U
ultrared
Guest
I started with Costco KS6 some years ago & they worked well enough although they never turned up the volume from the beginning 80% to 100% for many months - they forgot.
Last year I tried the Rexton at Costco and was very frustrated. The audi kept saying they don’t have programs any more, one setting does it all. She is the manager. I returned them last fall as I was entering cancer treatment which is known to impact one’s hearing. This past spring I was retested some months after the treatments ended and my hearing had worsened about 5-10%. I was given the Phillips. Again she said they don’t have programs anymore. I said yes they do and after calling the manufacture she admitted they did have programs and put some in for me. In particular I wanted something for wind, music & T-Coil. The “noise” program worked for wind fairly well (although she didn’t think to try it for that - it was my idea). T-Coil for phone was a bust and music was ok.
However I continued to have issues with hearing my wife well. She noticed it as well. I had them move the volume from 80% to 100% - again they forgot to mention this detail. My 6 mths were running out and I got them to give me an extension to Nov 4. I plan to return them.
I went to an audiology store that came highly recommended by neighbors. Hearing test was pretty close to the last one done by Costco in the spring. They gave me a demo of Oticon (More 1 miniRITE-312) and they are amazing, both my wife and I can see / hear the difference.
Now the problems, it appears there are 3 levels of quality (actually 4 - the 4th is for people in nursing homes which they don’t even sell). The price differences are $6400, $5400 and $4400. The sales card shows Level 1: AGX9 - premium tech, Active lifestyle; Level 2: AGX7 - Advanced Tech, Casual Lifestyle & Level 3: AGX5 - mid-level tech, Quiet Lifestyle; Level 4: AGX3 - Entry Level Tech, Rare Background Noise. Audi said all companies have the same levels as noted above.
As I said the Oticon - level 1 is amazing. When I asked about trying Level 2 or 3 he said sure, I could buy those and return them - with a restocking fee of $300 which they may or not waive. WTF? I said well that’s a sales gimmick, how are you going to expect me to know which is best if I can’t try them without a financial penalty? I plan to ask for specific tech details of the 3 levels. Like a car, MPG, how many cylinders, that sort of thing.
As a side note they are partial to the Oticon and when asked have given the brands the following ratings: 1. Oticon; 2. Phonak; 3. Widex; 4. Starkey; (no ratings given for Resound or Unitron.
It turns out my insurance will pay $3K after January 1st but I have to go another Center, preferred provider and all that. They favor the Phonak but do sell the Oticon. I have sent them my hearing test and asked for their pricing.
Questions:
Jim
Last year I tried the Rexton at Costco and was very frustrated. The audi kept saying they don’t have programs any more, one setting does it all. She is the manager. I returned them last fall as I was entering cancer treatment which is known to impact one’s hearing. This past spring I was retested some months after the treatments ended and my hearing had worsened about 5-10%. I was given the Phillips. Again she said they don’t have programs anymore. I said yes they do and after calling the manufacture she admitted they did have programs and put some in for me. In particular I wanted something for wind, music & T-Coil. The “noise” program worked for wind fairly well (although she didn’t think to try it for that - it was my idea). T-Coil for phone was a bust and music was ok.
However I continued to have issues with hearing my wife well. She noticed it as well. I had them move the volume from 80% to 100% - again they forgot to mention this detail. My 6 mths were running out and I got them to give me an extension to Nov 4. I plan to return them.
I went to an audiology store that came highly recommended by neighbors. Hearing test was pretty close to the last one done by Costco in the spring. They gave me a demo of Oticon (More 1 miniRITE-312) and they are amazing, both my wife and I can see / hear the difference.
Now the problems, it appears there are 3 levels of quality (actually 4 - the 4th is for people in nursing homes which they don’t even sell). The price differences are $6400, $5400 and $4400. The sales card shows Level 1: AGX9 - premium tech, Active lifestyle; Level 2: AGX7 - Advanced Tech, Casual Lifestyle & Level 3: AGX5 - mid-level tech, Quiet Lifestyle; Level 4: AGX3 - Entry Level Tech, Rare Background Noise. Audi said all companies have the same levels as noted above.
As I said the Oticon - level 1 is amazing. When I asked about trying Level 2 or 3 he said sure, I could buy those and return them - with a restocking fee of $300 which they may or not waive. WTF? I said well that’s a sales gimmick, how are you going to expect me to know which is best if I can’t try them without a financial penalty? I plan to ask for specific tech details of the 3 levels. Like a car, MPG, how many cylinders, that sort of thing.
As a side note they are partial to the Oticon and when asked have given the brands the following ratings: 1. Oticon; 2. Phonak; 3. Widex; 4. Starkey; (no ratings given for Resound or Unitron.
It turns out my insurance will pay $3K after January 1st but I have to go another Center, preferred provider and all that. They favor the Phonak but do sell the Oticon. I have sent them my hearing test and asked for their pricing.
Questions:
- What are the real life differences between the 3 levels?
- Do all the brands really have identical tech (AGX#) for each level? (Yet he really pressed on how much better the Oticon is than the others…)
- Any suggestions on brands? I know there are very personal experiences and I do really like the demo Oticon - but maybe I’d like the Phonak better? or the Widex? (Ford, Toyota, Honda, etc). It seems each store or audi has their own favorite.
- Any suggestions on dealing with the new place I’m going to? I made it pretty clear how unhappy I was with the sales aspect to the current store - and didn’t make any friends. I’ll tone it down (pun intended) when I go to the new place - but knowing in advance what I can expect and what I can press for will be helpful.
- Anything else? Thoughts, suggestions, etc.
Jim