BUYING SMART
HEAR TO thrive
COSTCO PHOTO STUDIO
Costco’ s range of next-gen hearing aids offers revolutionary sound quality in a discreet size, leading to life-changing results.
BY KIM GILLAN
O
nline forums were abuzz a few months ago when word spread that the Philips HearLink 9050 was coming to Costco Australia. Rechargeable and powered by AI technology, the device has quickly garnered a cult following for its ability to remove background noise and prioritise speech.
“ It features an embedded accelerometer, a new component within the hearing aid that detects movement by measuring changes in velocity over time,” explains Rebecca Wood, Philips Head of Audiology.“ It identifies if people are moving around or nodding their head and uses more information about them and the way they exist in their environment to optimise speech and noise.”
It takes the average person seven years from when they identify a hearing issue until they get hearing aids, so the fact that premium models like the Philips HearLink 9050 is stocked at Costco is great news for people who are struggling to keep up with conversations.
“ The biggest barrier for a lot of people is the cost of hearing aids because they are thousands of dollars at some places,” Costco audiologist Ivan Grové explains.“ At Costco, they’ re competitively priced far cheaper than at a lot of other places, but more importantly, Costco clinicians really have the best interest of the individual at heart. The focus is really on being able to deliver the best service at the best price – members notice that and we get a lot of positive feedback.”
The right fit
Alongside the Philips HearLink 9050, Costco stocks equally impressive Jabra and Rexton models.“ The Jabra is popular for its slimline design and it’ s got very sharp, crisp sound quality,” Grové enthuses.“ It’ s the smallest one we have in stock, so if cosmetics is a concern, we take that into account when making a recommendation.”
Meanwhile, the Rexton is good for people with reasonably good hearing.“ If they’ re looking for a little boost of sharpness, the Rexton is very good,” Grové says.“ It has minimal mechanical noise and has the benefit of not making your own voice sound artificial to you – it’ s got some additional processing to help with that.”
When you make an appointment with a Costco audiologist, Grové says you’ ll get a comprehensive hearing test. And, if you do need a hearing aid, your audiologist will ensure you get the best option for your needs.
10 | JAN / FEB 2025 COSTCO CONNECTION