What is a telecoil?
A telecoil is a small device that is built into some hearing aids for use with the telephone as well as assistive listening devices. Not all hearing aids have telecoils. To use the telecoil, generally either the hearing aid is switched to the “T” position or a button on the hearing aid is pushed to select the telecoil setting. The telecoil picks up magnetic fields generated by telephones and converts these fields into sound. Telecoils are particularly useful for telephone communication because they permit the volume control of a hearing aid to be turned up without creating feedback or “whistling,” and background noise can be reduced, especially when using cell phones in noisy places.
A telecoil is a special circuit inside the hearing aid. It is simply a small coil of wire designed to pick up a magnetic signal. While the microphone on a hearing aid picks up all sounds, the telecoil will only pick up an electromagnetic signal. It turns off the hearing aid microphone, picks up the signal and the hearing aid converts it to sound. This magnetic signal is created from hearing aid compatible telephones and assistive listening systems.
