Choose The Best Hearing Aids For You!
Our clinics offer more hearing aid choices and individualized care.
As audiologist-owned and operated clinics in Lower Sackville and Downtown Dartmouth, we are pleased to have the ability to offer a wide range of hearing aid manufacturers to best suit the individual needs of our clients. Having so many options ensures our clients are investing in the best possible hearing solution and outcome for their needs. There are many different manufacturers of hearing aids and each have their own unique strengths. Our registered audiologists will work closely with you to determine what your individual needs are and the hearing aid manufacturer and devices that will best meet those needs.
HEARING AID TECHNOLOGY
Rechargeable hearing aids
Gone are the days of having to change hearing aid batteries! Hearing aids can now simply be placed in a charging station over night and are ready to use the next morning. Rechargeable hearing aids are convenient and a great solution for people with poor dexterity.
Rechargeable hearing aids now use lithium-ion battery technology which is the latest generation of rechargeable batteries. Lithium-ion batteries are known for holding a longer charge than their earlier counterparts. This allows hearing aid users to enjoy a full day of listening even if they are streaming for several hours from devices such as smart phones, tablets, and televisions.
CUSTOM HEARING AIDS - RECHARGEABLE & WIRELESS
We can now offer clients small and discrete custom rechargeable hearing aids with full wireless capabilities. These hearing aids are also available in black making them look more like a hearable than a hearing aid. These modern and stylish hearing aids are so sophisticated and powerful, they can even be fit on severe hearing losses.
INVISIBLE HEARING AIDS
Our custom-made invisible hearing aids sit inside the ear canal so that they cannot be seen by others. They are discrete without sacrificing sound quality.
Bluetooth hearing aids
Connect your hearing aids to devices like your smartphone, iPod/iPad, tablet and more and stream sound directly to your ears.
Made for iPhone & Android
If you are an Apple user, connect directly to your iPhone™, iPad™, iPod Touch™, or Apple Watch™. If you are an Android user, connect directly to your smartphone, tablet, and more.
Motion sensors & artificial intelligence
Integrated 3D motion sensors coupled with AI technology can also help you track physical activity and cognitive health through the use of an app.
HEARING AID PERFORMANCE LEVELS
There are four basic technology levels: Entry, Good, Better and Best. Each level offers digital hearing solutions based on your level of hearing loss, lifestyle, and budget. A complimentary consultation with one of our registered audiologists will help you to determine the technology level best suited for your needs and expectations.
ENTRY:
This performance level is designed for users who are not in complex acoustic environments and who have very simple hearing needs such as hearing one-on-one, on the telephone, or hearing the television. The lifestyle and social activities of these users would be considered quiet. This performance level is not recommended for users that expect to be in even low levels of background noise.
GOOD:
This performance level is designed for users that are not in noisy situations very often, but who might participate in small group conversations with some background noise such as small group meetings, family dinners, and less noisy restaurants. Our audiologists can create manual programs to assist hearing in low levels of noise; however, users must access these extra settings manually via a program button, hearing aid accessory, and/or smart phone application.
BETTER:
Users who are exposed to every day or average background noises such as family and friend gatherings, meetings, sports, noisy hobbies, restaurants, etc. should consider this performance level. This performance level uses a sound classification technology which monitors listening environments and automatically adapts to optimize listening comfort and speech comprehension. This performance level greatly reduces the need for manual adjustments and other assistive listening devices which is ideal for users who just want to put their hearing aids on in the morning and go!
BEST:
This performance level is designed for users who want fully automatic hearing aids that can determine if they are listening to music, are at a noisy party, in a meeting, at a wedding reception, outdoors, or on a plane/bus/train. Premium level hearing aids are sophisticated devices that automatically control hearing aid features and settings, to optimize listening comfort and speech understanding for the entire range of auditory environments and input.
- Best for music lovers due to increased auditory bandwidth which provides richer and brighter sound
- Best Wind Noise Reduction for those who enjoy spending time outdoors
- Best for those looking for fully automatic hearing aids
HEARING AID STYLES
Hearing aids are available in many different styles and sizes.
There are five main styles of hearing aids available:
- Behind-the-ear (BTE)
- Receiver-in-canal (RIC)
- Completely-in-canal (CIC)
- In-the-canal (ITC)
- In-the-ear (ITE)
Our registered audiologists will explain the strengths and limitations of each style during your complimentary hearing aid consultation appointment. It is important to note that not all hearing aid styles are designed for all types and degrees of hearing loss. While cosmetics, dexterity, and expectations play a very important role in your hearing aid decision, it is crucial that your hearing aid style have adequate power to correct your degree of hearing loss.
Book A Complimentary Hearing Aid Demo!
Our Chosen and Trusted Manufacturers
At Sackville and Alderney Hearing Centres, we specialize in several hearing aid manufacturers. These companies are the leaders in hearing healthcare worldwide. All of them are based out of Europe where extensive research takes place to provide an improved listening experience for end users. Research is consistently performed to provide optimal sound quality, improved understanding of speech in noise, ease of use, and overall performance.
WIDEX
A leading manufacturer of hearing aids, Widex is a family-owned company that was founded in Denmark in 1956. In 2019 Widex merged with the Sivantos Group (formerly Siemens) to create WS Audiology. It was Widex that developed the very first digital in-the-ear hearing aid in the industry in 1995.
Widex hearing aids are praised for their exceptionally clear sound quality. They are also a favourite among musicians, as they provide amplification of the full range of sound, allowing music’s many fluctuations in volume to sound natural and enjoyable.
Widex hearing aids are also an excellent solution for tinnitus sufferers. Their unique Zen Therapy allows clients to choose from many different calming "fractal tones" that help distract them from their tinnitus. Learn more about tinnitus.
Widex offers a rechargeable hearing aid that contains a built-in lithium-ion battery. Clients no longer have to worry about replacing batteries and can instead simply insert their hearing aids into a charging station at the end of the day.
Widex also provides CROS and BiCROS hearing solutions designed for clients with hearing loss in one ear only, called single-sided deafness. The acronym “CROS” stands for "contralateral routing of signal" where sound from the client’s non-hearing ear is transferred over to their hearing ear to help localize where sounds are coming from and improve understanding of speech in noisy environments.
Widex hearing aids also have Bluetooth capabilities, allowing users to connect their hearing aids to their cell phones either directly (to an iPhone), or with a streaming device. For more information on Bluetooth connectivity and hearing aid assistive listening devices, please visit our hearing aid accessories page.
OTICON
Oticon is a Danish company that first began in 1902 when a man named Hans Demant wanted to help his wife with her hearing loss. The company has since grown to be one of the leading hearing aid manufacturers. Oticon has its own leading research facility, the Eriiksholm Research Centre, located in Snekkersten, Denmark.
Oticon’s BrainHearing™ and Deep Neural Network technology mimics the natural way the brain functions while listening helping end users to better understand speech in noisy environments. Their new More hearing aid gives the end users' brain the full perspective while it constantly analyses the listening environment 360 degrees around the user in real time and reduces unwanted noise while increasing the volume of speech. This significantly reduces listening effort for the end user, allowing for a much more comfortable experience in challenging situations.
Oticon hearing aids are also very good at correcting high-frequency hearing losses that are mostly caused by excessive noise exposure and ageing.
Oticon offers a rechargeable hearing aid that contains a built-in lithium-ion battery. Clients no longer have to worry about replacing batteries and can instead simply insert their hearing aids into a charging station at the end of the day.
Oticon hearing aids have Bluetooth capabilities and are able to directly connect to iPhones and iPads, as well as some newer Android™ devices. Users with older Apple and Android devices are able to connect through the use of the Oticon Connect Clip. Oticon provides a variety of assistive listening devices that can be used in conjunction with their hearing aids.
PHONAK
A Swiss company, Phonak was founded in 1947 in Zurich, Switzerland. Researchers at Phonak are consistently working towards improving the listening experience for its users as well as ease of use and connectivity to Bluetooth devices to improve hearing in a variety of different listening situations.
Phonak provides excellent solutions for our clients with severe-to-profound hearing losses with their power hearing aids, offering among the most powerful hearing aids available today. Phonak also offers exceptional support for connection with FM systems. FM systems be used in conjunction with many of their hearing aids to help improve understanding of speech in noisy environments and where the speaker is far away, such as listening to a speaker in a large auditorium. Learn more about our FM systems and other assistive listening devices.
Phonak offers a rechargeable hearing aid that contains a built-in lithium-ion battery. Clients no longer have to worry about replacing batteries and can instead simply insert their hearing aids into a charging station at the end of the day. Phonak's newest hearing aids offer motion sensor hearing and tap control access.
They also offer CROS and BiCROS hearing solutions designed for clients with hearing loss in one ear only, called single-sided deafness. Phonak also has the world's first discrete custom black hearing aid that looks more like a hearable or and earbud than a hearing aid.
Phonak hearing aids have Bluetooth capabilities and are able to connect directly to Apple and Android devices.
SIGNIA
Signia hearing aids are manufactured by WS Audiology, the same parent company that manufactures Widex hearing aids. Prior to being purchased by Sivantos in 2015, and merging into WS Audiology in 2019, Signia hearing aids were owned by Siemens, a German hearing aid manufacturer, founded in Berlin in 1847. Siemens (now Signia) was one of the first to develop hearing aids with directional microphones and wireless ear-to-ear connectivity providing users with a more natural sound experience and better localization of sound.
Signia recently launched their new AX platform with a new speech enhancement technology called Augmented Focus™. This new technology helps users follow conversations in background noise with its use of two independent speech processors which handle sound coming from the front and sound coming from the back, independently - an industry first.
Signia offers the most when it comes to hearing aid style and design. They offer a broad range of Bluetooth compatible, lithium-ion rechargeable hearing aid styles such as the Charge&Go AX, Active X and Styletto X. Their chargers are pluggable and portable providing three full charges on the go before hearing aids users need to plug their charger in. The Styletto X is a one-of-a-kind hearing aid with its super sleek design. In 2019, the Styletto won the Red Dot Product Design Award for design excellence.
In March 2021 Signia launched Active X - "hearing aids disguised as earbuds”. Active X hearing aids are often compared to the AirPods Pro hearables. While AirPods Pro are capable of aiding users with mild hearing loss for 4.5 hours of use, Signia Active X hearing aids can aid users with mild to moderate hearing loss and provide up to 26 hours of use on a single charge.
