Life for people with a hearing impairment can be complicated. It doesn’t matter if your hearing impairment is minimal, or you have lost your hearing entirely, finding ways to help you navigate the world without perfect hearing can be challenging.
Technology and ingenuity are working together to help improve the lives of many. People with hearing loss are also benefiting from the advances in hearing technology. Smartphones, computers and apps are being developed with the intent of improving communication for everyone. We’re taking a closer look at 8 apps that can help improve your communication.
If you’ve been diagnosed with a hearing impairment, your hearing specialists may have recommended hearing aid devices. They are the best way to help improve your hearing and boost your communication ability.
However, even the best hearing aid devices can benefit from a bit of added technological assistance! These 8 apps make communication easier for people with a hearing impairment.
This app takes all noise it can detect through your phone’s microphone speaker, and turns it into a text transcript to read. The app supports over 70 languages and can even work with 2 different languages at once.
Made for your computer, web captioner captures audio and turns it into a running transcript. A bit like Google Live Transcribe.
Only available in the Apple Store, this app follows the same premise. You have to hold down the button for it to start capturing, but it will transcribe for you. It also helps out individuals whose primary language isn’t English.
Another great app for the hearing impaired is the ASL Dictionary. You can find it in the play store and in iTunes. It’s unfortunately not free, but it can teach you up to 5,200 signs!
This app utilizes a third party relay assistant to help transcribe and relay messages from a hearing impaired individual to a hearing person and back.
Another video relay interpreter service, Interpreter Now will connect you with a third party who can make calls to hearing people on behalf of a person with a hearing impairment.
Apps for hearing loss span all sorts of functions! SoundHound allows music lovers with hearing impairments to enjoy music, too. Utilizing the phone’s microphone speaker, lyrics are transcribed to make concert going and music listening more enjoyable.
A well known app, Skype offers video calls to make communication using sign language or lip-reading a convenient means of communication.
Of course, there are countless other awesome apps out there that can help with a variety of scenarios. Mobile banking apps help with communication when dealing with your financial institutions. Travel apps can keep you alerted to emergencies and delays, and can help redirect drivers to less hectic routes.
In conjunction with hearing aid devices and other resources, apps for people hard of hearing are coming a long way. If you’re a person with a hearing impairment, hopefully you spotted a few helpful apps to make life just a little easier!
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If you are due a hearing assessment, please get in touch with our hearing healthcare specialists. To book an appointment, call Regional Hearing and Balance Center at 208-497-3596 or click here to book a complimentary hearing assessment.
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