Connected Hearing Aids
Since the arrival of iOS 7, Apple provides a control panel that allows you to interact direction with hearing aids labeled “Made for iPhone” in their accessibility settings.
Thanks to this control panel, the person can interact with the volume and on the sound reception, see the remaining battery power, etc. through your smartphone without removing their hearing aid.
Many hearing aid manufacturers have created their own applications that personalize the settings of their hearing devices. These can be used independently from Apple’s control panel menu.
Image: A picture of two menu screens from the TruLink application.
The TruLink application is made by the manufacturer StarKey, which is also comprised of the American brands: Audibel, Audigy Micro-tech, NuEar, and StarKey.
The manufacturer ReSound also has an application dedicated for their LiNX devices.
They are classified into two groups: those that connect through a third-party tool, and those that connect directly. The Bluetooth technology used here is the “Bluetooth LE” (also known as 4.0 or Smart) for Low Energy. It is supposed to be safe for your health while allowing you to save the battery power of your hearing aids. Meanwhile, those that connect through a third-party tool like a “phone clip” use 2.4 GHz wave signals.
