Which Amazon Fire TV devices work with hearing aids?

Supported hearing aids can stream audio directly

There have been devices that allow you to stream audio from a television to a hearing aid around for a while but advancements in Bluetooth mean that it's possible to stream directly without any added hardware — provided you have the right equipment.

This feature is available on two Fire TV devices from Amazon, the 2nd generaton Fire TV Cube and Fire TV Omni sets. Amazon says that Starkey Bluetooth hearing aids are compatible but it's expected that other brands will follow.

Amazon doesn't detail the exact specifications of Fire TV ASHA support, but we can be sure it depends on a few underlying pieces of tech, namely Bluetooth LE (Low Energy) and software that can maintain a steady flow of audio through a buffer. 

This is why a Bluetooth-enabled hearing aid doesn't "just work" with any device that can connect over Bluetooth, and why Amazon and Starkey had to build devices using the right tech to enable the feature.

This means more than just being able to hear your favorite shows, too. The connection is done at the system level, which means you can use your hearing aid for music and video streaming, hear game audio, and even hear what Alexa has to say without any extra hardware. You can even control the volume through the Fire TV remote.

There are two big caveats to remember — you should use a 5GHz Wi-Fi network for the connection to your Fire TV and because hearing aids have tiny antennas you will need to stay within 10 feet or so of your Fire TV device. Things can work on a slower 2.4GHz connection or further than 10 feet away, but results may vary.

Android phones from Samsung, Google, OnePlus, and other brands as well as iPhones since the 11 series support direct hearing aid connections using ASHA, but it's great to see an actual media streaming device join the party. This is another reason why Amazon makes some of the best streaming devices you can buy.