The Truth About Cheap “Hearing Aids”

There are a couple separate ways to interpret the word “cheap hearing aids”. For anyone on a tight budget, it means “affordability”. On the other hand, it implies low-quality, turning a seemingly economical purchase into a not-so-smart decision, epitomized by the saying “You get what you pay for”.

Regrettably, differentiating between an economical purchase and an item of negligible value is often challenging. This is especially relevant in the realm of hearing aids.

With hearing aids, the saying “you get what you pay for” rings particularly valid. This means weeding out the devices that are priced in the “too good to be true” range, not necessarily going for the most expensive choice. Customers need to recognize that essential information is often left out of the marketing campaigns of cheap hearing aids.

They often just amplify sound

Boosting the overall volume is generally the only thing cheap “hearing aids” are capable of. If you boost the volume to hear the TV better, you’ll also pick up background noises like the dishwasher, a fan in another room, a barking dog, or the sound of your house slippers moving across the floor.

If everything is louder, it completely defeats the purpose of using a hearing aid.

Contrastingly, a high-quality, contemporary hearing aid goes beyond simple volume adjustment. It expertly manages sound, maximizing the clarity of desired sounds while tuning out background sound. Authentic hearing aids are tailored to your particular hearing requirements, closely mimicking natural hearing with increased accuracy.

PSAPs vs. Hearing Aids

There are strict rules about what an advertiser can call a hearing aid as written by the Food and Drug Administration.

Unfortunately, many personal sound amplification products PSAPs are wrongly advertised as hearing aids even though they only amplify sound.

There are many legitimate and reputable providers that comply with correct marketing. But there are some vendors, especially online, that may be misinformed about what characterizes the difference between hearing aids and PSAPs, and as a result, they put out misleading statements about their products. Some even incorrectly advertise that they are approved by the FDA.

They aren’t inclusive for the majority of kinds of hearing loss

The majority of individuals who lose their hearing will slowly lose specific frequencies of sound before others. For instance, you may have no trouble hearing a man with a low voice, but struggle with a woman’s or child’s voice, finding it challenging to understand.

You get overall amplification with cheap hearing aids. However, if you have trouble with specific frequencies, merely increasing the volume proves insufficient. Furthermore, turning up the volume substantially to hear the sound of your granddaughter playing on the floor may lead to your adult son’s voice sounding like a roar, possibly adding to hearing loss if subjected to high volumes for extended periods.

High-quality hearing aids offer a solution by being programmable to compensate for the loss of specific frequencies. They can instantly adjust the frequency you struggle to hear to one that is more audible, delivering a more customized and effective hearing experience.

Feedback can be an issue

Cheap hearing aids are generally not custom fit to your ears. A feedback loop is often the result of poorly fitting hearing aids. The microphone picks up the sound from the speaker in your ear as it jiggles around. This will generate a deafening screech.

They usually don’t have cellphone support

When individuals are looking for a budget-friendly device, they frequently sacrifice functionality like Bluetooth capability. The lack of Bluetooth becomes crucial when considering phone connectivity. Attempting to amplify a cheap hearing aid while on the phone leads to capturing not just the caller’s voice but also the sounds of your ear, lips, clothing, and hair brushing against the phone, making it even more difficult to hear the person on the other end.

More advanced hearing aids are digital and use Bluetooth connectivity to connect directly to your phone. Overall communication and clarity will be improved so you can be certain you will hear your daughter’s voice on the phone.

They were never meant to treat hearing loss

Most individuals would most likely be surprised by this. PSAPs were never made for people with hearing loss. They were made to help people who have relatively good hearing hear things a bit louder.

Cheap devices may help a little if you only have slight hearing loss. But individuals who actually need hearing aids won’t find these cheaper devices very useful.

Finding quality, affordable hearing aids

There are lots of ways to get hearing aids affordably. Insurance or other third parties might cover them. There are also affordable brands, leasing plans, and financing options. If you think you have hearing loss, begin by getting checked out. Call us today for a consultation, we can help decide what’s best for you, depending on your level and type of hearing loss, and make certain you get a pair that won’t break the bank!