We’ve all been spending more time at home these past few months. While some are entertaining themselves with jigsaw puzzles, long presidential biographies and DIY projects around their homes, the vast majority are sitting on their couches watching television. This can be harder for those with hearing loss. But not anymore.
Below is a list of products that can help improve your TV watching, even with hearing loss.
Sound Bar
This long speaker is designed to sit below or above your television and amplifies the built-in speakers from your set. Within a sound bar are multiple speakers, which together can simulate the surround sound you get at a movie theater.
In addition, sound bars can wirelessly connect to a subwoofer placed elsewhere in the room, which deliver low-end bass.
Wireless Headphones
If there are other people in your home, consider investing in a pair of wireless headphones. Newer TVs are Bluetooth-enabled, while older models can be connected to a base that plugs directly into the headphone jack on the television and transmits the sound to the headphones.
Wearing headphones allows you to not only control the volume, but over-ear headphones can help block out additional background noise from your home. This enables you to set the volume to a lower level than you would if the sound was played out loud.
Hearing Aids
If you have hearing loss, chances are you also wear hearing aids. In addition to helping you hear better, hearing aids can work as wireless receivers. Newer Bluetooth-enabled models allow you to connect your hearing aids to a streaming box. This streaming or transmitter box connects to the television and allows you to hear the TV loudly and clearly in your hearing aids.
Your hearing aids can quickly switch between programs, allowing you to answer an incoming phone call and switch back to TV mode when you are done.
You can also hook your hearing aids up to a loop system. This is powered by a wireless magnetic field coming from a small hub plugged into the audio output of your television. Users wear a loop around their neck, which connects to their hearing aids and transmits the sound from the TV.
Closed Captioning
Sometimes the best solution is the simplest. Since 2006, the FCC has required that all television programs display audio content as text onscreen. This text is known as closed captioning. The captions must:
- Match the spoken words and background noises
- Coincide with the spoken words and sounds
- Run from the beginning of the program until the end
- Not block other important visual information on the screen or run off the edge
To learn more about improving your communication at home, contact the experts at Evergreen Speech & Hearing Inc.