See Me, Hear Me: Another New Option Utilizing The OTC Hearing Aid Technology

See Me, Hear Me: Another New Option Utilizing The OTC Hearing Aid Technology
July 16, 2025
So, have you found a pair that will work for you? Have you tried some of the new Over-the-Counter hearing aids now available, or maybe reached for a pair of AirPods Pro 2 earbuds to help with your hearing loss? Or maybe you’ve gone the route of an audiologist and prescription hearing aids, despite their high prices? Or maybe you’re still sitting on the fence- and not hearing well- trying to decide whether to take that next step and try out a hearing aid, despite your reluctance. Well, given recent research reports, there’s all the more reason to get your hearing checked and perhaps supported with a new hearing aid. A new study published in JAMA Otolaryngology, which examined data from thousands of patients across the country, reported that 1 in 3 dementia cases can be attributed to clinically significant hearing loss. While the precise reasons for this remain a mystery, it is clear that hearing loss is a modifiable risk factor for dementia- something that you can act on if you take the initiative to have your hearing tested and, if needed, support with a device. You can read more about the study here. And another recent study out of Brazil, similarly, found that hearing loss beginning in your mid-50s is strongly associated with accelerated cognitive decline. This study was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, and you can read more about it here.
If these studies don’t persuade you to get your hearing tested and start using a hearing aid if needed, then perhaps this brand-new technology will. We have now come to the point in technological development that glasses are being manufactured to not only help improve your vision but also to help you when dealing with hearing loss. There are now manufacturers producing glasses that give you real-time instant subtitles on your glasses, similar to what you can see on your television (or these), and perhaps the most exciting new product is one that has recently been introduced in the United States. A company named Nuance Audio, which is owned by the French/Italian company EssilorLuxottica (which owns such well-known eyewear brands as Ray-Ban, LensCrafters, Oakley, and Pearle Vision), has just come out with a pair of glasses that also contain hearing aids in the arms of the glasses. No prescription for the hearing aids is necessary (and the glasses can either be prescription or not), and a phone app controls the customization and modes to allow you to hear while wearing the glasses in a crowded room or theatrical production. Like all over-the-counter hearing aids, these are intended for people with mild-to-moderate hearing loss, and they come in 2 styles and colors. For those of you who have fought the stigma and ageism that comes from wearing a hearing aid, this may just be the device that gets you back in circulation and able to communicate and hear in noisy environments.
The reviews of these new hearing aid glasses have been generally positive. The Wall Street Journal titled their review, “This Just Makes Sense,” and noted this could be a real upgrade to both your hearing and vision, once you master the technology. The glasses start at $1200 (a bit pricey for OTC hearing aids, though you also get the glasses), and the review posited that these are “ideal for the tech-savvy.” The hearing aid portion of the glasses can last about 8 hours on one charge, though it’s recommended that if you’re not using the “hearing” portion of the glasses, you turn it off to preserve battery life. A charge back to full capacity will take about 3 hours. Some insurances may be accepted to help pay for these glasses, and it is anticipated that more styles will be issued shortly.
AARP also reviewed the glasses, and you can read their review here. So did the tech website ZDNET, whose reviewer commented, “I tested smart glasses with built-in hearing aids for a week, and didn’t want to take them off.” She noted that the glasses are a bit heavier than what you may be used to, but that they excelled in moderately noisy environments. She also suggested that the phone app control was, in fact, easy to navigate and that at a normal distance, others could not hear your amplified audio, in case that’s a concern. Overall, the reviews seem to be positive for this novel product, which may, in fact, move you off the fence and onto better hearing. If you want a comparison of the Nuance Audio hearing glasses to other, more traditional hearing aids on the market, take a look here.