iHear wants to give people with hearing loss an affordable device that they can easily customize at home with a Web-based hearing test. The startup’s goal is to ultimately make its hearing aids available for the 350 million people in the world who suffer from impaired hearing. Read More
Most people might be unaware of the fact that Denmark supplies half of the world’s hearing aids. A lot of companies based in the country have consistently been working to leverage modern technology to help those who are hard of hearing or those who can’t hear at all. GN ReSound, a company based in Copenhagen, Denmark, has worked closely with Apple on its LiNX hearing aids which are the world’s first “Made for iPhone” hearing aids. The technology is actually quite impressive, these are the first hearing aids of any kind that can connect directly to a smartphone without needing a “streamer” that acts as a transmitter between a hearing aid and a Bluetooth equipped mobile phone.
LiNX hearing aids can be used to stream music and as a two-way headset for phone calls, its settings can be adjusted through a companion app for iOS. They communicate with the device through the 2.4 gigahertz band using Bluetooth 4.0 LE. LiNX is going to ship early next year, it will be priced a tad over $3,000 per hearing aid. Apple has also been working with other companies on similar products, William Demant in Denmark and Starkey Technologies in Minnesota have been working with Apple to create similar “Made for iPhone” products.
‘Made For iPhone’ Hearing Aids Coming Early 2014 original content from Ubergizmo. 
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People who suffer from hearing loss typically have to deal with going without their hearing aids when they are swimming or at the beach, or in the elements. This is one of the reasons why Siemens developed the Aquaris waterproof hearing aid, which will allow users to take them anywhere.
The Aquaris hearing aid offers watertight seals and membranes to keep moisture out while still allowing the flow of air, which is necessary when using zinc air batteries. They can be submerged for up to 30 minutes without any damage, and also incorporate a Bluetooth transmitter and a microphone, allowing them to double as a hands-free system.
This system allows people to communicate with hearing-impaired athletes in the water, something which was problematic before. The Aquaris hearing aid sells for about $2500(USD).
[via DVICE via designboom]
It’s no fun being deaf or hearing impaired. Especially if you are fond of the great outdoors and all the weather-related perils that come with it. Siemens knows this and developed the Aquaris hearing aid, the only one to receive an IP68 rating for continuous submersion under water (to three meters). It’s also dust- and shock-proof, if you’re further up the extreme activity lifestyle ladder. It’s not just about keeping the elements out, it’s also got Bluetooth meaning wearers can listen to music on smartphones and other devices while under water.
The device itself is what you might imagine a hearing aid to look like, if it was given the sports treatment, which makes it attractive to younger folk, and those of an active disposition. Most importantly, it works impressively well, which was amply shown by the demonstration we were given with the device permanently submerged in water at the booth, streaming its audio to another device. The waterproof functionality doesn’t come at the expense of the sound, either, with the Aquaris sporting High-definition sound with 48 channels with frequency resolution and a 12 kHz frequency range. Given the nature of the device, you’ll need to speak with your physician or ENT / otolaryngologist if this sounds like something for you. Available now.
Sean Cooper contributed to this report.
Filed under: Misc
Not that hearing aids are unsightly, but some people who use them actually find how they look pretty annoying. But it’s better to have them than not be able to hear what people are saying around you, right?
But if you’re looking for a sleeker, sexier alternative, then Flutter might just be the thing for you. It’s a fusion of fashion and robotics, as the garment was designed to allow those who have trouble hearing to “feel” the sounds around them.
There’s actually a complicated framework of wires and microphones under the dress that detect where the emitted sounds are coming from.
The ‘leaflets’, which are the leafy things on the dress, then flutter to give the wearer a sense of where the sound is coming from. So while it might not be a substitute for hearing aids, it’s a pretty enough start.
It’s only for the ladies, though, but maybe designer Halley Profita might have to come up with something for the gents the next time around.
[via Yanko Design]
Although they’re called hearing aids, they can sometimes be as much of a hindrance as a help. Catch an unfamiliar accent and the attention might be on just parsing the words, let alone moving the conversation forward. Apple is applying for a patent on a technique that would take the guesswork out of listening by smoothing out all the quirks. The proposed idea would convert speech to text and back, using the switch to remove any unusual pronunciation or too-quick talking before it reaches the listener’s ear. Not surprisingly for a company that makes phones and tablets, the hearing aid wouldn’t always have to do the heavy lifting, either: iOS devices could handle some of the on-the-fly conversion, and pre-recorded speech could receive advance treatment to speed up the process. We don’t know if Apple plans to use its learning in any kind of shipping product, although it’s undoubtedly been interested in the category before — and its ambitions of having iPhone-optimized hearing aids could well get a lift from technology that promises real understanding, not just a boost in volume.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wearables
Apple seeks patent for hearing aids that deliver speech at an even keel originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Aug 2012 11:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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If ever there were a purgatory for ideas, it’d be the USPTO’s patent application database. That land of legal limbo plays host to a multitude of tech entries both bizarre and straightforward, much of which will never see the light of day. So, it’s with a keen eye for the curious that we’ve stumbled upon this pair of filings submitted by Apple back in January of 2011 outlining a new social network specifically for hearing aids. Yes, you read that right, but its function isn’t actually as obvious as you’d imagine. According to the claims, hearing aids worn by at least two users will work in tandem with a personal computing device to identify user identities, establish a communication link and then swap profiles — not a list of likes and dislikes, but dynamic audio settings. It appears users will be able to update the sound processing on their respective devices to adjust for ambient noise and hone in on a specific sources. So, basically, it’s the Cupertino version of Superhuman hearing. It certainly lends a whole new meaning to, “Can you hear me now?” Eh?
Filed under: Peripherals, Wearables, Software
Pair of Apple patent applications set the stage for hearing aid-based social network originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Jul 2012 17:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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