Oticon Opn S is the newest addition to Oticon hearing aid family.
It is claimed to be the first hearing aid proven to make it easier on the brain, allowing the users to enjoy 30% better speech understanding, reduce listening effort by 20% , remember 20% more of the conversation.
Hearing loss and hearing aids
We hear not only with our ears but also with our brain. The hearing process starts when the ears pick up sounds. But most of the processing work of the sound takes place in our brain. The brain performs 4 cognitive functions to turn sounds into meaning: orient, separate, focus and recognise.
Hearing loss, disrupts the normal relationship between ears and brain, making the 4 cognitive functions more difficult. This is often presented as a difficulty to follow conversation in noisy situation. In situations such as at the dinner table, where the sound is coming from different directions it becomes increasingly difficult. Traditional hearing aids normally focus on a main speech in front while suppressing all other sounds. Yet background sounds often include important speech details, and when not passed onto the brain, conversations are difficult to follow conversations.
Oticon Opn Tm running on Velox platform, employs an “Open sound” approach to manage multiple speech and noise sources. The OpenSound Navigator TM scans the environment 100 times per second to distinguish between speech and background noise.
While opening to 360-degree sound field to allow the wear to orient the sound source, it continually separates speech and noise, then acts at least 100 times per second to removed excessive noise – even between the words. In this way, the wearer can focus on conversation more easily and hence easier recognition of speech.
Furthermore ,Oticon reports that the Velox platform has the speed needed to manage multiple sound sources, analysing and processing sound 50 times faster than before.
Made for iPhone
Oticon Opn Tm miniRITE is the first Oticon hearing aid to have direct iPhone connectivity. This means hearing aid doubles as a pair of wireless headphones, allowing the wear to stream music and make calls without the need for an intermediary device.
Oticon ON App
Oticon ON App makes it easier for hearing aid wears to have additional control with just a touch of their fingertips. iPhone or the Android smart phone connect directly to the hearing aid via Bluetooth. The app allows the hearing aid wearer to adjust volume levels, switch between programs and more. The app also offers a “find my hearing aid” search feature, counselling device, links to user instructions and low battery notification.