Since Bluetooth & telecoil are used in different hearing situations, we need both technologies in our hearing aids (or cochlear implants) to take advantage of most of the difficult hearing situations we encounter.
I have experienced audiologists telling me that I don’t need telecoil, just Bluetooth, the “more modern technology.” Then they try to sell me Bluetooth devices that are costly. Someone who is price sensitive can feel taken, as I did, when I bought my first pair of hearing aids. (Telecoil is usually free at point of sale.)
When it comes to using telecoil, especially at home, the literature seems to make it so complicated that it can be overwhelming: “telecoil” is a copper coil inside your hearing aid, but to use it, you must be inside a “hearing loop” (neckloop, table loop, room loop, counter loop, etc.).
Here are some hearing situations:
For example, if both your TV and hearing devices have Bluetooth, you may be able to use Bluetooth to connect and receive clear TV sound. If you have hearing aids, without Bluetooth, you may be able to use telecoil and a neckloop to connect to your TV (or any other device such as MacBook Pro, iPad, and iPhone) and receive same clear sound. (I use my telecoil at home all the time.)
If you go to your place of worship which has a room loop available, you can hear the PA System come right into your hearing aids, using telecoil.
Your audiologist can explain the different hearing situations that would apply to each of these technologies. Think of both as putting on "virtual headphones”, but better, since the sound comes directly into your hearing aids.
It is advantageous to have your audiologist add two hearing aid settings for telecoil. one for telecoil sound only (e.g., blocks out the surrounding background noise so you just hear the movie), and the other for telecoil sound plus background sound (e.g., if you want to talk to your partner during the movie). Settings can be done for your Bluetooth as well.
Note that most over-the-counter “OTC” hearing aids, which are indicated for mild to moderate hearing loss, do not come equipped with telecoils. Be sure to ask.
Purchase your hearing aids with both technologies because each works in different hearing situations. Telecoil is usually free. If you can afford it, be sure to include Bluetooth as well.
Ok, I have various Phonak Hearing aids. I live in the UK. I’ve generally sourced Telecoil HAs. I’ve enabled Telecoil. But, when going into retailers who display the T.Coil logo, I’ve NEVER got a connection.
The only time I’ve made the T.Coil work for me is to connect to Roger devices through the Roger Neckloop. This saves money, and works well, but a direct connection is better.
If you want a Phonak T.Coil HA, it will have a “T” in its model number. Example: Phonak Audeo Paradise P90-13T
If it doesn’t have the “T”, it doesn’t have Telecoil
My Oticon Real1 aids have both le bluetooth and t-coils. I use the t-coils at our church service and it works great.
Unfortunately there seem to be no looped venues in Ontario. Theatres and churches seem to all have FM or IR systems. It only ads to the belief that t-coil is outdated.
Ive never seen a place with a loop, and every hearing aid manufacturer has their own TV transmitter and bluetooth connectivity. I quit asking for the tcoil model a couple of generations ago.
I have telecoil programmed on my CI/HA combination, however I have yet been able to connect in two different settings that offer telecoil. I hear well enough without it with my speech in loud noise program, so I am fine. I will keep trying because I am interested to test it out.
Telecoil is useful in the limited number of venues that use it in the US. However, it is soon to be made obsolete with the new Low Energy Protocol called Auracast. Some of the very new hearing aids already have the ability to use Auracast. I am not aware of any public venue currently utilizing Auracast but it will probably replace the Telecoil available venues within the next couple of years. Unless one has a current need for Telecoil I would be more interested in making sure any new aids have the ability to use Low Energy Audio so they will be ready for Auracast. As mentioned above, there are still good reasons to have Telecoil such as to connect Roger devices to aids which are not compatible by using tlhe Roger Neck Loop or if your church or other venue actually uses Telecoil.
It’s projected that Bluetooth LE will be rolled out in phases. Phase 1 with sharing audio-no live voices, like sports bars.
Auracast used as an assistive listening system - that will be a while yet becasue International specifications are being written 2024-2027…so you’re right there’s no public venue that has it, because it doesn’t exist yet.
Hi. There are at least 175 hearing loops in Ontario. Have you tried using your telecoil with a neckloop for the FM and IR systems?
Unfortunately the (few) places I go to are not looped. I did try connecting the venue-supplied FM receiver to a neckloop but the sound quality was not too good. I got better results connecting their FM receiver to my TV Connector, but for this I needed to take a USB power bank and that was a bit cumbersome.
Both of my sets of Phonak Marvels have telecoils and Bluetooth. You can use telecoils with headphones if the headphones have magnets. The telecoils will pick up the signal from the headphone magnets just like from a loop.
I wholeheartedly echo what @wdgowen says. I have Phonak Paradise 90T. While I have rarely found anywhere public to use the telecoil - I use it ALL the time with my headphones for recording and mixing music (I am a musician).
Using the telecoil program has banished nasty feedback when using over-ear or on-ear headphones AND it has improved the quality of sound. It amazes me that none of the audiologists I have had over the years have never mentioned this to me (or even know about it!). This use of telecoils is also never pointed out in the HA manuals, sales literature etc as being a useful advantage. Very occasionally it is mentioned here in this forum - and it seems to be quite a surprise to many people that could have been using this capability!
I just hope that when Auracast becomes ubiquitous in hearing aids that there will still be a Telecoil capability as well - otherwise I will be back to square one…
I only found out about using telecoils with headphones earlier this year.