Section 12: Health and Safety Information 191Using Your Phone Near Other Electronic DevicesSection 12interference noise, and phones also vary in the amount ofinterference they generate.The wireless telephone industry has developed ratingsfor some of their mobile phones, to assist hearing deviceusers in finding phones that may be compatible with theirhearing devices. Not all phones have been rated. Phonesthat are rated have the rating on their box or a label on thebox.The ratings are not guarantees. Results will varydepending on the user’s hearing device and hearing loss.If your hearing device happens to be vulnerable tointerference, you may not be able to use a rated phonesuccessfully. Trying out the phone with your hearingdevice is the best way to evaluate it for your personalneeds.M-Ratings: Phones rated M3 or M4 meet FCCrequirements and are likely to generate less interferenceto hearing devices than phones that are not labeled. M4 isthe better/higher of the two ratings.T-Ratings: Phones rated T3 or T4 meet FCC requirementsand are likely to be more usable with a hearing device’stelecoil (“T Switch” or “Telephone Switch”) than unratedphones. T4 is the better/higher of the two ratings. (Notethat not all hearing devices have telecoils in them.)Hearing devices may also be measured for immunity tothis type of interference. Your hearing devicemanufacturer or hearing health professional may helpyou find results for your hearing device. The moreimmune your hearing aid is, the less likely you are toexperience interference noise from mobile phones.
