About the iHEAR HD
The iHEARHD device is one of the more affordable hearing aids on the market. It comes with no service agreement, and encourages the consumer to complete their own hearing test, using iHEAR's proprietary self-hearing screening device. The complete package (one pair of HEARHD hearing aids with Programming Kit, which includes the iHear Hearing Test) costs $827 plus the cost of batteries (see discussion below).
The iHEARHD began its life on the crowdfunding website Indiegogo in early 2014. Adnan Shennib, inventor of the Lyric and iHEAR CEO, enticed potential investors to purchase an iHEARHD device with the promise that one iHEARHD would be dontated to"the economically disadvantaged" for each iHEARHD purchased (a marketing strategy that worked for TOMS shoes in 2006). iHEAR's Indiegogo campaign was a success, raising almost a quarter of a million dollars with an initial goal of only $65,000. There were some delays after the campaign, but iHEAR eventually began shipping the iHEARHD to campaign backers, and is now shipping products without delay from the iHear Medical Store. iHear is now venture backed with over $10.4M in financing - and backed by major investors including Brother International, Ameritas, etc.
It's hard to say whether the iHEAR device would be successful with the average person with age-related hearing loss, as the device looks to sport an occluding (tight-fitting) earpiece, which could unintentonially boost deep tones for those who have normal hearing for lower pitches (this may lead to louder sound than necessary to achieve better hearing). If you have personal experience with the device, please submit a review or leave a comment below.
Some notes:
- iHEARHD "is designed to operate reliably for about 18-24 months."
- iHEARHD batteries last "7-10 days on the average, assuming 14 hours daily operation, and turning the device off at night."
- Batteries are purchased on a subscription basis at $4/month.
- Batteries will cost $48/year per device, or $144-192 over the expected lifetime of a pair of iHEARHD's.
- The total cost of a pair of iHEARHD hearing aids (including the devices and batteries over 2 years) is estimated to be around $950.
- Read more at iHEAR's FAQ
Future upgrades (Available July 2016):
- "Up to 3 program settings for different sound environments"
- "One year unlimited professional support"
Table of Contents