We set up this site to ensure that there was an independent site on the web that would give honest, impartial information and advice to people with hearing loss about their condition and the equipment used to correct it. We see our job as a translator of techno-jargon and a slicer of marketing fluff. We regularly review products here based on our experience. Manufacturers offer us no reward, nor would we accept it. We also regularly take submitted reviews from other users, because we think that their voice is just as valid as ours. Unfortunately, we published a review recently called Now Hear This, A Review of Five In The Ear Hearing Aids and it was complete bullshit. Let me tell you how we know, and what Barry Nance was up to. Just a quick update here, I have been contacted by Signia, they just wanted to make it clear that they had no involvement with the review or Barry Nance, they just seem to have been caught up in it.
Barry Was Trying To Extort Phonak
It turns out that Barry was trying to get a free pair of Virto B-Titanium 90 hearing aids from Phonak. However, Phonak wasn't biting, mainly because the offer was, that if they gave him the hearing aids, they would win the review hands down!!!!!
Paid Reviews are Bad
While Phonak like good reviews, they aren't really interested in paying for them. Because they know that paid reviews or rewarded reviews are complete and utter bullshit (Irish technical term).
Well Connected
At Hearing Aid Know, we are well connected, not like in a, we can get you whacked way, more like in a, everybody in the hearing aid industry knows us kind of way. So, it wasn't long before someone contacted us and let us know the full story.
Barry contacted Phonak and asked for a set of Virto Titanium B-9os for a review when it became a little obvious that it probably wasn't going to work out, he spelled it out for them. Give me the Titaniums and you will win the review process hands down, if you don't we will thrash the Phonak product and the Signia product will get top billing. And as we all know, that is exactly what happened.
Barry, You are a F#@$wit (Irish Technical Term)
Yup Barry, you are and here is why, people use this site for honest, independent advice, not bullshit from a f@#$wit with a monetary agenda. Submitting your crap to this site and allowing us to print it involves us in your duplicity, something that we don't like. You see guys like you are why we can't have nice things.
Still Taking Good Honest Reviews
At Hearing Aid Know, we will still be taking good honest reviews from users, however, I would hope that this experience doesn't happen again. More than that I hope it stands out as a warning to other f@#$wits who would try to play us.
Sorry and we hope That it Never Happens Again
To the readers of this site, because you are the people that we are concerned about, not the manufacturers, not even the Professionals so much. We truly want you to be able to trust everything that you read on this site. We hope that this never happens again and we apologise.
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Posted by Geoff
Geoffrey Cooling
Geoffrey (Geoff, anything else makes him nervous) Cooling is an Irish hearing aid blogger and has been involved with the hearing aid industry for over ten years. He has worked in private practice dispensing hearing aids and as a manufacturer's rep. He has written two books and they are both available on Amazon. He loves technology, passing on knowledge and is legendary for many other things, primarily the amount he curses, his dry and mischievous sense of humour and his complete intolerance of people who are full of themselves. Please feel free to connect with him
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