Ever seen those late-night tv ads for "spy devices that allow you to listen in on conversations!" Guess what? They really do work,and they are a very effective cheap solution for those of us who have damaged hearing and can hear sound but not well enough to make out words. I had gotten to the point where I usually had to go to the close-captioned option when watching movies,and ALWAYS had to do that if the actors had any sort of accent. People would talk to me in a normal voice,and I was having to ask them what they said two or three times to figure it out.
Well,I stopped off at the Dollar General store yesterday to buy some items I needed,and spotted one of these devices on sale for 50% off,and bought it. The brand I bought is "Listen Up",and it is one of the ones that has a very tiny box that serves as the receiver and amplifier with a clip you can put in your pocket. The box contains the amplifier,on/off switch,and volume control,and has those really cheesy headphones that plug into your ears if you are the one person in a million with ear canals that size.
Went back home and turned the tv on,and damn if it doesn't work maybe better than advertised. It even manages to pick up the broadcast if you are turned away from the source of the sound. I turned my tv volume down to 40% and still heard the words clearly with my Listen Up volume control turned up less than half way.
This device is normally 10 bucks at Dollar General,but is on sale for $5 now. I went back today and bought a spare one to keep in my car so I will have one with me in case I go to a movie or watch tv away from home.
The Listen Up device that I bought is powered by one AAA battery.
I also saw devices that are self-contained and either fit right into the ear like one of the Blue Tooth music players you see,or plug into the ear and the big part with the controls goes behind the ear. All of these devices can be bought on ebay for less than 15 bucks,and may be slightly more practical since they don't have earphones.
Of course,the receiver with the earphones gives you the option of using earphones designed to listen to music that will be much clearer than the tiny little speaker in the one-piece units. I guess it all depends on how bad your hearing is. If the loss is moderate,the ear canal one-piece units would probably be the way to go. If the damage is more severe,you would probably benefit from the improved fidelity of plug in headphones.
Or,just buy both for less than 25 bucks and see which works best for you.
