[Editorial] Bose enters the hearing aid devices market

November 2021 editorial

Hearing impaired unite! HiFi Companies seem interested in designing hearing aids

Author: Lucio Cadeddu - TNT Italy
Published: November, 2021

I've already told you about the acquisition of the Sennheiser consumer audio division by Sonova, a leading company which specializes in medical hearing aid devices. What's up then? What about a famous HiFi brand which gets into the hearing aids market?

Enter the Bose SoundControl™ Hearing Aids! These devices, at the moment available nationwide in the continental United States, Alaska, and Hawaii, aim to answer a question that older audiophiles are starting to pose: “I'm not seriously hearing impaired, but things are not as they used to be”. Actually, hearing impaired people have two possible choices:

Purchase traditional hearing aids. Their sale is restricted and regulated, because they are fitted by a Doctor of Audiology (an “audiologist”). You need a careful medical examination and a prescription. Normally, these devices are extremely expensive, unless your National Health System reimburses you the cost.
Purchase personal sound amplification products (called PSAPs); these are not medical devices, but are easier to get and cost much less. These are available, generally, at the pharmacy nearest to you.

Since you're an audiophile, I assume you tend to trust HiFi Companies and the products they design, much more than any unknown medical product. In this niche market there's room for HiFi brands to offer “audiophile” hearing aids. Bose has been the first one to give this opportunity a try. Bose SoundControl™ Hearing Aids can be purchased directly on the Bose website (850$/pair) on a 90-day, risk-free, free return shipping trial. These devices are aimed to improve your hearing of speech only, as they do not stream music or phone calls. You need to use a Bose app to customize the way the devices perform. You can adjust background noise, for example, if you're in a noisy environment, and boost treble and bass as well. The devices are connected to your smartphone via a low-powered Bluetooth stream, and use non rechargeable batteries that last for four days only (assuming an average of 14 hours/day of use). There's a nice and useful video tutorial on the dedicated Bose webpage that shows the way the devices work, and, via a simulation you can try connecting headphones to your smartphone/tablet/PC.

Indeed, these devices seem to do nothing to improve the way you hear your favourite music, just now, but I believe we're not far from this goal. First speech, then music. Then audiophile music, it is just a matter of time. In the meanwhile...

“Play it loud, don't play it low!
Blow your speakers...with rock and roll!”