I've had hearing aids for 20+ years. I occasionally try the tele-coil in locations that have them. I am always disappointed; the quality is just not there. It sounds (haha) like the OP didn't have a very good audiologist, one that did not go through the full range of options with him.
It's also possible that my loss is not severe enough to be satisfied with the tinny tele-coil quality.
I believe the tele-coil technology was developed to enable the use of phones with hearing aids. The aid, when used with an old-style phone held in a normal position, is close enough to pick up the magnetic field directly from the handset speaker. Not very useful for today's phones though.
It's also possible that my loss is not severe enough to be satisfied with the tinny tele-coil quality.
I believe the tele-coil technology was developed to enable the use of phones with hearing aids. The aid, when used with an old-style phone held in a normal position, is close enough to pick up the magnetic field directly from the handset speaker. Not very useful for today's phones though.