Starkey Unveils New S Series BTE With Sweep Technology

Eden Prairie, Minn — Starkey Laboratories, Inc, has announced the introduction of a new S Series BTE with Sweep Technology, which the company says provides a completely new way to adjust hearing aids. Sweep Technology replaces all of the traditional hearing aid buttons and dials with an innovative touch surface that allows users to adjust volume up or down and change memories with the simple sweep or touch of a finger.

"This technology makes hearing aids both smarter and simpler," said Jerry Ruzicka, president of Starkey. "We have spent three years researching and developing a way to package this advanced touch surface technology into a hearing aid — and it paid off. Patients in our clinical trials have overwhelmingly preferred Sweep Technology to traditional controls."

Traditional hearing aid buttons, switches and dials are often difficult for patients to find and manipulate. With Sweep Technology, Starkey says there is no mechanical movement required for activation, no push buttons that oxidize and fail with time, and no openings around the volume control wheel that allow moisture and dirt to enter the hearing aid. The sweep surface is a single seamless control, giving patients full access to volume, memory and standby controls.

Sweeping a finger up increases the volume and sweeping down decreases the volume. Memory adjustments are made with a simple touch of the surface.

The new S Series BTE is a flexible option that can be fit with standard earmolds or open with thin tubing. The instrument includes Advanced HydraShield, Starkey's proprietary moisture and corrosion protection system, as well as T2, giving patients the ability to adjust hearing aid volume or memories with a touch-tone phone. The instrument was designed for optimal patient acceptance, utilizing the same design language as the award-winning S Series receiver-in-canal (RIC).

The new BTE with Sweep Technology rounds out Starkey's S Series with Drive ArchitectureT line of hearing instruments, which already includes completely-in-canal, in-the-canal and in-the-ear styles, along with a full RIC family, in four technology levels. Drive Architecture triples the processing power of previous platforms, enabling industry-leading feedback cancellation, superior integrated noise management, live real ear measurement, and much more. It is engineered from the ground up to deliver maximum performance, comfort and personalization.

SOURCE: Starkey Laboratories Inc