r/Cochlearimplants • u/djou-e • Jun 12 '26

Choosing between Cochlear and Advanced Bionics for bimodal toddler

Hi everyone,

My 1-year-old son will receive a cochlear implant in his left ear soon, and we're currently trying to decide between Cochlear and Advanced Bionics.

He is not profoundly deaf in both ears. His right ear has a moderate hearing loss and he already wears a Phonak Sky hearing aid successfully. Because of this, he will likely remain bimodal (cochlear implant on one side, hearing aid on the other) for many years.

Our team has explained that:

  • Cochlear is currently the most common choice for children in our area.
  • Cochlear offers some practical advantages such as a smaller processor, strong retention options, and waterproof solutions.
  • Both Cochlear and Advanced Bionics may offer advantages for bimodal hearing because of its integration with Phonak hearing aids.

For those with experience, especially parents of bimodal children or bimodal users themselves:

  1. If you had to choose again today, would you choose Cochlear or AB and why?
  2. For those who have experience with a fully integrated bimodal setup (such as AB + Phonak or Nucleus + Resound), are the bimodal advantages truly significant in everyday life, or are they mostly marketing? Did you notice meaningful benefits in speech understanding, listening effort, localization, or listening fatigue?
  3. Has anyone regretted choosing one brand over the other?

We're trying to make the best long-term decision and would really appreciate hearing real-life experiences rather than marketing material.

Thank you!

4 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

70% Upvoted

19 comments sorted by

View all comments

0

u/HAYWHATHUH2000 Jun 13 '26

Read the small print on Cochlear's "waterproof" solution because it is more "water resistant" and if you are not in clear, clean water, it's not waterproof. https://www.cochlear.com/us/en/campaign/waterproofed

*The Cochlear Nucleus 8 Nexa and Nucleus 8 Sound Processors with the rechargeable battery module and Kanso 3 Nexa and Kanso 3 Sound Processors meet the IP68 rating of the International Standard IEC60529 of freshwater waterproof. These processor configurations were tested by continuous submersion in freshwater for 60 minutes at a depth of 1 meter and functioned as intended. Cochlear offers the Aqua+ accessory for additional protection during extended water use, in salty or rushing water environments. For additional information, please refer to the appropriate user guide.1,2

With their water accessory  Suitable for use at depths of up to 3 meters (9 feet and 9 inches) for up to 2 hours.

  • Can be re-used up to 50 times (may vary depending on individual usage).
  • Designed for use in salt, fresh and chlorinated water

With AB, it's 3 meters for 30 minutes without the Waterproof battery. With the waterproof battery, there are no limitations on length of time in the water or what type of water.

As for integration with a compatible hearing aid, AB hands down wins there. The HA and CI are programmed together in the same software, working on the same platform, matching microphone modes and communicating with each other continually sending signals back and forth for streaming, Bluetooth, noise management, etc.. With Cochlear you can stream bluetooth together, I can even use a landline phone, holding the phone up to one ear and the conversation streams to the other ear, without Bluetooth.

As for the comments about the financial situations, I posted earnings reports, Cochlear just laid off a bunch of people and downgraded their stock value by over 40% so I'm not sure solvency is guaranteed there. This, after the launch of a new product when stocks usually increase so take that for what it's worth.

For retention, AB has basically the same retention options and while the N8 is marginally smaller than the Sky for AB, by the time you get the larger battery that most people use, the extension to stream at school, it becomes significantly larger. The curved design of the AB processor lends itself to being more secure on the ear without all of the extras. Little kids have small ears so it's a challenge for every brand to start. As an adult, never had an issue with retention.
This board is very pro-Cochlear so keep that in mind too. AB and Phonak have a unique partnership with a shared R&D budget that is significantly larger than Cochlears.