BEST Hearing Aid Smartphone Apps in 2019

Almost every modern hearing aid made by a major hearing aid manufacturer comes with a Smartphone App that lets you adjust your devices.  Here is a rundown of my favorite Hearing Aid Smartphone Apps.

#5. Signia MyControl - The MyControl app works with all Signia hearing aids that are Bluetooth compatible.  They let you adjust volume and the Tinnitus Therapy Signal.  You can change into different programs that have been pre-programmed by your hearing care professional, or you can select a default listening situation.  It will let you increase Bass or Trebble, shows battery indicators, and will let you adjust Broadcast Volume, Low battery indicators, Power ON delay, and toggle on or off usage statistics.

#4. Starkey Thrive App - The Thrive app gives you a Body and Brain Score which are added together to give you a Thrive Score.  The Body portion of the score tracks your Steps, calories burned, and how often you get up and move around.  The Brain Score tracks how long you wear your hearing aids, how much you communicate with other people, and how much you change listening situations.  You can adjust the volume and programs in your hearing aids, and can even adjust the tinnitus masker if necessary.  You can also locate a lost hearing aid and initiate Hear Care Anywhere which will allow your hearing care professional to make remote adjustments to your hearing aids no matter where you are.

#3. Oticon ON App -  The Oticon ON App lets you adjust volume of your devices, and you can change into any pre-programmed memories or enable streaming from a TV streamer or Remote Microphone.  If you have one of the new Oticon OPN S devices, you will also be able to toggle OPN Sound Booster on and off which will help you eliminate more background noise in a noisy environment.  The App will tell you battery life, and it also has a find my hearing aid feature incase you lose your devices. The Oticon ON app also allows you to connect to IFTTT.  This lets you set notifications that you can hear in your Hearing Aids, like if your batteries are low if it starts to rain outside, or if your phone loses connection with a hearing aid. You can receive notifications from smart appliances like your coffee pot, washing Machine, or door bell.

#2. Widex Evoke App -  The Evoke app allows you to adjust volume, switch to different programs set by your HCP, and set the directional focus of your hearing aid microphones.  It has a 3 band equalizer which allows you to adjust Bass, Mids, and Treble. It has a hearing aid locator if you lose your devices, and it also shows you your battery status icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen. Perhaps the coolest feature of this app is SoundSense Learn, This allows you to do a series of A – B comparisons which allow Machine Learning to make adjustments to you hearing aid programming for that environment. Just run these comparisons until you are happy with the way that you are hearing and you are all set.  It’s like having a hearing care provider in your pocket.

#1. ReSound Smart 3D App - ReSound Smart 3D App1. The Smart 3D App is one of the easiest apps to use in my opinion and is also one of the most in-depth apps out there.  You can change the volume of your hearing aids together or separately. You can easily switch between programs created by your hearing care professional, or favorites that you have created yourself. It gives you quick keys that allow you to filter out some additional background noise, or increase speech clarity. The Sound Enhancer lets you adjust Bass, mids, and trebble. If you have tinnitus, you can adjust the tinnitus manager to your liking to reduce your perception of tinnitus as much as possible.  You can also easily turn on streaming of different remote accessories like a Multi Mic or TV Streamer, by just clicking on the appropriate button.  

In MyReSound, you can find a lost hearing aid and track them with the strength of Bluetooth that is indicated by the red bars, kind of like the game hot and cold. You can Rate your sound which lets your hearing care provider know how you are doing with your hearing aids by sending them a notification, and you can request a remote adjustment from your hearing care professional.  When your hearing care professional has a chance, they will send you updated program settings that you can then upload into your devices.

While Hearing Aid Smartphone Apps are cool, they should not be the single most important factor when picking a hearing aid.  You should consider factors such as how good the hearing aid is, how good your Hearing Care Professional is, and if they have fit your devices using Real Ear Measurement.  If you don't know what REMs are, watch my video here: https://youtu.be/cHR0Oa6I-wY