Oticon Intent 2 mini RITE rechargeable hearing aid

Oticon Intent 2 mini RITE rechargeable hearing aidBetter Hearing In Background Noise One of the biggest challenging for people living with hearing loss is hearing effectively in competing background noise. Conventional hearing aids utilise purely acoustic input to optimise hearing aid functioning. New Oticon Intent 2 utilises both acoustic and the movement information of the wearer to optimise functioning. This provides a more natural and adaptive listening experience. Oticon call this 4D Sensor

Better Hearing In Background Noise

One of the biggest challenging for people living with hearing loss is hearing effectively in competing background noise. Conventional hearing aids utilise purely acoustic input to optimise hearing aid functioning. New Oticon Intent 2 utilises both acoustic and  the movement  information of the wearer  to optimise functioning. This provides a more natural and adaptive listening experience. Oticon call this 4D Sensor technology.

It should be pointed out that only the top two tiers of technology, the Oticon Intent 1 and Intent 2  possess the motion sensors.  Therefore the 4D sensor technology which is a primary distinguishing feature of this latest model from Oticon is limited to these top two tiers of technology.

Oticon Intent 2 is considered the Advanced model in the range and is second from the top. It is also powered by the new Sirius ™ platform and Deep Neural Network 2.0™ advancing Oticon’s BrainHearing™ technology by providing more personalised support in varying  listening environments.

Incorporating Four Sensory Inputs

Oticons research shows that people’s communication behaviour reflects their listening needs. So Oticon Intent incorporates: Head and Body movement,  Conversation Activity and the Acoustic input from the environment to automatically adapt and provide for a more optimised and natural listening experience. Oticon claim this 4D Sensor Technology provides up to 35% more access to speech cues giving and increase of 15% speech understanding in noise compared to previous technology.

Here’s an  explanation of how they work:

Microphone Input:

Microphones capture external sounds for them to be selectively amplified.  Environmental sounds include speech, music, and other noises.

Digital Signal Processing: Acoustic signals are processed using advanced algorithms to optimise and clarify the sound. The processing helps to distinguish between different types of sounds with the aim of making speech more understandable and reducing the competing background noise

Motion Sensors:

Accelerometers and Gyroscopes integrated into the hearing aids detect the wearer’s head movements and the orientation of the device in real-time.

Motion Analysis: The hearing aids analyse the wearers movements determining factors such as the wearers movements, the direction they are facing, their walking pace and any sudden changes in movement.

Optimising Hearing Based on Motion:

• Adaptive Directional Microphones: The hearing aids adjust their directionality of the microphone focal patterns based on the wearer’s head movements. For example  if the wearer turns their head towards someone speaking, the hearing aid can focus on that direction. This can be considered as the wearers “Intent”. They will the enhance the clarity of speech coming from that direction.
• Dynamic Sound Processing: The hearing aid dynamically adjusts sound processing parameters based on motion data. For example, it may emphasise speech coming from the front while suppressing noise from the sides or behind, depending on the wearer’s orientation.

By combining acoustic input and motion data, Oticon Intent hearing aids provide a more natural and adaptive listening experience. They cater to an individuals dynamic and changing auditory needs. This technology represents a significant advancement in the field of hearing assistance by providing a more personalised and effective solutions for hearing in complex listening environments.

Discreet and Rechargeable

Oticon Intent have been made shorter than the former Oticon Real rechargeable, but slightly wider. They have also opted for a single push button on each device rather than a rocker switch.

Fast, Powerful, Reliable Charging

Being rechargeable hearing aids New Oticon Intent 2 is the fastest charging Oticon hearing aid to date. With a remarkable time of only two hours to fully charge from flat giving you around 20hours of reliable wear time. The new Oticon Desk Charger is small and light with clearly visible markings for left and right hearing aids. The redesigned contact charging helps the speed and efficiency of the charging.

A mere 30 minutes will provide 8 hours of wear time.

Enhanced Connectivity 

Streaming Audio wirelessly from smart devices is improved by now utilising bluetooth low energy. This provides high fidelity streaming together with lower power consumption.

Bluetooth LE Audio & AuraCast Ready

Oticon have integrated Bluetooth LE Audio for better stability and to enable two way streaming on iPhone and Android.

Oticon Intent 2 hearing aids are future ready for AuraCast which allows direct streaming of audio in public venues such as cinema, theatres, airports and shopping centres. So clear audio is received and public announcements are not missed. This is emerging technology for public broadcasts in venues that supersedes the need for a tele-coil in hearing aids and installed loop systems in public venues.

Although a made for iPhone hearing aid, Oticon Intent will also allow direct streaming from select Android devices that feature the (ASHA) protocol. Please see https://www.oticon.com.au/hearing-aid-users/support/information/compatibility

Direct streaming of audio is available with: iPhone,  iPad, iPod touch®, Mac® with macOS® Sonoma.

Hands Free Phone Calls

With a double tap on your hearing aids you can answer and hang up a phone calls. As the hearing aid wearer your voice is picked up by the hearing aid microphones and relayed off. So you don’t even need to take your phone out of your pocket or reach for it within a room to talk on the phone.

Four Technology Levels and Their Features 

Oticon Intent is available in four levels of technology. With Oticon Intent 1 being the Premium or top of the line model and Intent 2 considered the Advanced model. it should be noted that the motion sensors are only available in these top two tiers of technology.  I would recommend going for the top two tiers of technology given they bring in all four dimensions (4D) benefits of speech intent.