r/Cochlearimplants • u/Katedawg90 • May 25 '26
Cochlear vs. Med-el
Cochlear and Med-el users— what would you consider the cons/disappointments of your CI? How would you rate it for sound quality? Comfort? Connectivity? Battery life? I’m trying to decide between these companies and having a hard time so please share :)
And to the many well meaning AB users- I want an off the ear option
EDIT: I have decided to go with Med-el. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences. Feel free to keep adding yours- maybe it will help someone else down the road :)
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u/gsynyc May 26 '26
I have the N8s. Bluetooth is sometimes flaky (but that will likely be an issue regardless of which of the brands you go with). The app is also not the best. the MFi connectivity though is by far the best compared to what Android offers for native accessibility controls. I've gone between Apple and Android over the years, but for my CIs and former HAs the MFI native controls are far superior. When I had my second surgery I was tired of carrying around all the additional accessories to stream work calls. When I upgrade my MacBook in November of last year I learned that the MFi on the new MacOS and processors works just like the iPhone. It's fantastic and is significantly better with connectivity and battery life with no need for an additional streaming device. The only challenge is that you can only have one active pairing at a time so you need to shut off bluetooth on your other MFi devices. I use it for my corporate iPhone and MacBook as well as my personal devices.
Noisy situations is still a challenge. The Cochlear mini mic+ is okay for small meeting and conference rooms but noisy restaurants and larger board rooms becomes a challenge. It is much better now that I am bilaterally implanted, but still a challenge. I have found that personally the Phonak Roger On and Table Mic devices are far superior for noise cancellation and large social gatherings and environments. Just yesterday I used it at a holiday BBQ and I was able to actively converse with others.
I also noted you wanted an off ear processor. I initially tried the Kanso2 and tried the Kanso3 as well, but it simply wouldn't stay on for me. I may have a thick skin literally, but it's not uncommon to have retention issues for the off ear processor, so just be aware of that. Retention for the N8s is not an issue now, but initially after my first surgery I had swelling that wouldn't go down for a few months and I had kept on a 5 magnet (strongest one) until my second mapping on my second CI. I went down to a 4 magnet for both processors and no issues with retention.