now I have a 2 vent bass dome on the Oticon and a double dome bass on the Phonak. Without the left aid, I’m hard of hearing.

When I went last week for my second steroid injection in my ear. I also had an appointment for one of the audi’s to re-program my Oticon. She looked at my 2018 audiogram (posted currently in my profile) to my most recent and stated there’s no change in your left ear and didn’t see the need to re-program, change the domes, nothing. I would’ve had to pay for the re-program. That’s not the point. I hadn’t told her about the Phonak trial where I knew there was most definitely a difference. She was so rushed and seemed so rude I just thought the heck with it. She also told me there wasn’t a difference between version 4 on my aids, than ver. 6.1.

Right now, it looks like it will be the M90’s unless I come across something else. The reason I haven’t attempted BiCros is because I need the bluetooth capability. Glad you’re giving the M70 Phonak HA’s more time. Good luck! :smiley:

#6

So you have more of a “comfort” factor viewing a battery power read out daily, versus just replacing a size 13 battery every 7 to 10 days? I’m the other way around and have peace of mind knowing my hearing aid won’t lose power for a week plus, versus the possibility of forgetting to recharge batteries every night. And you audi can easily adjust the sound level of the so called “warning sound” that lets you know when disposable batteries have to be replaced. And last I checked disposables cost way, way less then rechargeable batteries (short term and long term),

#7

You have the advantage of years of HA use and I only have one year with my first HA, so I certainly do appreciate your experience and your viewpoint on HA batteries. All I have to offer in the conversation is my one year’s experience with the Phonak Audeo Marvel M90-R.

When I got my HA’s a year ago I was given the option of rechargeable or disposable. I thought about it. My laptop uses a rechargeable battery. My cell phone uses a rechargeable battery. My tablet uses a rechargeable battery. My Kindle eReader uses a rechargeable battery. So it seemed to me to be a no-brainer to pay a bit extra for a rechargeable battery for my HA too.

When I go to bed it is automatic for me to make sure all my devices are recharged overnight. So it was easy to add my HA’s to a well worn routine.

After a year’s use I’ve never run out of HA battery during any day no matter how long the day. At the end of the day my batteries are still between 40 to 60% charged. They could probably go for two days, but I would never do that.

Both Kate and I have Marvel M90-R’s and are pleased we choose rechargeable. Neither one of us believe we would want to fuss with disposable batteries. The Marvel rechargeables are advertised to have a 6 year battery life but I’m sure we will opt for the latest technology long before then.

That’s my personal experience, for what it’s worth.

As with anything, there’s always individual preference, and of course YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary). :nerd_face:

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#8

The M-70s I have are the replaceable battery model. A 312 battery. My audi setup the aids and added the Select without any issues. The price she quoted me was the same whether the aids had replaceable batteries or rechargeables.

It’s a shame your audi was rushed and didn’t want to take the time to help you.

#9

I will most likely stick with replaceable batteries. It’s all I’ve ever had. I’m often away from the house for long periods and I don’t want to have to keep up with a charger. I also hike and camp and keeping up with the charger and power pack would be cumbersome. I keep a pack of batteries in multiple places. My car, the wife’s car, my laptop bag.

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#10

I did a 30-day trial with Marvel M-70R and was pleased with them. I took them back to get the disposable battery version which won’t be available until sometime in February.

I opted not to get rechargeable because my wife and I travel quite a lot. Sometimes it takes more than 24 hours to get from our house to our first hotel. Being away from the charger for that long is quite chancy since Phonak predicts only 16-24 hours battery life with the rechargeable.

For example, in May we will be going to southern Italy. We will need to leave our house around noon to drive to the airport which is 2.5 hours away. With a late-afternoon departure and two intermediate stops, we won’t reach our destination until 5:30 PM local time the next day, or 11:30 AM here. Allowing an hour to reach the hotel, that’s over 24 hours.

Disposables for me, for sure.

#11

Do you have access to Costco? Their KS9 is basically the M90 model with the 312 battery, for $1500 a pair in the US.

I agree with you on the batteries. I would rather replace a battery once every 5-6 days than worry about recharging them every day. But, opinions do vary…

#12

The KS9 doesn’t have the Roger Select as an option.

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#13

I use to think the same as you about the changing batteries vs charging my aids. But I am beginning to rethink it. I charge my phone, my iPad, my laptop, and my connect clip every night and I do not have to worry about them running out of power all the next day. Why not just charge my hearing aids over night and not have to worry about them the next day. There are hearing aid chargers now that have options for power packs that can keep the hearing aids charged for 7 days. That would even work for my camping trips. There hearing aids with chargers that can charge hearing aids from a usb power pack that will also work for me.

#14

I think phones, iPads, etc are a bit different. If push comes to shove you can still use them while plugged in. You can join the young folk sitting on the floor in the airport so they can get power for their dead phones. But that is changing too. Many public places now have charging stations with USB outlets. But, they don’t work so well for hearing aids that you have forgotten to charge…

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#15

Not really true any more, I have checked it to it for the Oticon OPNS charger it will work with a usb power pack or usb hub it will charge slower but that is ok, the full charge last at least 20 hours and I never have them in more than about 15. The Marvels have several different charging units a small one that does not have the dryer that will use usb, the one with the dryer has an option for a piggy back power pack. Some of the other have companies have pocket size chargers that have built in power backups. The world is changing and changing fast for rechargeable hearing aids.

#16

Can you charge them when they are in your ears enjoying a dinner at a restaurant?

#17

One of my problems is I’m away from home for more than 24 hours on occasion and it isn’t something I schedule. It’s a last minute action. I would have to always carry and keep up with a charging device and that seems cumbersome. Keeping up with batteries is easier and much more convenient.

Charging the laptop and phone only requires a cable. Charging the hearing aids requires a special device.

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#18

If the batteries last all day then why the need. The batteries last longer than I will ever need them in any one day. You just want to believe the glass is half empty I see it as half full.
You start out in the morning with a full charge and at the end of the day you still have at least 30% of the battery life left. And that would be even if I was driving or traveling. And if I was driving across country I could charge them while I was driving that way I would not have to hear the road.

#19

but most of the devices now are smaller than you phone. And they could also have a battery backup built into it for charging your aids while traveling and you are not needing the aids.

#20

I will admit that rechargeable aids are not for everyone. But I had being in a meeting, or in church or a movie and the batteries going dead. I see for me the rechargeables lasting all day every day with nightly charges. So I would not have to stop and maybe miss something to change batteries. I am retired, but busy most days taking calls or going to volunteer, or answering emails from someone with a question. My answer with my replacement batteries have been to throw out still useable batteries the night before because I know they will die the next day while I am busy and have no time to change them.