Philips HearLink 9030 Hearing Aids From Costco

I bought them in Costco because I wanted rechargeable hearing aids and better phone connectivity.  They have never worked properly except the do connect with my phone.  Could never make sound better or louder or softer. After a few months they broke.  The left one turned itself on and off and the right one just didn't work at all.  While they did work I tried restaurant mode which did absolutely nothing. When I used restaurant mode in my old hearing aids, the ambient noise was reduced. My suggestion, buy another brand.

In less than 6 months, one of mine has died and blinks when I put it in the charger.  Costco is a fair drive from where I live and they will not have a replacement so it will need sent in for repair.  Also Bluetooth connectivity is terrible.  

I have never had such a hard time with hearing aids.  it is my first rechargable battery and I hate it.  the batteries go out within 8 hours and then I just cant hear.  I have issues with it disconnecting with my I phone constantly.  I will never get rechargable batteries again.  I really think its a product issue but I cant seem to find any information online.

not sure what I like, nothing really.  Its a constant struggle and with hearing loss its already a struggle, hearing aids that dont work right make the struggle unbearable.

Id give them 4 or 5 stars but the Hearlink 2 connectivity to my cell phone is horrible and truly fustrating.

My experience with these Costco purchased hearing aids has been pretty good - but NOT great! This is my third pair of hearing aids in roughly 6 - 7 years. The first two were a different brand with a price point just above $5,000 now. That’s why I gave Costco a try. 

Sound is pretty good & I can hear just fine, but the noise cancelling functions are not as good as the others were. My biggest beef is linking to my phone. I can hear the other caller thru the hearing aids, but they can’t hear me well. There is no microphone for “our” speech. It defaults to the iPhone’s speaker function & I have had MANY people tell me they cannot hear me very well. I set calls now to the iPhone instead of using the Bluetooth connection to my hearing aids

These items are average at best. Rarely work with any app other than just hearing on the iPhone. 

Have the new 9040 mniRite TR and am having problems with shrieking or squealing feedback. Tried longer wires, and running the feedback program with the technician, program says most feedback is gone but still getting it. Now trying a larger double vent dome in one ear...still getting feedback. The only next step is power-dome or customer mold. Also the App will work on my Galaxy phone a20 but will not stream or take calls (so noted in their find print for phone applicability). I never had any of these problems with my prior Phonak HA but they didn't sound as natural and had batteries. I still want to try and make these work at least just for good hearing. Not sure if any of the other newer advanced models would be any better.

So far, so good.  Does anyone know if they are waterproof or water resistant?

My right hearing aid stops working and no matter what I do I can't restore it. I'm 81 years old with moderate hearing loss.

Pros:

- Rechargeable

- TV adapter works but overpriced

Cons:

- Hands free Phone feature doesn't work with most Motorola and even some Samsung phones. I refuse to purchase a $ 1,200 Iphone just to have this capability. By contrast, my 3 yr old Costco phonak aids work flawlessly with my Android phone. This is a huge step backwards IMO and may result in my returning them

One hearing aid stops receiving sound often. the hear link app says it is connected but nothing. I have taken it in the be serviced but not good. I would not recommend. 

Sound is tinny, ch, sounds are exaggerated and sound quality is bad. Sounds like a bad stereo system. 

Price is right!

I'm puzzled by many of the negative reviews. My experience wih the Philips HearLink hearing aids has been completely positive. First of all, Angela at the Costco Hearing Center in Santa Maria, was extremely knowlegeable and helpful. Her background in audiology is very impressive. The 2-part examination process was incredibly detailed, and matched the testing I had done previously with another audiologist while I was out of state. I have experience in the audio world, working with live music sound reinforcement and audio recording. So seeing the results of my hearing tests was no real suprise. As for the Philips hearing aids, I've found that the improvement in speech articulation and comprehension was dramatically improved. Angela also programmed an additional setting for noisy environments such as restaurants, and it helped tremendously. The bluetooth pairing with my iPhone 12 has been flawless and the battery life has never been an issue. I simply drop them in the charger each night and forget it.  I've found the Hearlink app to be simple and intuitive.  So all-in-all, I'm completely satisfied.

These are my first hearing aids and I have had them only a couple of weeks, but after reading many of these reviews I decided to make a few comments. I use an android phone (S22 ultra), which is on the list of compatible phones, and I have no problems with dropped connections. I am going back for an adjustment as high frequency sounds are overamplified - scaping and shrill sounds and even the click of my keypad are all far too loud. I also think they are set in general for too much amplification. I hear background white noise in the default setting. It goes away in the noisy environment setting, but it seems it should not be there at all. Overall, I am quite satisfied with them though I am not quite convinced I need hearing aids (my wife's opinion is less ambiguous). I have not figured out how to link their Bluetooth interface to my computer or other similar devices.

Like many others, the problem is that they disconnect, one side, the other, or both and frequently. Sometimes I can get them reconnected, other times only to “demo” which seems like it just amplifies. When they work, they are good but that is not good enough. Will seek tech help, then back to Costco if not rectified.

I have the Philips HearLink miniRITE T R and am having problems with shrill and screeching sound. I first went back to COSTCO for a lisp sound. This was fixed, but then I started hearing Screeching and shrill sounds. Went back for another adjustment to correct this problem. This adjustment did not fix the problem it only brought the lisping back along with the screeching.

Going back for a third time, if no satisfaction I will have no choice but return them. I need to do this before the 180-day warranty.

This is my 1st shot at using hearing aids. I do I have moderate hearing loss and finally went to Costco to get checked out. I feel like I should have done more research. The tech at the warehouse did not do a throrough exam and seemed to be in a hurry to get out the door with my new aids. The fitting appointment was similarly rushed. 

These hearing aids it seemed to be pretty basic.. I'm used to wearing bluetooth earbuds a lot and there is no control with these hearing aids. It's nice to have the Bluetooth feature with the phone but you cannot control the Bluetooth volume. I am finding myself not able to hear my customers on the phone even with the phone Bluetooth volume all the way up. 

The Bluetooth connection to my phone with this hearing aid is very weak. I have to hold the phone within 6 to 10" of the hearing aids in order to maintain a good connection. Even then I get responses from others on the phone indicating they can't hear me. The right hearing aid cuts out on a regular basis as well. I've had this happen while in front of customers and had to remove them in order to continue the conversation. Overall, I'm not satisfied. I will be taking these back and going to an audiologist for something more suitable for suitable for my circumstances and hearing loss.

I tried many hearing aids before purchasing these. I am a classical guitarist, and every hearing aid I tried produced serious and disturbing intermodulation distortion when I was playing my guitar or listening to piano. It is ALWAYS necessary to turn down the gain when playing or listening at a concert. Also when driving (especially in my convertible). I  wanted complete 'in-ear' aids, but the Eargo and Rexton I tried were terrible for music. The Etymotic was good, but bulky. The Costco did not have sufficient adjustability and the phone app crashed constantly. The Philips work great. Wide adjustability, on the phones or with the app,  comfortable, and the rechargeable batteries last all day.

No one ever answers at Philips. The app will not work in Android phones. People at Costco are nice but without the ability to change the modality and with no customer service at all these 1799.00 USD hearing are going back tomorrow.

I purchased the Phillips 9030 minirite  TR hearing aids from Costco. I took the hearing test results from HFH Audiology with me to have that prescription installed in the hearing aids. The hearing aids are great. I have 4 programs I can access through my Samsung S21 Ultra. I previously had Phonak Audeo 50 hearing aids which were good. These are better with more features and a $500 cheaper out of pocket cost. Costco in Roseville, MI and the Senior hearing aid Specialist, Jo Ann Modlinski provided outstanding Service.

Al Jefferson- customer.

This review is regarding Phillips 9030 hearing aids. I've had them about 6 wks, my biggest issue is they work ok with my Android (Pixel) until they decide to disconnect. Then, getting them to reconnect can be 5 minutes or up to 30 minutes.  Also, I believe my comprehension is not quite as good as with my old Resounds.  At any rate these 9030s are going back to Costco for a refund and I plan to try another brand. When these 9030s work with my Android, they work well in the sense that the hearing aids send connected sounds to and through the hearing Aids, very nice.  However, you must use the phone microphone for speaking and that's kind of another bummer. 

This is my 4th pair and I like the pairing with my iPhone. The sound is crisp as it’s delivered directly to my ear. However, people next to me can’t hear the sound from the iphone, hence I can’t share videos to other people. I’m asking if anyone has a solution?

The sound is shrill.  Not enjoyable to listen to tv or music because it is tinny and high-pitched...shrill.  I love when no one is around and I can take out the hearing aids to listen to music and tv.

Several times a day I am having to reconnect the hearing aids, several times taking up to an hour. My cell phone is compatible. No, I haven't "paired" my hearing aids to another device. Another "fix" was to uninstall the app and install it. I did this several times. This "fix" worked for a short period of time. Yes, I installed new batteries. Yes, my cell phone has the latest updates. No, my phone isn't 5G compatible.  Yes, I called the phone number 800-327-4779 several times (Jody, Shannon and Bob). According to Phillips, there is no update for 5G users. Frustrating to be to talking to someone or listening to music and then hearing aids stop. I am returning the hearing aids tomorrow.

I've been wearing aids since 1956. Up till now they have all been replaceable battery models. I trialed the Rexton RIC first since they were a Signia product (and many of my previous aids were Seimens brand which became Signia) but was not satisfied. I then went with these and I am satisfied. No issues with my phone (which is an iPhone), nor any other real issues It seems many of the other reviewers here knock the aids due to limited compatibility with their non-Apple phones. The onus is on them as they evidently didn't do their research.

Hear aids are ok ,app sucks, if you like to reset 3 times a day They are OK , call Customer service , might as well talk  to the wall

These are my first hearing aids. So I don’t have much to compare them to. But at the age of 47 with mechanical hearing loss. They really are great. It took a bit to get used to hearing aids in general.

Great Product!

The poorest possible rating of their 'technical' support and why I can't keep these hearing aids. I called to ask about the poor quality of the bluetooth phone connection, their immediate response was that my phone (the most popular Google Pixel model) wasn't on their list. The response was NOT that they were crazily working to make it compatible, but that it was the phone manufacturer's fault that their hearing aids don't work with them. Sorry, but that is exactly the wrong answer and therefore you don't deserve my money or patience while you work it out. I'm getting my money back from Costco. 

I wore hearing aids for 10 years. The Philips 9030’s from COSTCO are my first to connect up to my iphone. While I can hear and understand better with these aids than my previous ones, it is clear that Philips knows nothing about usability. By that I mean the connection and use to the iphone, TV Adapter, or Computer, to the hearing aids.

Computer

The aids cannot connect to a Windows 10 HP computer. If I look at Windows “device - properties – services”, it is blank(no services). So instead of identifying EARPHONE AND MIC the device manager places it into the OTHER DEVICES. A category (like keyboard/mic/printer) where the audio cannot connect via Bluetooth. This is a major mistake made by Dement/Oticon/Philips.

TV Adapter

While watching a TV streaming movie using the Philips TV adapter, the aids go quiet for about 15 seconds, an announcement of “battery level 50%” is heard, followed by another 15 seconds of silent before you hear the TV again or any streaming data. Philips must think hearing the battery level is more important than the movie or music you are listening to. You just missed 30 seconds of the movie. Why did I purchase the hearing aids? To hear SOUNDS, not that I have 9 hours of battery life remaining.

If you are connected to the TV Adapter and walk out into the garage for a short time to take out the garbage, the hearing aids, after about 30 seconds jumps back to P1 or General(?lost of signal?) Why, the TV adapter has both Streaming and surroundings modes, someone thinks(or doesn’t THINK) they know what’s better.

I have a major problem with the TV Adapters volume. Sometimes, not always, when I first go to TV Adapter the volume is messed up. Mute does not work on streaming and/or surroundings. You can not adjust the volume. I have not figured out how to replicate this. It clearly does not remember the last setting.

Recommendation

My expectations are that I could put in my hearing aids and hear everything from everywhere. Which means connecting to any Bluetooth audio source. One of the main reasons from purchasing new hearing aids was to have the phone call vocals go directly to my ears. One big problem. Getting the phone out of your pocket to answer it defeats the purpose of the controls on the phone.

Because the CLEARITY and UNDERSTANDING of the amplified voice is so much better than others. I would still recommend these over the other AIDs I've tried.

As hearing aids, the Phillips models really are very good. I've had no problem with him at all. But the problems I've experienced are with the Bluetooth connection. When I get a phone call, I may or may not hear the person calling me. If I know there's a phone call and cannot hear them, I have to quickly turn the Bluetooth off of my phone. Also, one of the big advantages is supposed to be a Bluetooth connection so you can hear Radio, podcasts or music from your phone directly into your hearing aids. I have found the Bluetooth connection tenuous, usually putting sound into one ear or the other, and you never know which one. The only way  to get both of them working at the same time is to reboot the phone and then it isn't long for one hearing aid with the other loses its connection. Costco isn't really expected to know what to do with this, but I'm going to send mine back into Phillips to see if they can take care of the problem.

These will not stay paired to my Android phone. Very frustrating. They continue to turn on and off randomly. I also noticed there's a lot of tinniness in the sound and squealing when my truck beeper goes off for seatbelt. Have had him adjusted once. I would not recommend these hearing aids. I've had Siemens and they are a lot better but we're very pricey. Just trying to find something a little more economical. I called or tech support and they're trying to do an update to their program but I've had them for nearly 3 months and I did an Android update. No good. They don't tell you when they're going to come out with their own update, but doesn't seem like they're very responsive.

The iPhone link crashed after 4 months,no remote now,just manual. Sound is tinny.

Had them for almost 12 months but not overly impressed. Seem to focus on volume and not clarity. Unable to eliminate background noise eg. hoover, hair dryer etc, sounds like a jet taking off when being used (not my hair dryer). Clarity of speech is no better despite various settings and controls on the app. If it's volume you need ok, but for clarity of speech, not good at all. For me clarity is needed so really $2k not well spent. Also, not happy with the over the ear fitting, especially wearing a face mask and spectacles, easily pulled off when removing mask. Technology is cleaver but not clever enough. Unable to give 5 star rating.

I got mine about two years ago, soon after Costco started selling the. They’re the first hearing aids I’ve had, so can’t compare them with others. I can say that I’ve had absolutely no problems with them and feel they’ve helped me a lot. Mine are rechargeable and used with an iPhone so everything is seamless. They are excellent for my less than severe hearing loss - strongly recommended. 

When they work sound is clear they fulfill my needs. The recharging is a nice feature but with Bluetooth streaming doesn’t last . Bluetooth will stop working on one or both aids regularly. Have to restart program sometimes 20 times an hour. Very frustrating. Costco sent them for repair ( took 2 weeks). Marginally better, but now have buzzing as well as intermittent functionality. I don’t think I can use these for long. Will have to find something else

This (HearLink miniRITE TR) is my second set of Phillips after one set of Resound.  I have nothing but praise for the way they help my hearing.  The TR is better then the older model as sounds are much more real and I have to admit there were a lot of sounds that I was missing.  Are they as good as my ears were in my youth?  Absolutely not, but what is?

Hearing aids, like just about everything, takes some getting used too.  I found they work really well for me but I do give them extra attention.  Before setting them on the charger at bedtime I always clean the base dome and make sure there's not any wax buildup.  They charge in approximately 3 hours fully and are ready to go for the entire next day.  I have never had them lose a charge while waring them.  So far I've never had any problems.  

already wrote the review

They don't adjust auto,

Can't use with bluetooth on Android

Keep missing calls/messages

Have to use speaker phone constantly because of no bluetooth capability with Android

One shuts off without notice. Very annoying. May be defective. 

The worst hearing aid on the market!  

Cotsco pushes this worthless product on their customers.  Disgusting!  

They eat batteries. Batteries only last a few hours, less than a day. The hearing aids just cut off without warning and for no reason. All sorts of beeps and musical notes at the most inappropriate times that no one can explain. Had two sets of Kirklands from Costco that were superior to these. I will be purchasing replacements when it is safe to do so. These are going in the trash. 

This is my first pair of hearing aids so don’t have another to compare it to. It was actually an easy adjustment. My loss is mild in one ear and moderate to severe in the other. These aids have been user friendly. The app however is slow to load and limited in scope. I also hear the processor loudly in my better hearing ear when in a quieter environment. This is a bit bothersome and my fitter has not been able to eliminate the sounds. Love the rechargeable feature so much. They provide plenty of life for me.  I usually wear for 18 hours and stream for 2-4 hours as well. I chose these based on similarities to the Oticon opn1. I have found my fitter is not as well versed on these having not fitted as many people. Purchased at Costco. 

Reliability is poor.  I have been experiencing  constant malfunctions since I got them a year ago.

I have been wearing BTE aids for about ten years without problems-- all from COSTCO and all were great. These Phillips aids that I got last year are a constant thorn in my side.  

My current struggle is that one of the aids "eats batteries" -- the last new battery lasted  six minutes and I tried three batteries with the same result. This happened once before and COSTCO replaced the aids. Before we blame humidity, it should be noted that I keep them in a dryer box each night.

The iPhone app is slow and sometimes refuses to show battery level. The help section provides little real troubleshooting help.

It is difficult the make a bluetooth connection to my PC.  But then they claim that their product is 'designed to meet' bluetooth requirements -- which is engineerese meaning it might not work in the real world.

The Hear link audio clip frequently shuts down or changes mode for no reason.

The TV link works flawlessly.  

The team at COSTCO is technically competent and works diligently with Phillips to try to fix the problems.  Their audiological testing is thorough and they do a great job setting up the aids.  I suspect that they are stuck with a "turkey" product and do the best they can within corporate constraints.

I rather suspect that Phillips, being the "new kid on the block", is still trying to get their technical act together.

When the aids work, they work great, but most of the time they just aren't reliable. 

I've had no problems. They fit comfortably and seem to improve my hearing. I'm still getting used to them.

Replaced Bernafon Juras  with the Philips. Philips are clearer and don’t need to use the various programs; they seem to adjust to all environments automatically except for music. The Bernafons had a music program that was perfect and eliminated single note vibrato and distortions. I go back to them for serious music listening. Tried to find out if the Philips could tailor one of the programs to not include the feedback circuitry that apparently causes the problem (like the Bernafons) but to no avail. Don’t think service is their strong point. Also have some issues with the Philips trying to figure out what to do in some noisy environments. Different sound get louder then softer, distorts and moves around but quickly stabilizes and is then quite good. Some issues with newly installed batteries. More than half the time within the first day they will signal they need replacement and show a low percentage on the app. I take the batteries out and reinstall and they’re fine for the rest of the week. Overall, except for the music issue, I like these hearing aids. 

I have been wearing hearing aids for 20+ years. Now bought two Philips HearLink 9010 miniRITE T. I might return them for full refund at Costco. Amp saturates very easily with load noise such as bump in road when driving. Voices are not natural and people sound like speaking with a lisp. iPhone app does not allow permanent volume settings – very bad. If you switch between programs the volume returns for default setting. Same thing when you power-up each day you need to reinstall your custom volume settings. Yes, default settings can be changed at store but I would have to drive 50 miles each time I want to tweak default volume settings. End customer should be allowed to do this from their phone.

These are my first set of hearing aids. Since day one I have had nothing but trouble. I have had random beeps, difficulty using the app (in fact it is very poor), found that there is no signal even though both hearing aids are on. Have to restart them frequently. They’re going back.

See my detailed review on the hearing aid forum: https://forum.hearingtracker.com/t/philips-hearlink-first-impressions/45002/70

I have had 3 other brands before the Philips over the course of 15 years. With the Philips I am hearing sounds I have not heard in over 10 years or longer. I have severe to profound high frequency hearing loss. Speech recognition over the past few years has gotten more difficult. Recently while looking for a replacement for my 4 year old K6 hearing aids I tried 3 other brands besides the Philips. When executing automatic feedback adjustments the other brands would go from 100% of target to 70% making them almost useless for speech recognition. The Philips brand stayed at 100% of target even after the adjustment for feedback. I immediately noticed that the voice of the person performing the adjustments was much clearing on the Philips than on the other brands. I am very happy with the improvement in voice recognition. There is one strange behavior though. I have a lot of HVAC noise at work and it seems like the hearing aids cannot make up its mind on whether is should filter it or not. It sounds like I am in a snow storm sometimes with the wind whipping around. It gets really quiet then really loud, Up and down.

Wow! I really like these hearing aids! I can hear so much better with these than with another brand that I wore before( they broke down several months ago). These ones are so comfortable, and I wish I had found them sooner. I have a moderate to profound hearing loss, and feel so much better when I am wearing these things. I forget that I can’t hear! My stress level is much lower. I can communicate and hear people and activities around me better. I feel more “in balance” and not as confused and lost as I was without hearing aids

Have been wearing these for a couple months now and am very disappointed. Had to have the right one repaired once and it is doing the same thing again. I am going to see about exchanging these for something else as I don't really like the results, they are giving me. The app is also terrible. Takes forever to connect and features are limited.

Very well. These are my 4th pair of hearing aids and my hearing has regressed significantly since I first began wearing aids 9 years ago. But with these I'm understanding speech in quiet situations better than my last pair, and I'm understanding speech in noise and locating the source of sounds better than I ever have since I began wearing hearing aids. They've given me renewed confidence in social situations and allowed me to focus more on content rather than focusing all of my energy on merely trying to pick up what's being said. Don't get me wrong, I still have to ask people to repeat themselves from time to time and still miss key words occasionally, but I've been surprised that these really are better than the other premium aids I've owned.