SPECIAL MENTION: Phonak‘s Roger On wireless microphone (from $1,200) streams audio from afar into most modern hearing aids and cochlear implants, making it easier to isolate someone who’s talking in a noisy social gathering or speaking at a lectern. Attachments let it transmit audio from a TV, computer or other audio source. —Don Steinberg
Correction Nov, 10
The original version of this story misstated the microphone’s starting price. It starts at $1,200, not $3,000.
More Must-Reads From TIME
- What Wildfire Smoke Does to the Human Body
- Prince Harry Breaks Royal Convention to Testify in Court
- Teens Are Taking Wegovy for Weight Loss
- Elliot Page: Embracing My Trans Identity Saved Me
- How a Texas High Jumper Has Earned Nearly $1 Million
- What the Debt Ceiling Deal Means for Student Loan Borrowers
- How Past Lives Combines Memoir and Artistry
- 7 Ways to Get Better at Small Talk
