Using Your Hearing Aids with a Smartphone

With all the technology available to us today, there are so many devices that can connect to your hearing aids to improve your user experience – smartphones included.

Both Android and Apple iOS operating systems offer several devices that can easily pair with your hearing aids, allowing for enhanced listening. Plus, you will be able to take advantages of the following features:

• Stream phone calls directly to your hearing aid. This should help you hear all your calls very clearly.

• Change the left and right volume settings together or separately. You will be able to do this through your smartphone without needing to actually adjust your hearing aid’s inbuilt setting and buttons.

• Stream music played on your smartphone through your hearing aid. This allows for a much more personal listening experience and enables you to control the volume going directly into your ears.

• Can help you locate lost hearing aids through the connection.

• Check the hearing aid battery status on your phone so you know when you need to recharge your devices or replace the batteries.
  Control other accessories that you use with your hearing aid. For instance, some people have TV remotes that can connect with their device. Once this is also connected to the smartphone, you should be able to hear the TV better, as well.

If you believe you could benefit from this technology, it’s important you understand how to pair or connect your hearing aids to your smartphone. While every hearing aid manufacturer and phone system may differ some, the instructions below give you an outline of the most common ways to connect your technologies.

Connecting your hearing aid to an iPhone smartphone

Depending on the type of hearing aid you are currently using, there might be a specific app that you can download onto your iPhone. You can then easily connect your device using the app. You should be able to find out about the app on your manufacturer’s website. If your hearing aid does not have a compatible app or you are unable to find it in the App Store, you can always try these steps:

• First, make sure your hearing aid is turned off.

• Go to the “Settings” menu and then select “Bluetooth.” The Bluetooth needs to be turned on.

• Now, turn the hearing aid on again. Your smartphone should be able to detect it.

• In the “Settings” menu of your phone, go to “General.” You should then see another menu; choose “Accessibility.”

• You then need to choose “MFI Hearing Devices.”

• After you’ve clicked on this, you should see the name of your own hearing device. You need to tap on this.

• To complete the connection, be sure to select “Pair.”

Your hearing aid should be connected to your iPhone now, but it’s best to double check by testing it.

Connecting your hearing aid to an Android smartphone

Most modern hearing aids will also have apps available on the Android App store. If you can’t find it, it’s worth checking on the manufacturer’s website as many will have links to their apps on their own site. Don’t worry if you still have trouble finding the app, as you can simply follow these next few steps.

• Ensure that your hearing aid has been turned off.

• Go to your phone’s settings and then select “Bluetooth.” Turn on the Bluetooth connectivity.

• Then, turn on your hearing aid so that it can connect to your phone. Your Android phone should now be able to detect it.

• Take a look under “Paired Devices” in the Bluetooth menu. You should be able to see your own hearing aid. Select it so that it can pair with your phone.

• Once you have connected either your iPhone or Android phone to your hearing aid, you should be able to use all of the extra features that connectivity allows. If you run into any issues, you might want to check the device manufacturer’s website to see if you can troubleshoot. If that doesn’t work, then it’s best to speak to your audiologist about the problems that you have been having.

If you want to find out more about how you can use your smartphone with your hearing aid, then you can always contact the team at Allison Audiology & Hearing Aid Center, PC. To find out more about this or to ask a question about hearing aid technologies, simply give us a call at Houston: (713) 827-1767.