Matching Like With Like

There is Swede called Mats Dotevall, who I met years ago and I still rate as one of the finest minds in the hearing aid industry. Unfortunately, those more influential than I did not share my high opinion of Mats but what is beyond dispute is that one of the step changes within the industry was entirely down to him. Mats “invented” a product called the ReSound Air. Clearly there was a team around him, and it used some of the chips and processors that were already in production, as well as sharing the same or similar programming algorithms as its predecessors, so why was it such a step change. Well, when it was launched in 2003 the Resound Air was the first open-fitting hearing aid to use micro-tubing and leave the ear far more “open” allowing a blend of natural sound and amplified sound. It may not sound much now but back then it was a revolution of design and technology combining for real end-user benefit. The tiny hearing aid sat on top of the ear but fed sound into the ear through a very narrow tube that was practical invisible. The consumers loved the feeling of not being blocked up and that it was small, light and very discrete. The professionals loved that it was a product that wasn’t in-the-ear with all the wax and moisture issues yet it was still widely accepted by the consumer. At ReSound, which I was then a part of, we loved it as our sales went through the roof. As with many great ideas, the ReSound Air spawned a myriad of copycat products and you can see a number of them on HearingDirect’s website today. The HD350 and the HD210 use exactly the same tubing as the ReSound Air did at its launch. The HD400 and HD300 owe a significant legacy with similar systems although both have different connection between either the tube and the hearing aid or the tube and the dome that fits on the end. There is a bewildering selection of different tubes now being used across different manufacturers. There is an equally bewildering selection of different domes being used across different manufacturers. Tragically the industry diversified and although there are thousands, if not millions of satisfied consumers using hearing aids in combination with micro tubes there is not a standard to make life easy. At HearingDirect.com we have done our best and spent hours in research to try to match the right hearing aid with right tube with the right dome. We are busy working on additional manufacturers but rest assured you can now enjoy hearing aids from Mats Dotevall’s legacy and select products with complete confidence.