By Jagrut Lallu — BOptom (Hons), MSc Specialty Lenses (Hons), FIAOMC. Therapeutic Optometrist & Contact Lens Specialist. Founder, New Zealand Eye Research Centre; Partner, Rose Optometry.
For years, patients have asked us some version of the same question: “I wear glasses and my hearing is starting to go — is there one thing that does both?” Until recently the honest answer was no. The old spectacle hearing aids of the 1970s and 80s were bulky, conspicuous and largely abandoned. That has now changed.
What are hearing aid glasses?
Hearing aid glasses — also called hearing glasses, audio glasses or glasses with hearing aids built in — are prescription spectacles with directional microphones and open-ear speakers concealed inside the temples. The current generation, Nuance Audio (made by EssilorLuxottica), looks like an entirely ordinary pair of glasses. Nothing sits inside your ear, and there is nothing visible to anyone else.
How Nuance Audio works
The frame carries a set of directional microphones that focus on the person in front of you — the direction you are looking — while reducing noise from elsewhere in the room. The amplified sound is delivered through small open-ear speakers positioned above the ear canal, so your ears stay unblocked. You adjust the settings through an app on iOS or Android.
Because the frame takes standard prescription lenses — single vision, progressive, sun tint, blue light filter or Transitions — one pair handles both vision and hearing.
Who they suit — and who they don't
This is the part we are most careful about in practice. Nuance Audio is designed for mild to moderate hearing difficulty — the very common stage where one-to-one conversation is fine, but a café, a restaurant or a family dinner across a long table becomes hard work. For people at that stage who already wear glasses, it is a genuinely elegant option, and often an easier first step than a conventional hearing aid.
They are not a replacement for medical hearing aids in more significant hearing loss. If your hearing has changed noticeably, if you are struggling even in quiet settings, or if the loss is in one ear only, you should see an audiologist first — and if you come to us, we will tell you exactly that rather than sell you something that will not help.
What hearing aid glasses cost in NZ
Nuance Audio glasses are NZ$1,320 at Rose Optometry in Hamilton, including fitting and app setup. Prescription lenses are quoted separately once we know your prescription and lens preferences. For comparison, conventional hearing aids in New Zealand commonly run from the low thousands per pair depending on technology level — so for people in the mild-to-moderate range, hearing glasses can be a more accessible entry point, particularly if a new pair of glasses was on the cards anyway.
The three frames
- Panthos 48 — the rounder, narrower shape. Suits oval and longer faces.
- Square 54 — the classic square, medium fit, and the safest first choice.
- Square 56 XL — the wide fit, for broader faces and higher bridges.
Each comes in shiny black, deep blue and burgundy. All are in stock at Rose Optometry, Hamilton, with nationwide NZ shipping.
Why the fitting matters more than usual
With ordinary glasses, a poor fit is uncomfortable. With hearing glasses, a poor fit stops the product working: the microphones only perform if the frame sits in the correct position, and the optical centres of your lenses still have to line up with your pupils. This is why we dispense Nuance Audio in person where we can — measured, adjusted on your face, with the app set up before you leave.
Common questions
Are hearing aid glasses as good as hearing aids? For mild-to-moderate difficulty in noisy settings, they perform well and have the advantage that people actually wear them. For significant hearing loss, no — medical hearing aids fitted by an audiologist remain the right tool.
Do they work with progressive lenses? Yes. Progressives, single vision, sun, blue light and Transitions lenses all work.
Is anything inserted in the ear? No. The speakers sit above the ear canal, open-ear style. Your ears stay unblocked all day.
Can I try them before buying? Yes — come into Rose Optometry in Hamilton and try every frame with the audio running. Book a fitting here.
Where can I buy them in New Zealand? From our Hamilton practice or online here — stock on hand, shipped nationwide.
The short version
If you wear glasses, your hearing is starting to make busy rooms hard work, and you have been putting off doing anything about it — hearing aid glasses are the first product in years that makes the first step easy. And if your loss is beyond what they can help, we will say so and point you to an audiologist.
Book a Nuance Audio fitting in Hamilton → or browse the range →