A hearing aid is something that is going to impact one`s life in a major way! It is important that when choosing such a device that the consumer be well informed, and aware of the benefits of choosing an analog or a digital hearing aid. Getting to read most hearing aid reviews, one might wonder if it really is as effective as it claims.
A hearing aid works in the manner of processing sounds – it does this in one of two ways; digital or analog. Digital hearing aids are a recent development and are the popular choice for many individuals who require hearing assistance. How the hearing aid works is simple – it increases the loudness of the sound reaching the eardrum. There are three basic parts to any hearing aid – digital or analog. These three parts are; microphone, amplifier and receiver.
An analog hearing aid works in the same way as a microphone or amplifier does. It recognizes the sounds produced and than converts these sounds into small electrical pulses. The sounds are varied based on the loudness, pitch and the way the sounds are spoken. There are quiet sounds that cannot be picked up by the hearing aid as it only picks up sounds that are meant to be surely audible.
A Digital hearing aid takes the sounds and transfers them into pieces of data. This data is than transformed into numbers and pieces of information and than to sound. A digital hearing aid will give the wearer clearer and more precise sounding words, numbers and sounds. The process with a digital hearing aid is a rapid one – often transforming millions of pieces of information each second that the hearing aid is on.
There are certain benefits to choosing a digital hearing aid. They are as follows; choosing a digital hearing aid will ensure that the person wearing the hearing aid is going to have the newest and most powerful technology as well as the most advanced parts to increase the levels in which that person hears. Additional manipulation is able to occur when one choose a digital hearing aid – information in which the person hears can be adjusted, and readjusted to suit the individual. Many digital hearing aids have the function to reduce background noises, causing them to be a popular choice for many.
The benefits to choosing an analog hearing aid are; that when sounds are inaudible than they are not picked up by the microphone or the amplifier. This ensures that you will not have loud and uncomfortable sounds transferred into the ear of the individual wearing the hearing aid. Analog hearing aids will have batteries that are less expensive, and easier to replace. Choosing an analog hearing aid will allow for simple usage, and it is easily replaced should something happen.
As a member of a family in which one of us requires a hearing aid, I know the frustration that comes with the choice of analog, before digital was even available. Distinguishing the background noises were difficult, and we had to avoid these noises because it was impossible to have a conversation. Other than that, there were no complaints – but it was hard to venture in public while trying to listen, and not being able to!
As a personal choice, I would choose the digital hearing aid. Choosing the digital hearing aid will ensure that technology is respected. Many devices become improved over time, and this is the benefit of choosing the latest device. Analog hearing aids are lower in price than digital hearing aids – but you are missing out on some of the features available with the hearing aid. Choosing an analog hearing aid can inhibit the ability of the user to pick out one noise from a crowd, a restaurant or annoying background noises – with many digital hearing aids, this problem is avoided. When buying a hearing aid, ensure that once it reaches a certain level of noise that a cutoff occurs, as this could cause more damage to the ear.
