Are low-cost personal hearing amplifiers too good to be true?
We reports on the most commonly advertised makes. Weekend newspapers wouldn’t be the same without the customary mailorder shopping magazine. Among the adverts for handpainted, Tiffany-style garden lights and luxurious Egyptian cotton bedding, you’re bound to come across a device or two that claims ‘hear everything loud and clear again’. There are two types: ones that look like inconspicuous pocket radios supplied with earphones and ones that look remarkably like hearing aids – see below. They usually cost around £20 and sometimes much less. And it’s not only mail-order shopping magazines where these devices are sold; the internet is awash with websites offering much the same. Suppliers often remind potential customers that their personal hearing amplifiers are not ‘medical devices’ but nonetheless certain claims, such as, ‘can assist those with mild hearing loss’ or ‘hear a whisper 100ft away’ are not untypical. RNID Products and other specialist suppliers sell listening devices that a
