28/05/2026
*The amazing history of hearing aids* 🦻
People have been finding clever ways to hear better for thousands of years.
*1600s: The ear trumpet*
These were large funnels made of metal, wood, or even animal horn. You’d point the wide end at the speaker and the narrow end at your ear. Beethoven used a special one attached to his piano so he could feel the vibrations while composing.
*1898: Electric hearing aids*
Invented after the telephone, the first electric hearing aids used a carbon mic and battery. They were the size of a shoebox and weighed several kilos. You carried the battery pack separately.
*1950s: Wearable devices*
Transistors made hearing aids small enough to wear. Body-worn aids clipped to your clothes with a wire running to the ear. Kids in the 60s often decorated theirs with stickers.
*1996: Digital revolution*
Digital chips meant hearing aids could tell speech from noise. Some early models even had remote controls the size of a TV remote.
*Today: Almost invisible*
Modern devices are tiny, rechargeable, and connect to your phone for music and calls. Some track steps, detect falls, and translate languages in real time.
*Fun fact:* The processing power in one hearing aid today is greater than the computers that sent Apollo 11 to the moon.
From ear trumpets to Bluetooth, the goal is the same: keeping you connected.
At Ross Birtill Inc, we love seeing how this tech changes lives.
