Purchasing a hearing aid is a big commitment, as it will affect the way you hear and interpret the world. With how much a hearing aid can impact your life in a positive way, you had best be sure that the hearing aid you decide to buy will do the job you need it to do. There are many brands of hearing aids on the market today, and you may have heard of Phonak and Oticon. NexGen Hearing is proud to offer these brands because we know they are industry leaders in hearing aid products. Many people want to know, which one of these hearing aid brands is better ? We break down the two brands to help you decide which one to choose for the next time you have to purchase a hearing aid.
Phonak’s Hearing Aids
Phonak offers hearing aids in all of the standard styles (RIC, BTE, RITE, CIC, and RIE). They have hearing aids that provide tinnitus masking features, and they feature models that are made for people with severe to profound hearing loss. Many of their products can be controlled through a smartphone app, and include Bluetooth connectivity which allows people to use their hearing aids to listen to audio on their compatible devices.
What sets Phonak apart from others in the industry is their innovative Lyric hearing aid. This hearing aid is inserted deep into the ear canal, is completely invisible to other people, and can be worn 24/7 for months on end without needing maintenance or replacement batteries. Not every person is a good candidate for the Lyric hearing aid, but those who are should seriously consider this product for its discrete design and superior sound amplification capabilities.
Oticon’s Hearing Aids
Similar to Phonak, Oticon also offers all standard styles of hearing aid. Their various models of hearing aids also include tinnitus masking features, support for severe to profound hearing loss, smartphone app controls, and Bluetooth connectivity.
Oticon hearing aids set themselves apart from other brands by touting some of the most advanced technology found in hearing aids. The Oticon More Mini-RITE hearing aid, for example provides some of the most advanced hearing aid controlled through a smartphone app that you can find on the market. It scans the surrounding sounds 500 times per second to understand the complexity of the sounds in the area and balance them in a way that allows the user to hear the most important sounds more clearly. This coupled with advanced speech recognition capabilities means that conversations with others are easier, regardless of whether it’s in a noisy area or not.
Brand Similarities and Differences: Phonak vs. Oticon
At first glance, it would seem that these brands offer nearly identical products, with identical features, with the exception of a few defining products. Beyond, pricing, and features that are widely considered standard in many high-end hearing aids (smartphone app control, Bluetooth connectivity, etc.) which are all similar, there are key differences in what each brand excels at.
Phonak’s Variety and Quality
Phonak focuses on a wide variety of styles and features, and has a much larger catalogue of hearing aids to choose from. They have multiple options for each style of hearing aid, and they offer many models which are sleek and discrete, so you can easily find the hearing aid that best fits your needs, and is barely noticeable, or completely unnoticeable. What really helps set Phonak apart from other brands is the exceptional sound quality of each model they offer. This is thanks to the Marvel technology that they employ.
Oticon’s Advanced Technology
Oticon differs from Phonak in the sense that they don’t have as wide of a selection of models to choose from. They still cover all standard styles of hearing aid, and all standard features, but each style is focused on a small selection of available models. What Oticon lacks in selection in comparison to Phonak, they make up for in feature capabilities. For instance, Oticon’s 360-degree microphones combined with their advanced speech recognition and sound processing capabilities allows for them to provide more comprehensive hearing support in noisy environments than most Phonak hearing aids can. Oticon tends to focus on their larger RIC, BTE, & RITE models, making them a bit more noticeable.
Which Brand Is Best?
At NexGen Hearing we do not have a preference between these brands. We offer them both because we have seen how each brand has enriched our patient’s lives and given them the gift of clear sound. For that reason alone, we think both are the pinnacle of hearing aid brands and you can’t go wrong with either one.
Think about what your wants and needs are when it comes to your hearing aid. Do you want all the latest and greatest features? Do you want the best sound quality you can get on the market? Do you want a hearing aid that is discrete so others don’t even know that you’re wearing one? Consider these questions and more and consult with our hearing experts to help you choose the right hearing aid for you.